Anti-Israel group at Columbia calls for removal of Jewish organization Hillel
Columbia University’s “Palestine Working Group” (PWG) recently called for the elimination of the Hillel Jewish student organization, accusing it of supporting Israel’s “imperialist” agenda.
Critics, including the Anti-Defamation League and Jewish advocacy groups, condemned the statement as antisemitic and reflective of a broader trend of hostility toward Jewish campus organizations.
A controversial pro-Palestine student group at Columbia University, the “Palestine Working Group” (PWG), recently posted on its social media pages calling for the total elimination of Columbia’s Hillel organization.
The group made the post on Instagram on Nov. 18, according to The Algemeiner. The post is no longer on PWG’s Instagram page.
“Hillel is complicit in manufacturing propaganda and consent for the Zionist entity’s imperialist and colonial projects,” PWG stated in the post, according to The Algemeiner.
“The program works directly with Israeli universities and provides Columbia and Barnard students with funding to vacation to ‘Israel’ — an ethnostate responsible for the murder of over 180,000 Palestinians in the last year alone,” the group continued. “Sever all ties with Hillel. Academic boycott now.”
The group’s post was immediately critiqued online.
“Hillel is the largest Jewish campus organization in the world, with a presence on over 850 campuses,” Jewish on Campus posted to X on Nov. 20. “Hundreds of thousands of Jewish students visit Hillel to celebrate Jewish holidays, connect with their Jewish identities, and safely gather in community.”
“When students single out Hillel and attempt to exclude one of the lone Jewish organizations from their campus, their Jewish classmates are denied their right to live as Jews,” the organization continued. “A call to push Hillel off campus is antisemitism, plain and simple. We won’t be silent.”
Shira Goodman of the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) commented in October that sustained anti-Hillel efforts are indicative of a broader trend of anti-Semitism on college campuses. “We’re very concerned that this is a clear effort to undermine Jewish life on campus,” Goodman said. “It’s not just limited to Hillel, it’s about really attacking organized Jewish life on campus.”
This is not the first time that Columbia’s “Palestine Working Group” has posted anti-Israel statements online. The group also shared an Instagram post on Nov. 8 in which it accused Israel of committing “genocide” in Gaza and advocated looking to the “resilient people of Palestine for inspiration.”
“The genocide in Gaza has reached unfathomable levels, revealing some of the most atrocious horrors of our lifetime,” stated the post. “Yet, the Palestinian people remain steadfast in their commitment to liberation, and Palestine remains our guiding compass.”
“We look to the resilient people of Palestine for inspiration; through their deep connection to their land, culture, traditions, and faith, they continue to resist the Zionist entity,” the caption continued.
Campus Reform has contacted Columbia University for comment. This article will be updated accordingly.
