At least one Temple University student has been suspended after an antisemitic incident Saturday at a Philadelphia sports bar owned by Barstool Sports founder Dave Portnoy, the school said Sunday.
The incident began when a customer ordered bottle service at Barstool Sansom Street in downtown Philadelphia, and an antisemitic sign was ordered along with it, Portnoy said in a video posted to social media Sunday.
The sign read “F**k the Jews,” according to Portnoy. He said the incident made him furious and he immediately launched an investigation of who was responsible for the sign.
Portnoy said he spoke with two men who were responsible for the incident, and two servers at his bar who were involved have been fired.
“The employees complied with a customer’s request for a sign in connection with ordering bottle service,” Barstool Samson Street said in a statement posted to social media Sunday.
“We take all forms of discrimination incredibly seriously, and are particularly upset by actions taken against our Jewish patrons, colleagues, partners, and friends,” it said in the post.
In a letter to the Temple University community Sunday, President John Fry said the school is investigating a “deeply disturbing” antisemitic incident and the student who is believed to be involved has been placed on interim suspension. The letter did not describe the incident.
“In the strongest terms possible, let me be clear: antisemitism is abhorrent. It has no place at Temple and acts of hatred and discrimination against any person or persons are not tolerated at this university,” Fry said.
CNN reached out to Temple University for additional information.
Portnoy, who is Jewish, decided to “use this as a teaching moment, not just for (those involved), but maybe for everyone,” he said in a second video about the incident. He spoke to the two men’s families and is paying for the men to visit Auschwitz, the Nazi concentration camp in Poland during the Holocaust.
“The more I thought about it, it’s like, these are young f**king morons who did this, drunk,” he said. “It’s like, do you really want to ruin someone’s life?”
Portnoy said he believes sending them on a trip to Auschwitz is “a fair outcome of this event.”
The incident comes amid growing scrutiny of US universities’ handling of alleged antisemitism. Temple is one of 60 US institutions that received letters from the Department of Education in March announcing an investigation into antisemitic discrimination and harassment, warning institutions of possible consequences if they don’t take adequate steps to protect Jewish students.
The Anti-Defamation League in Philadelphia responded to the incident with a statement Sunday saying, “ADL Philadelphia is aware of the offensive and hateful message “F*** the Jews” that was displayed inside Barstool, a nightlife spot on Sansom Street.”
“We are investigating the situation and are getting in touch with the bar’s management. We have also alerted law enforcement,” the statement added. “Antisemitic slurs and statements have no place in our city.”
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