Students celebrate Hitler’s birthday with cake and songs, California university says

A California university has condemned an on-campus party held April 20 to celebrate Adolf Hitler’s birthday with cake and songs.

Students at the party sang “Happy Birthday” and ate cakes “adorned with hateful and horrific symbols,” the University of California, Santa Cruz, said in an April 30 news release.

“White supremacy has no place at UC Santa Cruz,” the statement read, saying the university “unequivocally condemns” the incident. “Nor does any action intended to degrade, dehumanize, or intimidate another based on identity.”

The incident has been referred to student conduct officials for “follow-up and adjudication,” the statement said.

In another hateful incident April 21, a student “found an antisemitic and anti-LGBTQIA+ flyer on their car’s windshield” downtown, the university said. The flyer included “despicable and degrading claims” about Jews and LGBTQIA+ people.

University officials are following up with city leaders about the incident, the message said.

“These disturbing incidents follow a national trend of increased antisemitic rhetoric and violence,” the statement said. “Whatever the purpose and wherever they take place, we reject any and all acts of antisemitism.”

Adolf Hitler was born April 20, 1889.

UC Santa Cruz had an enrollment of 19,478 for fall 2022, according to the university, which is located about 75 miles south of San Francisco.

This story was originally published May 4, 2023 at 3:45 PM with the headline "Students celebrate Hitler’s birthday with cake and songs, California university says."