TOLEDO, Ohio (WTVG) – University of Toledo Police are still searching for the person who spraypainted pro-Palestinian graffiti across the University of Toledo’s campus last week. In the meantime, the I-TEAM is breaking down the facts behind the vandal’s statement that UToledo has invested in “genocide.”
Along with statements like “free Palestine” and “Israel is committing genocide,” the vandal wrote on campus sidewalks that UToledo has invested $1,032,584 in genocide.
“If it were one dollar, if it were two dollars if it were 50 cents invested in the state of Israel, we would still ask them to divest,” Ahmed Amrou, a Palestinian student and a member of UToledo’s Students for Justice in Palestine, said. “Please remove investments in a state that is currently being held in the International Court of Justice for genocide and invest it somewhere else.”
The $1,032,584 figure is listed in research SJP conducted last year analyzing investments made by the University of Toledo Foundation, which manages donations.
According to SJP’s research, as of October 2023, the UTF had investments in seven companies affiliated with Israel; SJP says the investments total $1,032,584, which amounts to .68% of UTF’s entire investment portfolio.
“If it’s only one percent of the entire portfolio, why can’t you just get rid of it and be done with it?” Amrou said.
SJP members passed a resolution with UToledo’s student government calling for the university to divest from Israel-affiliated companies last year. Student government then posed a referendum to the entire student body, which called for divestment; Amrou, who was a student government senator last year, said the referendum passed with 89% approval.
The university responded in a statement, saying it is prohibited by Ohio law from divesting in Israel-affiliated companies.
“The University of Toledo is prohibited by law from divesting from countries with whom the State of Ohio enjoys open trade, including Israel, per Ohio Revised Code 9.76. Student Government representatives were told at the time of their proposed divestment referendum that UToledo would not be able to act on it, regardless of the outcome of the vote.
The referendum did pass, and Student Government representatives presented the call for divestment to the UToledo Foundation’s Investment Committee in May. The UToledo Foundation responded in June its legal responsibility is to its donors to preserve and grow the funds it manages and it would not be making any changes to its portfolio.
“UToledo supports all members of our campus community. We encourage respectful dialogue and debate and remain committed to being a place where everyone feels valued and supported,” UToledo Media Relations Specialist Nicki Gorny said.
Amrou said the fact does little to assuage his concerns, especially after the university said the vandalism is being investigated as an act of “ethnic intimidation” last week.
“This is not ethnic intimidation. This is us standing up for what’s right” Amrou said, noting he knows UToledo students who have had family members killed in the current conflict in Gaza, “This is us being Palestinian.”
A UToledo Jewish student, who spoke with 13 Action News last week, said the graffiti does feel like ethnic intimidation.
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