Students painted the Advocacy and Spirit walls on Monday night with the Palestinian flag and messages that included “I dream of breaking the siege,” “Come together in peace” and the number of Palestinian children killed in Gaza since war between Israel and Hamas broke out in October.
Early Tuesday morning, contractors hired by the college were ordered to paint over the walls because the administration said the messaging was “threatening, intimidating and antisemitic,” according to an email from Eric Kaler, Case’s president.
Yup calling for peace is apparently antisemitism. 🙄
In a statement Wednesday, Cleveland Mayor Justin Bibb and the city’s police chief, Annie Todd, urged Kaler and his administration to think of the students’ rights.
“We support 1st Amendment rights and implore CWRU leadership to consider this and think about how the decisions they make and the actions they take – especially against those who are abiding by the law – will influence some of the progress we have collectively made as a city. At the same time, we urge individuals to demonstrate peacefully,” Bibb and Todd said.
Wow, that was completely unexpected!