3 days ago
MIT professor targeted in vandalism, video
Officials aim to 'to identify the individual or individuals responsible for the graffiti on campus this weekend so that they can be held accountable for these outrageous acts of vandalism, targeting and threats of violence,' the spokesperson said.
On social media, activists also circulated a video soundtracked to chants of 'Death to the IDF,' showing the graffitied doors, and displaying a photograph of MIT professor Daniela Rus's face under her name and the text 'your hands are red!'
Rus, a professor of electrical engineering and computer science and director of the Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory at MIT, did not immediately respond to an email request for comment.
Compared to Harvard, MIT has largely avoided the same level of scrutiny from the Trump administration over alleged antisemitism on campus, but the university has navigated its own deep rifts since the start of the Israel-Hamas war in 2023. In May, Megha Vemuri, then MIT's student president, was
Last month, the Brandeis Center
Talia Khan, a PhD student in mechanical engineering and founder of the MIT Israel Alliance, is among those now calling out university administrators for not doing enough to address antisemitism on campus.
'This violent threat was enabled by MIT's support of terrorist-sympathizing rhetoric. Now, researchers fear being *murdered* if they go into work to do science,' Khan
The video features an excerpt of an op-ed titled 'Daniela Rus, The People Demand: No More Research for Genocide,' which was
The phrase 'Death to the IDF' gained attention following a concert last month at Glastonbury Festival in England where punk rapper Bobby Vylan led crowds in
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Serving in the Israel Defense Forces is mandatory for Israeli citizens over the age of 18, with some exceptions. The graffiti, therefore, is 'calling for the death of all Israelis,' said Khan.
After the events Sunday, said Khan, she expected MIT leadership would send out an email condemning the act of vandalism and video, and ensuring the safety of MIT students and larger community.
'But nothing like that happened,' said Khan, 27, who founded the MIT Israel Alliance after Oct. 7, 2023.
'The fact that after so many months, they are completely impotent, they have no idea what to do . . . it just seems like they haven't learned their lesson at all,' she said. 'I mean, really, this is mind boggling. I don't understand why they wouldn't just send out an email and say we are committed to making sure everybody stays safe, and it is unacceptable to threaten the lives of people on campus for the research that they're doing.'
'We are focused on action, specifically identifying those responsible so that they can be held accountable,' said the MIT spokesperson.
'The MIT administration right now is shooting itself in the foot . . . It's not doing anything to combat antisemitism or to protect people on campus,' said Khan, adding that the problem is 'not just about antisemitism' and 'not just about Jews.'
'This is just about people being physically safe on campus and not being targeted, and the MIT administration is completely failing,' she said.
The MIT spokesperson said that while the university does not publicly discuss the specifics of internal safety plans, 'we are taking steps beyond the investigation to further increase security on campus.'
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Brooke Hauser can be reached at
