Rep. Josh Gottheimer (D-NJ) called on University President Ellen Granberg and eight other university presidents to publicly outline their plans to combat antisemitism on campus in a letter Friday.
Gottheimer said since Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack on Israel and the outbreak of the war in Gaza, there has been a “surge” in antisemitic acts of violence across the country, including on college campuses where Jewish students have endured threats and intimidation tactics. He urged Granberg and the university presidents at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, University of Pennsylvania and Rutgers, Columbia, Harvard, Princeton, Brown and New York universities to form concrete plans to protect Jewish students.
“As a university president, it is imperative that you prepare a detailed plan to ensure the safety of Jewish students,” Gottheimer said in the letter.
He said pro-Palestinian protesters, faculty and staff have have assaulted, harassed and vandalized Jewish students’ places of worship. Students last November said someone tore down more than a dozen posters depicting Israeli hostages in the GW Hillel building. During GW’s pro-Palestinian encampment last spring, some Jewish students, faculty and national organizations criticized the encampment and condemned protesters for posting signs that read “Students will leave when Israelis leave,” and “Students will go back home when Israelis go back to Europe, US, etc. (their real homes).”
Gotthiemer said in accordance with Title VI and Executive Order 13899 — which aimed to combat antisemitism by expanding the definition of discrimination under Title VI to include discrimination against Jewish individuals — administrators at colleges and universities across the country have an “obligation” to protect Jewish students against antisemitism, harassment and intimidation.
Gottheimer, a Democrat and member of the House of Representatives, has represented New Jersey’s 5th congressional district since 2017.
“This is a defining moment, and we cannot stand idly by as protesters have and continue to call for the death of Jews and the annihilation of the State of Israel,” Gottheimer said. “While differing views are a critical part of building cultural understanding, they cannot provide a bully pulpit for those who seek to divide others and spew hate.”
The Jewish Federation of Greater Washington in June announced it would give GW Hillel a $25,000 grant to combat antisemitism on campus.
Alums and Reps. Andrew Garbarino (R-NY), Jared Moskowitz (D-FL), William Timmons (R-SC), Jill Tokuda (D-HI), Erin Houchin (R-IN), Darren Soto (D-FL) and Neal Dunn (R-FL) penned a letter to Granberg last October calling for officials to take “immediate steps” to protect its Jewish students. Four students from GW’s Students for Justice Palestine projected anti-Israel and anti-GW statements onto the Gelman Library last October, which the letter states represents a pattern of increasing antisemitism at GW. Alumni called on Granberg last November to form a “clear plan” on how faculty and University leadership will combat antisemitism following the projections.
