Cal Poly entrance sign, buildings vandalized with anti-war graffiti
On Halloween night, vandals spray-painted walls on Cal Poly buildings and a university entrance sign to protest Israel’s attacks on Gaza and the university’s connections with the U.S. military.
At about 7 p.m., the Cal Poly Police Department received reports of graffiti on two buildings in the Engineering Plaza, university spokesperson Matt Lazier said.
Patrolling officers then found graffiti in the University Union and on the sign at the Grand Avenue entrance to campus, he said.
Graffiti on the Cal Poly sign said, “from Gaza to Cal Poly let the intifada spread” and “divest from genocide,” photos showed.
Other graffiti included message such as, “F--k RTX, F--k Boeing, F--k Northrop, F-- Gen Atomics.”
The university removed or painted over the graffiti “immediately,” Lazier said.
On Friday, local groups Abolitionist Action Central Coast and Cal Poly Students for Quality Education circulated a news release in support of the vandalism without taking credit for it.
“Universities like Cal Poly are an indispensable part of the war machine, funneling fresh graduates to these companies to work on bombs and guns and drones and weapons and fighter jets,” the news release said.
“The genocides around the world rely on the contributions of institutions like Cal Poly to continue. So of course actionists in the Central Coast targeted this institution. And they were right to do so,” the groups said.
The student group Mustangs United For Israel, however, said the graffiti should be considered hate speech.
“This targeted attack on Zionist and Jewish students cannot be ignored,” the group said in a statement on Instagram. “Incidents like this make Jewish and Zionist students feel alienated and unwelcome on their own campus. It is unacceptable that the statements on our campus were not addressed with a clear and public denouement by the university.”
The Cal Poly Police Department was still investigating the vandalism as of Friday afternoon, Lazier said.
“Cal Poly believes in and fully supports lawful protests, demonstrations and other free speech activities,” Lazier said in an email to The Tribune. “However, the university will fully enforce the laws and rules governing our campus to protect our community, and anyone who partakes in unlawful activity or violations of university policy is subject to the consequences of their actions. These are not the university’s rules but the basic rules of society by which we all live.”
This story was originally published November 1, 2024 at 6:41 PM.
