Anti-Israel protesters harassed Jewish Baruch College freshmen attending a welcome ceremony this week, and cruelly taunted them about the killing of six hostages by Hamas militants in Gaza, according to a disturbing video shared on Instagram.
“Where is Hersh, you ugly guy? Go bring them home,” one protester yelled at the students, referring to the Israeli-American Hersh Goldberg-Polin23, another of six hostages killed by Hamas Found dead in Gaza on 31 August,
The new students were attending Hillel’s welcome dinner, held at the Mr. Broadway kosher restaurant in Midtown, where, according to a post by the student group, a crowd of about a dozen people chanted threatening slogans, including, “You will not be going home tonight.”
Baruch Students for Justice in Palestine, which administrators say is not affiliated with the college, helped organize the hate festival, and asked for “support” for the restaurant beforehand on Instagram. The Jewish Telegraphic Agency reported,
Social media posts show that the SJP chapter has called on CUNY to end its relationship with Hillel International, which has 850 campus chapters.
The cowed protesters — most of whom covered their heads and faces with keffiyeh scarves — chanted “All Zionists are racists” and “CUNY, CUNY, you can’t hide, you support genocide,” repeating left-wing lies that critics say ignore Hamas’ responsibility for starting the war.
One even showed an upside-down triangle symbol, which has been used by Hamas militants to identify Israeli military targets.
“Elya Bratman, what do you say? How many children did you kill today?” the group also chanted, calling out Hillel's executive director.
Hillel at Baruch, which educates about 2,000 Jewish students, said the horrific incident “reflects the reality that Jewish students face on American college campuses today.”
“Our annual Welcome Back Dinner should have been a warm welcome for our new students… but instead we were met with hate,” the group posted on Instagram.
CUNY Chancellor Felix Matos Rodriguez said the university system is investigating the incident and will impose disciplinary action as appropriate.
“I was deeply disappointed that protesters disrupted a Hillel welcome dinner for students from CUNY and universities across the city, turning an event designed to help new students acclimate to college life into a disruptive hate-filled demonstration that has no place in our city,” Rodriguez said in a statement.
“The safety of everyone in our community is our top priority,” he said.
A Baruch spokesperson said in a statement that the school was offended by the language used in the protest.
According to a New York Police Department spokesperson, no arrests were made during the protest, which was dispersed by police.
