Jewish leaders anticipate return of anti-Semitic, anti-Israel college protests
Jewish groups are expressing concern at the prospects of anti-Israel protests resuming during the fall 2024 semester.
'Sadly, we expect anti-Israel activity will re-emerge at some colleges and universities as the fall semester begins,' the American Jewish Committee told Campus Reform.
Jewish groups are expressing concern at the prospects of anti-Israel protests resuming during the fall 2024 semester, and have expressed skepticism at the idea that university administrators will be able to prevent a repeat of the past year that was marked by widespread anti-Semitism.
The leadership teams of several major Jewish organizations say that they expect the upcoming fall semester to pick up right where the previous one left off.
“Unless things change quickly I have zero doubt that things will go back to where they were last year,” Laura Shaw Frank was quoted as stating in a Times of Israel article. Frank serves as the director of William Petschek Contemporary Jewish Life for the American Jewish Committee (AJC).
“Sadly, we expect anti-Israel activity will re-emerge at some colleges and universities as the fall semester begins,” AJC told Campus Reform. “This semester, the response needs to be different.”
Julia Jassey, CEO of Jewish on Campus, specifically mentioned that institutions such as Columbia University have failed to adequately distinguish between political speech and threats of violence.
“Schools like Columbia seem to have difficulty differentiating between what’s political speech and what’s safety,” Jassey told The Times of Israel. “When students scream ‘Globalize the Intifada’ or spraypaint red triangles, it’s not an issue of politics anymore. It’s an issue of violence.”
Columbia business professor Assaf Zeevi agreed that the fall semester could pose more of the same problems that the school experienced during the pro-Hamas encampments of this past spring.
“I appreciate the efforts of the Columbia administration to foster dialogue and educate students about antisemitism,” Zeevi also told The Times of Israel. “However, I am very concerned about the fall semester.”
Jassey also indicated that many institutions have failed to proactively prepare for more anti-Israel protests during the upcoming term.
“We haven’t seen much from universities yet. We haven’t seen many that are proactive,” Jassey maintained. “We had hoped that heading into the school year that universities would be better prepared than last year.”
“They need specific plans and they need to consult with the Jewish community [about those plans] because they are the ones who are impacted,” the professor concluded.
In July, Campus Reform reported about one pro-Palestine protester who explicitly warned that the anti-Israel demonstrations would return in an interview with Al Jazeera.
“We’re only getting started and there’s only one goal,” Zaid Jaloudi said during the interview. “There’s only one juncture in which we can say we have succeeded, and that is complete isolation of the Zionist state.”
In January, Campus Reform reported that the 2023–24 school year saw an increase in anti-Semitic incidents by more than 1,000% compared to the prior year, according to a report by the Anti-Defamation League (ADL).
The ADL also noted in November that, “73 percent of Jewish college students and 44 percent of non-Jewish students have experienced or witnessed antisemitism since the start of the 2023-2024 school year.”
Campus Reform has contacted Jewish on Campus and Columbia University for comment. This article will be updated accordingly.
