{"id":114645,"date":"2020-06-11T16:51:24","date_gmt":"2020-06-11T14:51:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/?p=114645"},"modified":"2025-12-19T11:24:58","modified_gmt":"2025-12-19T10:24:58","slug":"antisemitic-messages-in-whatsapp-group-public-administration","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/2020\/06\/11\/antisemitic-messages-in-whatsapp-group-public-administration\/","title":{"rendered":"Antisemitic messages in WhatsApp group Public Administration"},"content":{"rendered":"

Second-year Public Administration students at EUR shared messages in a WhatsApp group that were deemed ‘racist, antisemitic and discriminatory in nature’ by the Erasmus School of Social and Behavioural Sciences (ESSB). The dean has spoken to the students and given them a formal warning.<\/p>\n

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The Mandeville Building, which currently houses the ESSB.<\/span><\/p>

\n\t\n\n<\/svg>\n<\/span>\n\tImage by:<\/span>\n\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tRonald van den Heerik<\/a>\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>

Dean Victor Bekkers and Public Administration programme director Brenda Vermeeren have expressed their \u2018severe shock at the transgressive nature of these messages\u2019 in a message to Public Administration students on Canvas. The students have been called to account by the dean, who gave them a formal written warning.<\/p>\n

Not reported<\/h2>

The fact that the students were only given a formal warning by the dean is striking considering the consequences of a similar incident in Erasmus University College<\/a> in February. The students involved in that particular episode were called into the office of Executive Board Chair Hans Smits for a conversation. Furthermore, the university yielded information to the police and Smits said that he would report the incident with them as well. \u201cWe take such incidents very seriously and will take fitting measures, like preparing our report for the police,\u201d Smith said at that time. As of yet, that report has not been filed, because of the coronavirus crisis.<\/p>\n

In this case no report will be made to the police because of the \u2018time span between when the messages were typed and when the incident was reported\u2019, says a faculty spokesperson. The messages were posted in a WhatsApp group in September 2019, and the faculty received the report in March of 2020. A source within the study programme states that racist messages were shared on at least three separate instances, spread out over multiple months. Allegedly, fellow students didn\u2019t criticise them very much.<\/p>\n

Inclusivity programme<\/h2>

In a written response, the ESSB has told EM<\/em> that it doesn\u2019t tolerate \u2018any racist, antisemitic and discriminatory expressions from its students or staff in the context of their studies or work\u2019. \u201cFitting measures will be taken if such appear to be in evidence. They constitute a wider societal problem. Diversity and inclusion are highly valued by the Erasmus University Rotterdam. It\u2019s important to make this topic discussable within the university. Conversations and programmes from the Diversity and Inclusion Office are contributing to that within the academic community.\u201d<\/p>\n

A pilot project has for instance been started for IBelong, a programme for inbound first-years that \u2018highlights the importance of inclusivity\u2019. Furthermore, the faculty is collaborating with the D&I Office on a protocol for lecturers to identify and report such expressions.<\/p>\n\n\t

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Read about an earlier incident at the EUC<\/h2>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t