Along the Drill Field on Mississippi State University’s campus Tuesday, dozens of protesters held up signs emblazoned with swastikas, the words “my body, my choice” and pictures of University President Mark Keenum with a Hitler mustache.

In response to the Mississippi Institutions of Higher Learning ruling Monday to require nearly all Mississippi public university employees to receive the COVID-19 vaccination by Dec. 8, employees, students and community members gathered to protest the mandate.

The IHL policy comes after an executive order from President Joe Biden instructing all employees who work connected to a federal contract, or work in the same building or on the same campus as a contracted employee, to receive the vaccine. While MSU cannot overrule this mandate due to the federal executive order in place, many employees felt it unfair that they were being required to get vaccinated in order to maintain their role at the university.

Department of Forestry Research Associate Mark Murphy protested the vaccine Tuesday along with his family after he received notice of the mandate from MSU the day prior. While he said he is not against the vaccine, just the mandate, he feels the policy is government overreach and believes faculty members should have a choice in the matter.

“I was angry, but I knew it was coming at some point,” Murphy said. “I think every patriotic bone in my body stood up when I received that email, and that’s why we’re here. … I think the university could have stood for us a little harder. I still think that our governor, Tate Reeves, can do something about this.”

Murphy said he was joined by employees who collectively made up approximately 500 years of service to the university, who all were troubled by the recent news. He said Keenum should be made aware of employee concerns.

The order states that employees must be fully vaccinated by Dec. 8. MSU Chief of Communications Sid Salter said this was not a university decision, but once Biden issued the executive order, there really was no choice for the university or for IHL other than to take the order and implement it.

IHL previously ruled in September to ban vaccine mandates for university employees and students except in clinical settings.

“Essentially Mississippi State and IHL didn’t really have a choice in this,” Salter said. “The President’s executive order takes precedence in this. The public university system and IHL in the state are in the process of implementing that at the direction of the President. The information that we need to communicate now is where and how our staff can receive the vaccinations and what the steps are moving forward.”

Salter said approximately 75 percent of university employees are already voluntarily vaccinated. After the university notified employees of the mandate Monday, while some have had differing opinions, the majority of feedback has been well-received, and people just want to make sure they have accurate information, he said.

IHL did put in the policy that individuals can attempt to be approved for religious or medical exemption.

“At the end of the day, as we get to Dec. 8, the way we understand the protocols of this, a faculty or staff member will either have to have a valid vaccination card or will have to possess a valid exemption that has been approved by the process outlined by the executive order,” Salter said.

MSU Jewish Student Association, Hillel, released a statement Tuesday renouncing the anti-Semitic signs that appeared on campus Tuesday saying MSU is an inclusive place that should not be filled with these symbols.

MUW exempt

The Mississippi University for Women does not hold any federal contracts that exceed $250,000 — the federal simplified acquisition threshold. Therefore, the university is exempt from the vaccine mandate, university president Nora Miller told The Dispatch. She said she has been in contact with legal counsel on the issue.

In fact, MUW is prohibited from issuing a mandate because they do not fall under IHL’s parameters for vaccines and must follow the prior ruling from September stating that no universities can issue a mandate unless in a clinical setting, Miller said.

“While we don’t fall under this mandate, we are still encouraging everyone to get the vaccination if they can,” Miller said.