The Department of Education has announced a probe of cases of antisemitism at five universities.
In line with President Trump’s Executive Order on Additional Measures to Combat Anti-Semitism, DOE has initiated investigations into Columbia University, Northwestern University, Portland State University, The University of California, at Berkeley, and The University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, where reports of widespread antisemitic harassment have emerged.
These investigations come in response to the surge in antisemitism on American campuses following the Hamas massacre of Israeli civilians on October 7, 2023.
“Too many universities have tolerated widespread antisemitic harassment and the illegal encampments that paralyzed campus life last year, driving Jewish life and religious expression underground,” said Craig Trainor, Acting Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights.
Trainor added that “The Biden Administration’s toothless resolution agreements did shamefully little to hold those institutions accountable. Today, the Department is putting universities, colleges, and K-12 schools on notice: this administration will not tolerate continued institutional indifference to the wellbeing of Jewish students on American campuses, nor will it stand by idly if universities fail to combat Jew-hatred and the unlawful harassment and violence it animates.”
On Monday, the Louis D. Brandeis Center for Human Rights Under Law applauded the DOE’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) announcement about launching proactive investigations into antisemitism at the five higher education campuses.
The Brandeis Center is currently suing UC Berkeley, which is one of the schools being investigated, for the “longstanding, unchecked spread of antisemitism.”
Berkeley elementary school students were instructed to write “Stop bombing Babies” notes and attach them to the door of the only Jewish teacher at the school. pic.twitter.com/vHyMJ3tZW0
— Michal (@itsmichalll) March 18, 2024
“This is exactly the right step to be taking and the right time to be taking it,” said Kenneth L. Marcus, Founder and Chairman of the Brandeis Center and the former US Assistant Secretary of Education for Civil Rights who ran OCR for Presidents Bush and Trump.
“The administration is sending a clear message to the higher education community that the US Department of Education is prioritizing the current antisemitism crisis,” Marcus continued. “Rather than sitting back and waiting for complaints to pile up, federal investigators are finally doing their jobs: identifying colleges that need to be investigated, and taking firm, public measures where needed. The cavalry has arrived. The Brandeis Center has been urging this approach since October 7, 2023, and we were repeatedly disappointed that the prior administration failed to accept our recommendation.”
“This is a clear sign that this administration will respond to campus antisemitism with the boldness, vigor, and seriousness it deserves,” he added. “At a time when antisemitism has continued to rise across the nation, we commend Secretary Linda McMahon and Acting Assistant Secretary Craig Trainor for holding our universities accountable to provide safe, inclusive environments for all students.”
These DOE investigations build on the foundational work of the House Committee on Education and the Workforce under then-Chairwoman Virginia Foxx (R-NC), which found that university administrations “overwhelmingly failed” to protect or support their Jewish students, even making “astounding concessions” to illegal, anti-American encampments.
Incidentally, in case you were wondering, Rep. Virginia Foxx has moved on to become Chairwoman of the House Rules Committee.
