Islamophobic comments targeting students on campus have appeared on Yik Yak, a mobile app that allows anonymous postings visible to users from the same geographical region,after the terrorist attacks in Brussels.
Student leader of the University's Religious Life Council Nabil Shaikh ’17 noted that he saw a post earlier this week on Yik Yak that alleged that half of the world’s Muslims are radical and that there are even some Muslims at the University that fit this description. That particular post received multiple up-votes minutes after appearing, he noted.
He added that under this post, people commented that this is true and that they have met some of them themselves. Some comments said that the presence of Muslim students on campus would condone acts of terrorism.
One such comment read that "All muslims are radical, or else they are not muslims."
“That was disheartening for a lot of Muslim students to see,” Shaikh said. “You feel a lot of Islamophobia on Yik Yak. After tragic events like the Brussels attack, Islamophobia spikes around the country.”
Shaikh is a former president of the Muslim Student Association.
However, he noted that it is unclear whether these comments were made by University students.
Michele Minter, vice provost for Institutional Equity & Diversity, said that her office had not received any formal reports of anti-Muslim statements on Yik Yak or other online forums. However, she noted that upon communicating with several colleagues, she learned that there may have been information shared informally with them. She added that the office will be working to make sure that even informal reports reach her office.
“The University deplores anti-Muslim sentiments, as well as racist, anti-Semitic and other forms of offensive speech directed at individuals or groups based on identity,” Minter said.
She added that because of the University’s commitment to freedom of expression, it is not always possible or appropriate to take disciplinary action, particularly when the speech is anonymous.
“However, our community also strongly values mutual respect, and behavior that rises to the level of harassment as defined by University policy can be subject to discipline. We review all such matters in order to consider what response is appropriate,” Minter said.
In section 1.2.1 of Rights, Rules, Responsibilities, the University enumerates disciplinary actions for speech that amount to harassment or threat.
Minter added that she encourages individuals who are experiencing offensive behavior to be in touch with her office. After being alerted, Minter has reached out to Shaikh to offer assistance.
Rochelle Calhoun, vice president for Campus Life, did not respond to a request for comment.
Nitasha Siddique ’18, vice president of the MSA, said that while Yik Yak does offer a venue for free speech, it actively harms the wellbeing of students on campus. She added that some students feel like they have the opportunity to say bigoted and ignorant things that harm certain groups on campus.
Siddique added that although the Yik Yak platform is anonymous and provides a glimpse of the pulse of campus, it also is very self-selecting. She said that people who feel very strongly one way or the other are the ones who post, and they post multiple times.
A representative from Yik Yak did not respond to a request for comment.
Last April, after receiving an unusually high number of harassment reports from Princeton area after Urban Congo controversy, Yik Yak considered disabling submissions from the region altogether.
Amir Raja '18, president of the MSA,said that one of the primary reasons for why people have bad perceptions of Muslims is because they don’t know a Muslim.
“The positive perception towards Muslims increases drastically once you have actually met a Muslim in your life,” Raja said.
Shaikh said that one important step toward changing negative perceptions is coalition building in which different religious, cultural and ethnic groups align themselves with one another on pressing issues.
“This is really important because when there are oppressors in society, there would be a loud pushback against that,” Shaikh said.
He said that he is grateful for Princeton’s multicultural dynamic that allows for such coalition building.
Shaikh said that he has had administrators reach out to him and offer their words of support.
“I think we often become pessimistic, but looking around, I’ve seen so much support pouring out from different offices on campus,” Shaikh said.
Siddique noted that she knows from personal relationships with other people on this campus that there are many open-minded and kind-hearted people here who would never say or think negative thoughts about Muslims.
“Knowing there are people who are supporting you and are standing in solidarity with you is really empowering. It really shines through in our eyes,” Siddique said.
She added that it is scary to think that even though the majority or at least the people around the Muslims on campus were understanding, there are some people who do not understand their situations and are afraid of them.
“It is a very heartbreaking thought to have that you walk around this campus and feel like you’re at home but you have people who believe that you don’t even belong here,” Siddique said.
Shaikh noted that the ongoing election year makes it even more difficult for Muslims because some of the most bigoted and racist views come from political leaders,adding that he has personally experienced discriminatory hiring practices when he was questioned on his opinion on terrorism during a job interview off campus.
He added that he has seen many of his Muslim friends experience different forms of Islamophobia, whether anonymously or in person.
“It’s unfortunate that we feel oppressed in this way because of our identities,” Shaikh said.
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