Antisemitic incident

October 7, 2022

Dear members of the Tufts community,

I am writing to you in great dismay and sadness regarding an alleged antisemitic incident that I was informed of today. This incident involved some members of a club sports team during their recent visit to another higher education institution in New England to compete at a match. The alleged conduct is appalling and goes against our values as an institution, and those values do not end at the borders of our campus. When any member of our community leaves our campus, they represent each of us. This alleged act diminishes every single member of our community. We are working with our counterparts at the other institution on a formal investigation. Due to the abhorrent nature of the allegations, we are suspending all team activities for this club sports team until the investigation is complete.

I want to express my solidarity with our Jewish students, faculty, staff, and alumni for whom this will hit especially hard given that the alleged incident occurred during the Jewish High Holidays. And I want to state in no uncertain terms that antisemitism is not tolerated–and will not be tolerated–at Tufts University. This is particularly upsetting because the university community has worked hard over the past two years in a concerted effort to fight antisemitism on campus. This incident, if true, shows that as much as we have done, there is still much to do. We strive to create a community in which all members can express their beliefs and identities free from fear or intimidation. Each of us has a responsibility to take active measures to ensure that we build this community. It doesn’t just happen automatically. It takes hard work and deliberate actions. Today we must recommit ourselves to this effort.

Sincerely,

Tony Monaco