Issue #9
Northwestern in the News
Northwestern's Initiative Fails to Address Current Crisis: The root of the crisis is an education system that oversimplifies conflict and history.
"Even leaving aside Northwestern’s inability to admit that it has a specific and ongoing problem with Jew hatred, the plan demonstrates that the school, like so many others, fundamentally misunderstands or refuses to confront the particular brand of anti-Semitism now infecting elite institutions."
Northwestern Must Embrace Free Speech: A commitment to prohibit “harmful speech” gives no clarity.
“Even if Northwestern can define harmful speech, enforcement will likely be uneven. Last spring, Northwestern failed to punish student conduct that obviously violated its conduct code. Moving forward, will Northwestern really punish student protesters chanting, ‘From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free’? What about students who post the phrase on social media? We suspect the university will find itself unable to enforce disciplinary action in the face of concerted student protest. But students with minority views, those unable to rally protests, those whom administrators find unsympathetic, will not be similarly protected.”
At Universities Around the Country
U of I Enters Federal Resolution Agreement: After failing to address reports of discrimination on campus, UIUC has agreed to review its policies and the complaints filed within the past year. It will also conduct discrimination training and will provide the Office for Civil Rights information about complaints during the upcoming year.
“While I certainly feel validated by the results of the OCR investigation - the University’s lack of investigation or consideration of the Jewish student complaints over the years was devastating as we can see from the list of incidents,” Illini Hillel Executive Director Erez Cohen said in a statement. “Jewish students have spent years at the university hiding their identities, being afraid of bringing their whole selves to the school and that is unacceptable.”
California Universities Ban Encampments and Identity-Hiding Masking: University of California President Michael V. Drake instructed leaders on all 10 UC campuses to enforce rules against encampments, protests that block pathways and masking intended to shield identity.
“He told chancellors that rights to free speech and academic freedom must not ‘place community members in reasonable fear for their personal safety or infringe on their civil rights.’”
Protesters Return for Columbia’s First Day of Classes: The administration continues to grapple with its code of conduct and enforcement procedures.
“The coalition asked other students to skip classes and not to cross the line of demonstrators. It also advised demonstrators to wear masks to avoid surveillance and to protect against Covid-19.”
Cornell Vandalized by Activists on the First Day of Classes: Rhetoric and action is becoming increasingly violent and destructive.
“The activists vowed to ‘continue to take action and escalate for divestment, for a free Palestine, for land back, and for all liberation struggles resisting imperialism.’ The activists also expressed their disillusionment with ‘debates and peaceful protests,’ saying that ‘these on their own will never be enough to achieve the change we demand.’”
How Vanderbilt Deals with the Concept of Institutional Neutrality: The clarity of the rules and code of conduct are being recognized as helpful in ensuring that students are able to express themselves on campus without fear of intimidation and harassment.
“Diermeier said rather than make him think differently about the approach, the events of last spring reaffirmed his commitment to Vanderbilt’s rules.”
Addressing Antisemitism on Campus
New Rules at Colleges Around the Country: Universities are grappling with rules to maintain decorum on campus while activist have trained all summer on how to promote their causes.
“Presidents also are under pressure from alumni and trustees to act, with some feeling their jobs are on the line. Five leaders of Ivy League campuses have resigned or retired over the past year, most under intense criticism regarding their handling of demonstrations and allegations of campus antisemitism.”
How Colleges Should Address Antisemitism: Amid the encampments and antisemitic harassment on campuses that followed the attacks on Oct. 7, universities have convened committees to study the rise of antisemitism on campus—with many coming to the conclusion that expanding the definition of DEI to include Jews would be a viable solution—but Stanford offers a different approach.
“Stanford rejected that approach, arguing that DEI is itself ‘fundamentally flawed.’ Instead, its task force recommended treating all students equally and helping them to forge a culture that encourages constructive disagreement. Alone among the reports, the Stanford recommendations offer its campus and other institutions that heed its advice a path to a better future.”
New Report Illustrates Antisemitism on Campus: A survey of Jewish college students and recent alumni reveals the depth of the issue and provides impetus for action to combat the hate.
Key findings include:
44% of Jewish students report never or rarely feeling safe identifying as a Jew at their school (an increase from 21% in 2021).
55% were physically threatened because they are Jewish or knew someone who was threatened.
78% of students and graduates say they avoided certain places, events, or situations at school because they are Jewish.
Viral Social Media Posts
UCLA Dismisses Appeal, Acknowledging the Need to Do Better for Jewish Students
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Comments from the NU Community of Jewish Alumni, Students & Families
“I am devastated that Northwestern refuses to do the simple things other schools are doing to protect their students.”
“Why did Northwestern file a Motion to Dismiss the class action complaint without acknowledging that it has an antisemitism problem? Other schools have at least admitted to their problem and that is the first step toward fixing it.”
“My son has decided not to attend Kellogg this year because he could not in good conscience pay tuition at a school that endorses the environment Northwestern has created. He was also concerned about his safety and the potential for grade discrimination by a preponderance of blatantly antisemitic faculty members.”
“It means nothing to amend the Code of Conduct when the rules are not enforced.”
“None of the Code of Conduct that was already in place was enforced last year when it came to the Encampment and and it will likely be more of the same this year.”
“I am very worried about the proposed lectures on the Middle East. They were extremely biased towards anti-Israel propaganda in the past.”
“While it’s promising that Northwestern has stated a commitment to antisemitism education, it will be useless without including faculty and staff. Many of these professionals at Northwestern have been known to actively indoctrinate students with antisemitic rhetoric and power structure theories that are hateful and biased against Jews.”