George Mason University responded on social media Tuesday to a video of a woman taking down and tearing up a poster “that appears to depict Israeli children kidnapped as part of the Israel-Hamas conflict.”
The video seems to have been recorded at the Virginia university’s Fairfax location and has been reposted thousands of times since it was uploaded on Monday, with users calling the woman’s actions antisemitic and asking people to help identify her.
The video was recorded in the Johnson Center by someone that put up the posters, who first asks the woman why she was taking down a poster of a person that has been kidnapped by Hamas, a militant group in the Gaza strip.
The woman first responds that she wanted to read the poster more closely. She then start to question the person recording her, asking why they are putting up “propaganda.” The woman says she doesn’t want to discuss the conflict, but continues to take down posters.
When the person recording the video says they will continue to put up more posters and want the one being held by the woman back, she starts to fold up the poster and walk away. As the person recording keeps following her and asking for the poster back, the woman begins tearing it up.
She hands the torn up pieces to the video recorder, who continues to question the woman and follows her before stopping the recording.
George Mason University said in its response to the video that “property destruction” and “doxing” are not constitutionally protected speech, and that while the actions in the video are not considered criminal, the campus police and University Life personnel will be investigating the post and incident for violating the student code of conduct.
— George Mason University (@GeorgeMasonU) October 31, 2023
Doxing is the process of searching for and posting identifying information about a particular individual on the internet, as the university is probably referring to antisemitism and pro-Israel social media groups calling for the person in the video to be identified.
On the same day, Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin issued an executive directive aimed at combating antisemitism and other forms of anti-religious hatred.
Youngkin specifically asked Virginia’s higher education institutions to submit updated comprehensive safety plans and instructed school divisions to promote safety resources. The governor said the directive was in response to “a massive increase in antisemitic threats” around the state, as well as out of concern for members of the Muslim community.
The governor’s directive comes after the Council on American-Islamic Relations said it had to cancel a banquet in Crystal City after receiving threats and being targeted by protests.
Antisemitic graffiti has been found in high schools and universities across the D.C. and northern Virginia region. There have also been online threats to Jewish students at Cornell University, prompting officials to send police to guard a Jewish center and kosher dining hall.
Peaceful protests of the Israel-Hamas war have also been taking place at local colleges and universities, including at George Mason where students gathered in support of Palestinian statehood in early October.
George Mason said they will be addressing the actions in the video and on social media “in accordance with our code.” The university asserted at the end of the statement that they remain “committed to maintaining a welcoming environment for everyone and is acting accordingly.”
