Content warning: This article contains mentions of antisemitic language that can be disturbing and/or triggering for some readers.
Unknown individuals vandalized additional locations on and near Penn’s campus this week with derogatory language, including one calling to "KILL ZIOS."
In the three recent acts — two of which were discovered on Oct. 21 and one of which was discovered on the morning of Oct. 23 — the text read "KILL YOUR LOCAL ZIO NAZI," "KILL ZIOS!," "SINWAR LIVES," and "SINWAR STRIKES BACK." All instances included upside-down triangles. The vandalism follows at least three separate instances of vandalism over the weekend, where signs on campus were vandalized with text reading "SINWAR LIVES" and an upside-down triangle.
In response to a request for comment from The Daily Pennsylvanian, a University spokesperson wrote that "the vile language in the graffiti is inconsistent with Penn's values."
"If campus policies were violated by a member of our community, consequences for the perpetrator(s) will be pursued," the spokesperson said.
Penn’s Division of Public Safety did not respond to a request for comment on the incidents.
Yahya Sinwar, the former leader of Hamas, was killed in Gaza by the Israeli military on Oct. 16. Sinwar played a central role in the planning of the Oct. 7, 2023 Hamas attacks on Israel, during which Hamas killed approximately 1,200 individuals and took another 250 hostage.
The upside-down triangle, which is typically red in color, has previously been used as a symbol for a number of notable purposes. It has been used by the pro-Palestinian movement to represent solidarity with Palestinians, by the military wing of Hamas to identify targets, and historically by the Nazis to mark political prisoners during World War II.
A student who requested anonymity due to fear of personal safety told the DP that they observed the first instance of vandalism while walking to class around 8:30 a.m. on Oct. 21 on 38th Street, below the Locust Walk Bridge. According to a picture obtained by the DP, the text read "SINWAR LIVES" and "KILL ZIOS!" with an upside-down triangle.
The student added that seeing the vandalism was "pretty upsetting" and that "any death threat is of concern." They said it "really did take a toll on [their] whole day and whole week."
The student added that they reported the incident to a Jewish professor, who passed it along to other authorities.
The second instance of vandalism occurred on Spruce Street between 40th and 41st streets across from Penn Chabad’s Sukkah, a festival structure for the Jewish holiday of Sukkot. The vandalism, which was also near the Chabad House, read "KILL YOUR LOCAL ZIO NAZI" with an upside-down triangle. The DP observed the vandalism on the evening of Oct. 21.
The term "zio" has previously been used in a variety of contexts, including as simply a shortened version of "Zionist" and as a euphemism for "Jew." The term has been described as antisemitic by a variety of groups, including the American Jewish Committee, Anti-Defamation League, and British Labour Party. The term was first coined as an ethnic slur by Ku Klux Klan Grand Wizard David Duke.
When "Zios get fuckt" was graffitied on Penn's campus during the spring spring Gaza Solidarity Encampment, President Larry Jameson and several other administrators denounced it as "antisemitic" and "especially reprehensible," adding that it would be investigated as a hate crime.
Chabad House Director Ephraim Levin told the DP that Chabad has been "in touch" with University officials and with law enforcement about the incident.
While Levin added that Chabad is "very concerned about what was put there," he added that he does not feel the incident is "representative of the community."
"I feel this diminishes the light of the community. It's something that darkens the community," Levin said, adding that he is trying to "restore the light [and] try to show the opposite of hatred [to] show what Penn is all about: openness and kindness within the community that we've always felt at the University."
The DP observed the third instance — reading "SINWAR STRIKES BACK" with an upside-down triangle — early in the morning of Oct. 23 on 40th and Irving streets, adjacent to Gregory College House. Though students first noticed the text early in the morning, it remained present through Wednesday evening.
After the first two incidents over the weekend, the Penn Israel Public Affairs Committee attributed the beginning of the Israel-Hamas war to Sinwar's "planning and execution" of the Oct. 7, 2023 attacks, describing them as "the largest attack on Jews since the Holocaust," in a written statement to the DP.
"Anyone who glorifies Sinwar and his terrorism is anti-peace, anti-American, and antisemitic. There is no place for this at Penn," PIPAC wrote. "We hope that soon, Hamas finally surrenders and releases the hostages they are still holding captive in Gaza."
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