Menorahs toppled at Georgetown U.

The Hoya WASHINGTON (U-WIRE) -- A Georgetown University Law Center menorah fell to the ground Tuesday morning, only three days after vandals defaced a menorah on Georgetown's main campus, an event that prompted an ongoing investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Recently, questions have been raised about the role that the Department of Public Safety played in protecting the religious symbol in the University's Red Square. This latest incident is the third instance of damage occurring to a menorah on Georgetown property over the last two years, alarming students, administrators and outside observers. According to Georgetown spokesperson Dan Wackerman, the Law Center's menorah was found toppled over and damaged in the early hours on Tuesday. Though the incident is being investigated and treated as an act of vandalism, Wackerman said that there is no conclusive information available yet and that it is "a likely possibility" that there was no vandalism or foul play. The wind could have blown the menorah down, he said. DPS and the FBI, according to DPS Chief William Tucker, are investigating the incident on the school's main campus as an act of vandalism. Tucker said that the FBI contacted him on Monday or Tuesday and the two agencies are carrying out "concurrent" investigations. Tucker said that DPS investigators have spoken to more than 10 people, though he said that he was not aware of any leads. At the FBI's Washington Field Office, an investigator who refused to identify himself said that Bureau protocol prevented him from confirming or denying the status of an FBI investigation of the vandalism. Agent Susan Lloyd, an FBI spokesperson, also refused to confirm that the FBI has an open investigation. However, Lloyd said that the issue is a matter of civil rights, involving a hate crime. Hate crimes, she explained, are like traditional offenses but are motivated by the criminal's hatred or bias. Over the course of the last few days, Georgetown Jewish Student Association President Steve Glickman has come to the conclusion that vandals acted out of hate. "We can't use students being drunk as an excuse. Students don't just become anti-Semitic when they become drunk. Somewhere, obviously deep down inside, they wanted to destroy it, they didn't feel it belonged," he said. Kayle Becker, assistant director of the Anti Defamation League, Washington, D.C., Regional Office, said that "as far as we can tell? we would say, yes, this is definitely an anti-Semitic act... a hate crime." One eyewitness confirmed that a group of 12 to 15 males was standing around the menorah, uttering anti-Semitic comments around midnight Friday. "I saw someone simulating sex with the menorah?. They were like, 'What the [expletive] is this doing here? I thought this was supposed to be a Christian school. We should tear it down.'" She said that Glickman contacted the ADL, which has offered its services to the university. The ADL, she said, provides educational programs designed to teach students how to respect diversity. Further, the ADL has a close relationship with the law enforcement agencies and runs hate crime training to help agents recognize the warning signs of hate crimes. Becker said that the ADL has dealt with campus problems before, most recently involving a threatening letter sent to African Studies faculty and members of the Black Student Union at the University of Maryland. Georgetown's administration has responded to the incident "very responsibly," Becker said, though the ADL is "questioning the role that the campus police first played in responding to the act and protecting the menorah." She refused to explain further, saying that the ADL is "seriously investigating" the matter. Tucker said that he was not aware that the menorah was erected in Red Square until he heard of the vandalism. Now, he said, 24-hour security provides protection for the menorah and students keeping vigil around Red Square.