The University of Massachusetts-Amherst asked a student to take down a sign that said “Fuck Nazis. You are not welcome here” because it wasn’t inclusive.
The student, Nicole Parsons, was living in the dorms with her roommate when she became fed up with several hate crime incidents on campus, BuzzFeed reported. In September, the university ran an anti-hate campaign and had 19 hate crime incidents reported.
A resident assistant had a “Happy Hanukkah” sign on their door that was defaced with a swastika, which angered Parsons and inspired her to put up her sign.
To her surprise, she received an email from one of the university’s residence directors asking her to remove the sign.
“Though this sign is permitted under Freedom of Speech, I would also like to discuss the impact on the community that this sign has had,” wrote Eddie Papazoni to Parsons. “There are some in the community that have expressed that the sign should be taken down as it has created mixed emotions in the community on how to proceed, issues of inclusion, and the ability to be active members of their community.”
Papazoni admitted that Parsons could not be forced to take the sign down, but he asked that she do it anyway “so that all students can be a part of an inclusive residential experience, as well as having a respectful environment to be a part of here on our campus.”
The university released a short statement of Facebook saying that the email should never have been sent and that it was “poorly worded.” The university insists that it “rejects Nazis, and any other hate group.”
“I was in absolute shock,” Parsons told BuzzFeed. “This email tells me the university cares more about the feelings of Nazis than the safety of their students. I thought maybe if I hang the sign up maybe the person who drew the swastika will see it and see someone condemning their actions even if the administration doesn’t do it.”
Parsons, at the behest of her roommate, removed the sign to avoid negative attention and had made plans prior to the sign being posted to move out of campus housing.
