Harvard Police Investigating After Mezuzah Briefly Goes Missing From Student’s Door

Updated September 5, 2024, at 12:38 a.m.

The Harvard University Police Department is investigating after a mezuzah went missing from the doorway of a Jewish freshman’s dorm in Thayer Hall early Tuesday morning.

The mezuzah, a scroll of parchment containing Torah verses and traditionally placed outside Jewish homes, appeared to be affixed to the doorway with adhesive material. HUPD spokesperson Steven G. Catalano did not indicate whether authorities currently believe the mezuzah was forcibly removed from the doorway or if it became dislodged on its own.

Catalano wrote in a statement that the mezuzah was found on the floor in Thayer “approximately three doors down from the student’s room and returned to the owner.”

“This incident is still under investigation,” Catalano wrote.

The mezuzah belonged to Sarah F. Silverman ’28, who claimed it was deliberately removed from her doorway in Thayer.

Silverman said that the mezuzah was missing for several hours on Tuesday as it had disappeared from her doorway before 9 a.m. and was only recovered by a HUPD officer several hours later during their investigation.

“My roommate and I firmly believe that it was planted then,” Silverman said.

Harvard Chabad Rabbi Hirschy Zarchi wrote in a statement to The Crimson that “we must recognize this incident for what it truly is: a hate crime.”

“To tear down a Mezuzah is to send a message of intimidation and erasure,” Zarchi added. “It’s not just a matter of vandalism; it is an attack on the very identity of the Jewish community at Harvard.”

Zarchi, however, did not provide any evidence that the mezuzah was forcibly removed from the student’s doorway.

Chabad, one of Harvard’s Jewish centers, first revealed the incident in a post on X Tuesday morning and demanded a full investigation from HUPD.

“In light of the shocking incident that occurred last night in Harvard Yard, where the Mezuzah of a Jewish student was ripped off her dorm room sometime after 2 AM, we call on the university and law enforcement, to immediately investigate this hate crime,” Chabad wrote on X. “The perpetrator should be prosecuted to the full extent of the law.”

In response to a request for comment, University spokesperson Jonathan L. Swain said that “every student should feel welcomed in our Harvard community.”

“The University will not tolerate actions that violate this commitment,” he added.

The incident on Tuesday comes after a series of anonymous acts last semester, including the appearance of antisemitic and anti-Palestinian posters around Harvard’s campus and antisemitic posts on Sidechat — a social media app that allows users to publish posts anonymously.

Harvard President Alan M. Garber ’76 has repeatedly discussed the lingering divisions on Harvard’s campus following Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack on Israel. In the months since, Jewish and Muslim Harvard affiliates alike have criticized the University for its handling of antisemitism and Islamophobia on campus.

In June, the presidential task forces to combat antisemitism and anti-Muslim and anti-Arab bias released their preliminary recommendations, in which they both reported that students faced discrimination on campus based on their identity and political views following Oct. 7.

Chabad Co-President Alex L.S. Bernat ’25, a Crimson Editorial editor, wrote in a statement Tuesday evening that destruction or defacement of property, particularly religious property, “is deeply antithetical to values I hope Harvard students hold.”

“I am so saddened that a first year student will start their Harvard experience off, particularly after last school year, with the fear and trauma of their religious observance being threatened,” he wrote.

—Staff writer Michelle N. Amponsah can be reached at michelle.amponsah@thecrimson.com. Follow her on Twitter @mnamponsah.

—Staff writer Joyce E. Kim can be reached at joyce.kim@thecrimson.com. Follow her on X at @joycekim324.