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Daphne Budin had never eaten non-kosher meat before coming to Syracuse University. 

But because of the limited options in SU’s dining halls, Budin, a sophomore human development and family science major, has since started eating meat that isn’t kosher. Most dining halls don’t serve kosher foods, and Budin’s allergies can make finding suitable options even harder.

“When I would go into the dining hall, there were just not so many options,” Budin said. “It kind of just became a routine that I started to eat ‘unkosher’ meat.” 

Some Jewish students keep kosher — they don’t eat pork or shellfish, they don’t mix meat and milk, and they only eat meat that has been slaughtered in a particular way, among other laws. SU provides kosher food options in Shaw Hall, but Budin, who is Jewish, doesn’t know anyone who lives there. She would rather eat in her Ernie Davis Dining Hall with friends than walk farther and eat alone. 

The lack of kosher food on campus is just one issue that Jewish students face. In a survey conducted by Damon Williams, an expert on diversity efforts, Jewish students said discrimination is one of the biggest obstacles they encounter at SU. 

Jewish students who responded to the survey reported experiencing discrimination at higher rates than other students.

The Board of Trustees Special Committee on University Climate, Diversity and Inclusion engaged Williams and the Center for Strategic Diversity Leadership and Social Innovation to implement the campus climate survey last fall. 

Sam Aaronson, a junior political science and public relations major, said she feels safe as a Jewish student on campus, but some of her non-Jewish peers aren’t well educated about Judaism, which can sometimes lead to misunderstandings or microaggressions. 

“When I encounter students sometimes that don’t know all that much about Judaism is when things get a little bit difficult to be a Jewish student on campus,” Aaronson said. “Sometimes there are questions that get awkward or uncomfortable.”

Photo by Emily Steinberger | Photo Editor, Graphic by Yiwei He | Design Editor

Sydney Schroeder, a sophomore majoring in public relations and English, grew up in Los Angeles and attended Jewish day school from kindergarten to high school. Schroeder, who grew up in this widely Jewish community, never experienced anti-Semitism until she came to SU. 

“Coming to Syracuse and seeing some anti-Semitism was jarring to me,” Schroeder said. “I was lucky to have my Hillel community to fall back on and talk about what happened.” 

In November 2019, students found a swastika drawn in the snow across the street from The 505 on Walnut, a luxury apartment complex where many SU students live. Other instances of vandalism on campus also included swastikas. 

Jewish students presented a list of six concerns to SU’s administration following the incidents, which Chancellor Kent Syverud signed in November 2019. The concerns include security assessments of university-owned buildings, reevaluating the university’s religious observance policy and implementing training and other educational programs that recognize Judaism as identity.

According to SU’s campus commitments page, where the university tracks its progress on diversity and inclusion initiatives, three of the concerns from Jewish students have been completely addressed while progress on three others is “substantially complete.” 

Budin, who also grew up in a vibrant Jewish community, said that the vandalism and campus unrest was her first real encounter with anti-Semitism.

Many Jewish students at SU come from the greater New York City area, Westchester County or Long Island, which have been heavily impacted by anti-Semitic violence, Williams’ report noted. It is important that the university be aware, understanding and supportive of these students, according to the report.

Despite anti-Semitic incidents at SU and across the nation, Schroeder has enjoyed her experience in Syracuse, largely because she has found a community with Syracuse Hillel, one of the Jewish student organizations on campus. When anti-Semitism does occur on campus, Schroeder said she’s able to turn to her friends at Hillel to talk about what happened. 

Photo by Emily Steinberger | Photo Editor, Graphic by Yiwei He | Design Editor

“Hillel has been working hard to include all Jewish-identifying students on campus and having open dialogues about anti-Semitism and conditions on campus,” Schroeder said.

Syracuse Hillel and Chabad House Jewish Student Center, which operate under Hendricks Chapel, are two student organizations that Jewish students engage with. Some Jewish students also go to Syracuse Jews, an off-campus organization that doesn’t operate under Hendricks Chapel.

Jason Resnick, a senior accounting major who’s also involved in Hillel, said the organization was swift in reaching out to Jewish students and providing them with the resources they needed when anti-Semitic incidents occurred. 

Resnick hasn’t personally experienced discrimination as a Jewish student at SU, but he has friends who have. Organizations like Hillel gave them a place to turn for support, he said. 

For Resnick, getting involved with Jewish student organizations has been essential to his experience at SU. There are resources on campus for Jewish students to feel comfortable reporting incidents of discrimination and anti-Semitism, he said. 

But for students who haven’t found an organization or group to be a part of, finding a comfortable environment and support can be challenging, Aaronson said. 

“If you’re tapped in to the Jewish network on campus, then there are plenty of resources,” she said. “But if you’re not necessarily tapped into one of those, I could see students feeling uncomfortable and feel like they don’t have a place to go.”

In addition to the concerns SU officials have worked to address, Aaronson said she and other Jewish students have been working to develop and implement anti-Semitism training for student organizations across campus. She hopes to see some form of anti-Semitism training next fall in the first-year seminar course replacing SEM 100. 

The university has modified the SEM 100 course to become a 12-week, one-credit course called FYS 101 beginning next fall. 

“Educating people would help create a welcoming and safer environment for all students,” she said. 

Published on April 18, 2021 at 9:53 pm

Contact Sarah: scalessa@syr.edu | @sarahalessan