In an August special committee report, Columbia University acknowledged that some faculty members had refused to take action against those who had engaged in anti-Semitic acts against Jewish students.
Task Force Report They cited hostility and violence that Jewish students have faced on campus, on social media channels, at club meetings and in classes. In Columbia, following the Hamas terrorist attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, several violent protests occurred in which Jewish students were victims of physical violence, harassment and abuse.
Nearly 500 students from the university came forward to tell the task force their stories, which the committee called “heartbreaking.” Students said they were spat on, pushed against doors, stalked and had their necklaces ripped off.
“Friends on campus were spat on and horrible names were called. A very close friend of mine was called a genocide enthusiast and then a baby murder enthusiast,” one student said in a testimony. “This was just a few days after October 7th.”
The report noted that Jewish students who tried to seek help from their university when they experienced “prejudice” or “hostility” on campus had no idea how to report the incidents. Some students said that when they raised concerns about anti-Semitism, some faculty members offered “mental health counseling.” (Related article: Jewish students shun elite universities due to anti-Israel protests)
NEW YORK, NY—August 27: A small group of Israeli and Jewish students and faculty complained and accused the University of allowing anti-Semitism to exist on campus. (Photo by Spencer Pratt/Getty Images)
Other testimonies included instances of students and groups sharing anti-Semitic posts online, according to the report. One student found more than 750 anti-Semitic online posts, including a flyer for an event by an LGBT group that read, “This is the place to liberate Palestine. Zionists are not invited.”
The report found that some faculty were “reluctant” to take action against anti-Semitism, with one faculty member telling the task force that another professor had called Jewish donors at the university “wealthy white capitalists laundering dirty money.”
Several protesters were arrested during the protests, but 31 of the 46 people charged with trespassing were dropped by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg for “lack of evidence.” Bragg said he would drop the charges if no other protesters were arrested within the next six months.
The university called in the New York Police Department (NYPD) after protesters broke into and occupied campus buildings in April.
Three deans at the university were fired in July after it was discovered in June that they had sent text messages containing “anti-Semitic slurs.” The deans sent the messages during a panel discussion on Jewish life, and the university responded that faculty and staff receive training on anti-Semitism.
“Anti-Semitism is prejudice, discrimination, hatred and violence directed against Jewish people, including Jewish Israelis,” the report states. “Anti-Semitism can manifest itself in many forms, including ethnic slurs, derogatory names and caricatures.”
Columbia University has the Daily Caller News Foundation statement From the University President.
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