 NEW YORK — As the academic semester ends, universities are still dealing with anti-Israel protests or their aftermaths.
Top Stories Northwestern. As tempers remained high at Northwestern University, school officials warned against any commencement disruptions and said that protesters would “face discipline, and anyone who disrupts the ceremony could be asked to leave.” Despite this, many pro-Palestinian protesters walked out of the United Center, where thousands of Northwestern students were graduating. GO DEEPER: The chair of the U.S. House Education and the Workforce Committee accused Northwestern University officials of obstructing its investigation into on-campus antisemitism, and gave the school administration a week to voluntarily comply with the committee’s request for records related to antisemitic incidents, pro-Palestinian protests and the controversial deal that administrators reached with the protesters to end their encampment, as well as the university’s relationship with Qatar. TAKE ACTION: Urge Northwestern President Schill to resign. Baruch. Pro-Palestinian student groups at Baruch College held a protest against the school’s Hillel, accusing the Jewish campus group of “murdering children and supporting fascism and genocide.” This form of protest targeting a school’s Hillel is not the first such protest on a college campus. As ADL said, “this is a frontal attack against the Jewish Community, akin to a call to ban Jews from campus. We thank President Wu for publicly condemning this in advance and NYPD for keeping everyone safe during this protest.”
Dartmouth. This weekend’s rain-soaked commencement ceremony at Dartmouth College was disrupted when some graduating seniors, including a few who held Palestinian flags or wore handcuffs, refused to shake hands with President Sian Leah Beilock and walked out during her speech. Ironically, Beilock used her podium to remind the audience that irrefutable answers are not always easy to come by and to “remember the humanity of your colleagues, friends, and neighbors, and understand their points of view, even when they are in sharp opposition to your own.” Israeli Students in the U.S. “It was meant to be the most exciting year of her life, but for Amit, an Israeli student now wrapping up a yearlong fellowship at Columbia University, it was an experience that she described as “toxic” and one that she would not recommend to future applicants from her country.” While a new batch of Israeli students is set to arrive in the U.S. over the summer, this year’s students have words of warning for Israelis who are considering future plans to study here. It is disappointing that the hostility of these protesters may get in the way of opportunities for Israeli and American students to learn from each other. Stanford. Last week, students broke into the Stanford University President and Provost’s offices and barricaded themselves inside. They were later arrested, during which time one police officer was injured. As interim university President Richard Seller and Provost Jenny Martinez said: “The situation on campus has now crossed the line from peaceful protest to actions that threaten the safety of our community.” The students have all been identified, and University leaders say students who participated were immediately suspended, and any seniors won’t be allowed to graduate. According to police records, they also face burglary charges. Rutgers Newark. One of the longest-running anti-Israel encampments in the country has finally decamped after school officials told them to remove it. While the Rutgers University administration described the removal from their Newark, NJ campus as peaceful, some protesters claim their site was “raided.” The University says that the activists have violated the university’s fire code, defaced buildings with graffiti, violated policies about accessing buildings and were “degrading the campus environment.” University of California. A California judge ordered a halt to a pro-Palestinian union strike held by academic workers at several University of California schools who are part of United Auto Workers Local 4811. University administrators said the strike in support of pro-Palestinian activism on campus was illegal based on the labor agreement they had with the union, and that “the strike would have caused irreversible setbacks to students’ academic achievements and may have stalled critical research projects in the final quarter.” The unionized workers initially began their protest at UC Santa Cruz, then spread to UCLA, UC Davis, UC San Diego, UC Santa Barbara and UC Irvine. GO DEEPER: More tumult at UCLA, where a trio of Jewish students filed a lawsuit against the University of California Board of Regents and six members of the UCLA administration, alleging that pro-Palestine protests on campus have restricted Jewish students and faculty members from accessing their classes, offices and other buildings and that the school did not keep them safe. The lawsuit also alleges that the University “treated Jewish religious activities, including wearing Jewish symbols and expressing support for Israel, differently than secular activities and denied them the full benefits of UCLA programs on the basis of their religion.” |
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Enough Funding to Fight Hate. In a letter sent to key members of the Senate and House Appropriations Committees, a coalition of 23 Jewish groups that span a wide range of political and denominational positions are urging Congress to “provide the highest possible funding ” in 2025 for the U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Civil Rights (OCR), according to a news report. This is much-needed funding: OCR is grappling with the most complaints in their history, including more than 100 Title VI investigations since Oct. 7, with cases raising concern regarding discriminatory harassment of Jewish students on campus. TAKE ACTION: Sign ADL’s letter to Members of Congress now to secure the needed funds to protect students. The Spectacle at Harvard. “I have seldom experienced such disdain and contempt for a minority group as the way in which Harvard treats its Jewish student population,” says Harvard graduate student Shabbos Kestenbaum as he reflects on the past year and how he and fellow Jewish students had to show resolve and courage in coexisting with hate on the quad and in the classroom. |
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Four Rays of Hope. Over the weekend, there was an outpouring of joy at the liberation of Noa Argamani, Almog Meir Jan, Andrey Kozlov and Shlomi Ziv. All four were rescued from Gaza in an Israeli military strike and returned home to Israel. The army said special forces carried out the operation and that Arnon Zamora, a commander of the operation, was killed in the battle. The four hostages had all been taken captive while attending the Nova music festival on Oct. 7, when Hamas terrorists attacked. The IDF reports that all four are in good physical condition.
Not a Creep. Radiohead’s Jonny Greenwood slammed efforts by anti-Israel activists who criticized his musical collaboration with Israeli artist Dudu Tassa; he called the attacks on this music an “unprogressive” attempt to silence Israeli Jewish artists. Greenwood and Tassa released an album together and recently performed in Tel Aviv, where Greenwood was seen alongside Israelis gathered to call for the release of the hostages in Gaza. * |
