Skip To Content
JEWISH. INDEPENDENT. NONPROFIT.
Fast Forward

Swastika Found On Israeli Sisters’ Dorm Room At Indiana College

(JTA) — A swastika was drawn on the wall of a dorm room at the University of Indianapolis shared by twin Israeli sisters.

The swastika in faint red marker was discovered Monday night as Shira and Michal Sasson were moving into their room. The Israeli students starting their junior year are on the University of Indianapolis basketball team, the Indianapolis Star reported.

The women, who are Jewish, were provided with a different room and with emotional support, university officials said in a statement.

“We are saddened and angered by this act of hate and bigotry. Although we do not yet know the source of this anti-Semitic act, we should all be reminded that the University of Indianapolis is a welcoming and inclusive environment, denounces actions such as these, and does not tolerate anti-Semitic actions or any behavior that is aligned with ideologies that promote hate,” the statement also said.

Thousands of people from outside organizations rented rooms on campus over the summer, the university told the local Fox affiliate. It is not clear that the swastika was meant to target the Israeli sisters.

“I was disgusted, hurt and really taken aback,” Michal Sasson told the Indianapolis Star. “I was quite surprised. I’ve never received this kind of hate.”

“It was like a kick in my stomach,” she also said. “I felt like there was a knot in my stomach. It was just very harsh, like right in your face. I just said we’re miles and miles away from home, and this is our home away from home. And at that moment, I felt even further away from my house.”

I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning journalism this Passover.

In this age of misinformation, our work is needed like never before. We report on the news that matters most to American Jews, driven by truth, not ideology.

At a time when newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall. That means for the first time in our 126-year history, Forward journalism is free to everyone, everywhere. With an ongoing war, rising antisemitism, and a flood of disinformation that may affect the upcoming election, we believe that free and open access to Jewish journalism is imperative.

Readers like you make it all possible. Right now, we’re in the middle of our Passover Pledge Drive and we still need 300 people to step up and make a gift to sustain our trustworthy, independent journalism.

Make a gift of any size and become a Forward member today. You’ll support our mission to tell the American Jewish story fully and fairly. 

— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO

Join our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.

Only 300 more gifts needed by April 30

Republish This Story

Please read before republishing

We’re happy to make this story available to republish for free, unless it originated with JTA, Haaretz or another publication (as indicated on the article) and as long as you follow our guidelines. You must credit the Forward, retain our pixel and preserve our canonical link in Google search.  See our full guidelines for more information, and this guide for detail about canonical URLs.

To republish, copy the HTML by clicking on the yellow button to the right; it includes our tracking pixel, all paragraph styles and hyperlinks, the author byline and credit to the Forward. It does not include images; to avoid copyright violations, you must add them manually, following our guidelines. Please email us at [email protected], subject line “republish,” with any questions or to let us know what stories you’re picking up.

We don't support Internet Explorer

Please use Chrome, Safari, Firefox, or Edge to view this site.