California Universities Must Address Anti-Jewish Student Harassment
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The Department of Education has reached a settlement with five University of California campuses regarding their handling of antisemitic incidents following the October 7, 2023 Hamas attack on Israel, implementing minimal requirements for the institutions moving forward.
According to the San Francisco Chronicle, the Department of Education determined that UCLA, UC Santa Barbara, UC San Diego, UC Davis, and UC Santa Cruz failed to provide adequate responses to reported instances of national origin discrimination, including harassment against students and staff.
📢📢BREAKING:📢📢
New video of the Hamas march at @Columbia University on October 7 showing university administrators – including the school's Chief Operation Officer, Mr. Cas Holloway – restricting a visibly Jewish student's movement "for his own safety". pic.twitter.com/JxwCoL9sdC
— Shai Davidai (@ShaiDavidai) November 4, 2024
The settlement terms require the universities to examine discrimination complaints from both the current and previous academic years, evaluate their responses, and seek departmental approval for policy modifications. Additionally, the institutions must implement training programs for employees and security personnel, while also conducting comprehensive assessments of discrimination issues on their campuses.
In a separate development, the Chronicle noted that officials dismissed a complaint against UC Berkeley regarding the cancellation of a pro-Israel speaker.
LIVE from Columbia University where pro Palestine students have staged a massive walkout. Students for Israel are ramping up the volume of their music and mics to drown out the booming sounds of people chanting. There are only about a dozen of them. pic.twitter.com/oCGodK7VHr
— samaa • سما (@samaakhullar) October 7, 2024
The timing of this settlement precedes the transition to President-elect Donald Trump’s administration. During his campaign, Trump pledged to strip federal funding and accreditation from universities that failed to address antisemitism on their campuses.
The response to campus antisemitism has shown a marked difference between political parties. House Republicans conducted thorough investigations and public hearings, leading to several university administrators stepping down and culminating in a detailed report in October. In contrast, Democratic leadership in the Senate held just one hearing that minimized the issue’s significance, with Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) reportedly advising universities to disregard the concerns.
