U.S. college campus hit with alt-right linked flyers ahead of AIPAC conference

Entrances to a bulding at American University were plastered with posters created by Richard Spencer's "Operation Homeland."

FEBRUARY 28, 2018 08:59

A poster reading "No More Wars for Israel" on the entrance to a campus buiding at American University, February 2018 (photo credit: screenshot) — A poster reading "No More Wars for Israel" on the entrance to a campus buiding at American University, February 2018

(photo credit: screenshot)

Students at American University on Thursday found entrances to a campus building covered in posters that read "No More Wars for Israel," put up as part of a campaign spearheaded by alt-right activist Richard Spencer.

According to The Eagle, the university's student newspaper, the posters were put up on the entrance to the School of International Service. They depict a soldier smoking a cigarette, underneath which the text "No More Wars for Israel" is written, as well as #AIPACGoHome and the name of the organization Operation Homeland.

The flyers were posted just days before the annual AIPAC conference, which is set to draw some 18,000 Israel advocates to Washington DC this weekend.

Responding to the incident, Fanta Aw, American University's Vice President for Student Life, said "We condemn these cowardly acts by outside groups that target college campuses like ours."

Fanta Aw, @VPCampusLifeAU, responds to 'No More Wars for Israel' posters found Tuesday: "We condemn these cowardly acts by outside groups who are targeting college campuses like ours" https://t.co/53quzW8OxZ
— The Eagle (@TheEagleOnline) February 27, 2018

Operation Homeland was launched in December by Spencer, and aims to take the online activism of the alt-right movement to the real world.

In his announcement introducing Operation Homeland, Spencer reiterated his commitment to creating a "white America," saying: "Homeland is not a broad-based membership organization or social club. Rather it is a core of part- and full-time activists who provide leadership to the movement as a whole.

Earlier this year, the Anti-Defamation League announced that white supremacist propaganda attacks on college campuses had increased markedly, with 147 incidents reported in the fall 2017 semester, up from only 41 a year before.

Approximately 20% of American University's student population is Jewish, a percentage greater than any other university in the Washington, DC area. It is likely that the school was targeted for this reason, considering that there are several significantly larger universities much closer to where the AIPAC conference is taking place.