Wilfrid Laurier University in southern Ontario is looking into an incident where two Jewish prayer scrolls were destroyed and removed from residence doors during Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year holiday.
“It’s just an annoying distraction from the positive work we’re trying to do,” Rabbi Moshe Goldman, director of Waterloo’s Rohr Chabad Centre for Jewish Life, told .
“We’re not dealing with somebody very mature. We’re not dealing with somebody very kind. This person needs help.”
The scrolls, known as mezuzahs, are small containers that hold parchment inscribed with verses from the Torah. They’re typically placed on the doorways of Jewish homes.
The Waterloo Regional Police Service informed that they are aware of what happened and have looked into information gathered by Laurier’s Special Constable Service, but the investigation is still under the university’s authority.
“We take the safety of our students very seriously. We strongly condemn acts of antisemitism, and have zero tolerance for hate speech, racism, threats and harassment,” the university said in a statement to .
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Mezuzahs are traditionally attached to the doorways of Jewish homes. (Submitted by Rabbi Moshe Goldman)
The two students affected reached out to Goldman via social media over the weekend. He mentioned that when he saw the vandalism on Sunday, he took immediate action.
“I told them, ‘I’m coming tomorrow, and we’re going to put them back up. Get your friends together. We’re having a party.’
On Monday, Goldman along with Laurier dean of students Adam Lawrence reinstalled the mezuzahs on the residents’ doors. About 25 students joined in, including members from the Jewish fraternity AEPi.
“It was great. A lot of hugs, a lot of smiles and a fair amount of relief,” Goldman said. “Even if there might be a rotten apple, there’s far more people of goodwill who will push right back.”
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Rabbi Moshe Goldman, director Waterloo’s Rohr Chabad Centre for Jewish Life, says he’s concerned about how this vandalism has impacted students. (Submitted by Rabbi Moshe Goldman)
In Guelph, a local synagogue near that city’s university has been defaced with antisemitic graffiti twice this year.
“There’s no justifying it; there’s no whitewashing it; there’s no excuse for it,” Goldman stated. “The only thing that we ask from anyone out there is just to be left alone.”
Since last weekend’s vandalism incident occurred more than 50 students have requested mezuzahs for their rooms. Additionally, an anonymous family related to a Laurier student donated $3,600 toward new mezuzahs which cost $88 each.
“It’s almost like the silver lining is greater than the cloud,” Goldman said. “Certainly for our community we’ve seen much worse and we’re not going anywhere.”
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Tackling Antisemitism Issues
While Goldman may never fully understand what drove the vandalizer’s actions, he recognizes how it affects Jewish students at a time when worries about antisemitism on college campuses are rising. “I don’t know what the intent was. The effect, I know what it was,” Goldman said. “The effect is intimidation. The effect is fear. The effect is being shaken and being unsure – can I live my life as a Jew in this part of the world?” A national report released in August revealed that 95.7 percent of Jewish students had experienced or witnessed at least one antisemitic incident. Beyond universities, this year’s Snapshot of Hate Report recorded 172 hate incidents tied to Waterloo region in 2025-up from 79 last year-bringing total documented incidents to 289.Source link
