Members of Remembrance Scholar cohort reflect on program’s future

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Content Warning: This story contains mentions of antisemitic language.

On Tuesday night, Syracuse University Remembrance Scholar Emma Dahmen gathered a group of scholars from this year’s cohort on Zoom. Following the discovery of antisemitic writings in SU’s Pan Am Flight 103 archives, the group wanted to craft a response that accurately reflected the perspectives of Jewish scholars and all other cohort members.

“All of us, of course, were horrified and frustrated and extremely angry,” Dahmen said. “We started to think about, ‘okay, well, how do we make changes to our remembrance programming in the one week’s notice that we have?’”

Jason and Eric Coker, who died in the bombing of Pan Am Flight 103, both used antisemitic language and imagery in letters to family members in 1988, the year of the attack. The twins are part of a group of 35 victims memorialized annually by SU’s Remembrance Week.

Following the discovery of the messages, members of this year’s Remembrance cohort said they need to focus on shifting the direction of the program to better adhere to its motto, “Look Back, Act Forward.” They said they wanted to improve education about hate and discrimination and rethink how they memorialized the attack.

The Remembrance Scholars’ advisor received a statement SU planned to publish about the findings just moments before it was published, so the scholars never reviewed it, Dahmen said. A university spokesperson told The D.O. that it does not reflect the perspective of the Remembrance Scholar cohort.

A group of the scholars who felt their insight was not included wrote their own letter reacting to the discovery and discussing how the program should move forward. 32 of the 35 scholars signed the statement.

“We wanted to share what we found and be really transparent about what was going on and we had hoped to get that statement out as soon as possible,” Dahmen said. “And then I think SU News … from my perspective … went over our heads in releasing that statement.”

Including the opinions of scholars from the Jewish community and other marginalized groups was a priority for the meeting, Dahmen said.

“There was a really important note that one of the other scholars made at the beginning, and basically said, ‘yes, we all have feelings about this, but there are Jewish students and students of color that are directly impacted by this hate every day, so we need to be sure to include their voices in this letter,’ and that really set the tone for the meeting,” Dahmen said.

2022-2023 Remembrance and Lockerbie Scholar Statement by The Daily Orange on Scribd

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Dahmen said when she and other scholars found out about the antisemitic language, they immediately began to think about the future of the Remembrance Program.

Senior Remembrance Scholar Kinley Gaudette said in an email to The Daily Orange she initially wasn’t surprised by the letters because of how prevalent antisemitism is.

“My first thoughts and feelings were about how the Jewish scholars and community members, as well as the loved ones of Jewish victims of Pan Am 103, would be affected by what was found,” Gaudette said. “The tragedy and pain of Pan Am 103 runs deeply and touches so many, and it was heartbreaking knowing the weight of this painful discovery would be added to already heavy shoulders.”

Senior Remembrance Scholar Riya Gupta said the word choices in SU’s statement, specifically calling the Cokers’ actions a “mistake,” were not reflective of her thoughts. The university’s statement didn’t convey the gravity of the language in the writings, Gaudette said.

“It painted the intentions of the antisemitic words as more ambiguous than one would determine them to be after actually reading the cards,” Gaudette said.

Still, Gupta said the discovery of the materials has been “a catalyst” for changing and updating the program.

“It’s led to a lot of really good and productive conversations (about) restructuring the program and shying away a little bit more from representing these 35 victims as individuals and more thinking about them as a whole,” Gupta said.

SU’s statement said the 2022-23 Remembrance cohort would work to move forward in a way that commemorates the lives of those lost in the attack in a more collective way, as well as to “recognize the potential they never got to realize.”

While the materials contained in the archives boxes for each victim is only a “small percentage” of who they were, SU shouldn’t focus on the sentiment of the Coker twins’ unrealized potential to change, Gupta said.

“It’s unfair to say that they could have unlearned these antisemitic views, they could have unlearned their racism, they could have unlearned things, because to be honest, they were 21 years old,” Gupta said.

The findings serve as a reminder of antisemitism’s extent today, Gupta said.

The program needs to evaluate how it will navigate how it adheres its guiding principle, “Look Back, Act Forward,” which emphasizes educating the campus community about terrorism and making positive change through public service, Gaudette said.

“The very event of the attack on Pan Am 103 was rooted in hate, so I think it is most important that we consider how we can adjust the program to best serve the purpose of combatting hate, educating on anti-terrorism and having important conversations with community stakeholders,” Gaudette said.

Media and law enforcement widely blamed Khalid Jaafar, a Muslim student who was killed in the bombing, for the Pan Am flight 103 attack in its aftermath. Jafaar had no connection to the bomber or the attack.

Dahmen said the findings have implications for how future scholars in the cohort proceed with considering topics like Islamophobia and antisemitism.

“How can we lay a foundation for future cohorts of scholars to be able to continue this program in a way that appropriately memorializes the victims of the Pan Am Flight 103 without putting them on a pedestal?” Dahmen said.

Gaudette added that she doesn’t want the findings to deter Jewish students from participating in the program.

“It would be completely unthinkable to allow future Jewish students thinking of applying to be left wondering if they have a place in the program, or feeling that the program does not support them,” Gaudette said. “To ask them to put their pain aside for the sake of preserving traditional aspects of the program would cultivate a group that is safe for non-Jewish students only, and that would be unacceptable.”

Remembrance Scholar and United States Navy veteran Amanda LaLonde said she has conflicting emotions about the situation as a mother of twin boys.

“Despite what the Coker twins had written, they still existed,” LaLonde said. “They were still someone’s family member.”

As a student older than the traditional college-age students, LaLonde said she has a different perspective than the majority of the cohort.

“Even at my age, I’m still deconstructing a lot of things,” she said.

The cohort members’ individual and group reflections are sparking conversations about creating lasting change in the program. The cohort hopes to continue their conversations about implementing change beyond just during Remembrance Week, Gupta said.

“We’re hoping that even into the spring semester, we can continue to always internally really work on the program so that next year when new scholars come in, it will be a different program,” she said.

Gupta also said she wants the campus community to know that the cohort is trying to be proactive about making change.

“It’s important that the campus community knows that we’re not trying to go about this in a passive way,” Gupta said. “We’re given the opportunity to be leaders on campus, we’re given the honor to be scholars, and it’s up to us to take this moment to try to change the program.”

Dahmen said that the situation has fundamentally altered her view of the Remembrance program.

“When I was selected as a Remembrance Scholar, I really saw this program as something beautiful and important, and I still see it that way,” Dahmen said. “But it feels like this week, there has been this ugly haze over the top of it.”