On Jan. 31, two swastikas were painted on the house of UC Davis’ Alpha Epsilon Pi (AEPi) fraternity, which is historically and predominantly Jewish. The incident is currently under investigation by the UC Davis Police Department as a hate crime. Many student groups have urged the UC Davis community to not connect the crime with the outcome of ASUCD senate’s Jan. 29 meeting and decision to recommend the University of California regents to divest from companies affiliated with Israel. While the Editorial Board will not make assumptions regarding the motive or identity of the perpetrator(s), we would like to take the opportunity to denounce hate crimes at UC Davis.
There is no place for hate on this campus. Whether manifested in racism, sexism, homophobia, Islamophobia or anti-semitism, hate is a byproduct of ignorance and we implore the UC Davis community to stand above the insinuating rhetoric, the name-calling and the abhorrent, despicable actions.
UC Davis fosters important, intelligent and passionate conversations and debates, often forcing students and those involved to move past the superficial understandings of these subjects. The Editorial Board is proud to serve a diverse and opinionated student body and relishes our ability as Aggies, both as media members and students, to exhibit our opinions freely.
The crime committed at AEPi was a blatant act of hate — a vile and repugnant display of ignorance and idiocy that we are saddened to acknowledge exists in Davis. However, there is an immeasurable account of hate that goes unnoticed and undocumented daily, and the Editorial Board stands in solidarity with those who have experienced it. UC Davis: Rise above the despicable, hateful actions and words and make the community and student body proud of this campus once again.
Graphic by Jennifer Wu
