In a shocking display of targeted harassment, hundreds of posters appeared across the University of Rochester campus Sunday night, depicting Jewish faculty members with “wanted” labels, accusing them of various acts such as “ethnic cleansing,” “racism,” and “hate speech.” The incident is being investigated as an antisemitic attack intended to intimidate Jewish members of the university community.

University President Sarah Mangelsdorf issued a statement denouncing the posters, calling the act “disturbing, divisive, and intimidating.” She added that the incident “runs counter to our values as a university” and confirmed that such hateful actions would not be tolerated on campus.

One of the targeted faculty members, Associate Professor Gregory Heyworth, highlighted the hypocrisy of those who posted the accusations. Heyworth noted how the perpetrators, under the guise of free speech, resorted to doxxing—a tactic they ironically accused him of. “Their willingness to push the boundaries of anti-democratic behavior and infringe on free speech—to lie, distort, and propagandize—while relying upon those same democratic values for cover is telling,” he said.

The incident has stirred fear and frustration among Jewish students and faculty, who feel under siege. “I’m just tired,” a Jewish student, who requested anonymity, told CNN. “It’s been a long year, and I want peace desperately. But doing things like this, targeting faculty, administration, and staff to intimidate them and spread hate, while also just making more work for the maintenance staff, is wrong.”

University Public Safety Chief Quchee Collins described the posters as “an act of vandalism” with the apparent goal of intimidating members of the university community. He confirmed that his department is actively investigating the incident, adding that the posters had been adhered with a strong adhesive, causing damage to campus property as they were painstakingly removed.

This recent incident follows an earlier antisemitic attack at the University of Rochester in February, when swastikas and other hateful language were discovered in campus tunnels.

The University of Rochester’s Hillel organization, representing Jewish students, called the posters “deeply disturbing” and an attack on Jewish faculty, staff, and students. They expressed hope that this incident would prompt the university to take meaningful steps toward educating the campus on Jewish identity and antisemitism.

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