Most students at top universities see anti-Semitism as an issue on campus: POLL
A U.S. News & World Report survey found that most students see anti-Semitism as a problem at their schools, though they disagree on its severity.
The ADL found in a report 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.’
Survey data published Monday by the U.S. News & World Report shows that 67 percent of students polled at the U.S.’s top 25 universities (as ranked by U.S. News) believe that anti-Semitism is an issue at their schools.
Out of that total, 53 percent said anti-Semitism is a “small problem” and 14 percent said it is a “huge problem.”
These findings come following weeks of anti-Israel protests that have taken over large universities across the nation, starting at Columbia University but spreading to Harvard University, the University of Pennsylvania, and others.
AOC and Ilhan Omar claim the protests are peaceful.
Let’s check in on Columbia University.
They are screaming —
“K!ll all Zionists! Long live Hamas.”pic.twitter.com/VTVLKsQKPj— Marina Medvin 🇺🇸 (@MarinaMedvin) April 24, 2024
[RELATED: PSYCHO: Masked pro-Hamas activists show up at UMich regents’ homes in middle of the night, lay ‘fake corpses’ on lawn]
According to some reports, anti-Semitism has become an increasingly more severe problem on U.S. campuses. The Anti-Defamation League and Hillel International revealed 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.”
Many students also expressed disappointment with how university leaders have responded to the recent wave of anti-Israel demonstrations. According to the poll results, 49 percent said they are not happy with universities’ response.
Moreover, more than half of the students surveyed expressed mistrust in university leadership.
College students’ perception of anti-Semitism as an issue is seemingly shared by the public at large. The American Jewish Committee found that 74 percent of members of the “general public” surveyed said that anti-Semitism is a problem in the U.S., with 34 percent saying it is a “very serious problem” and 40 percent saying it is “[s]omewhat of a problem.”
When it came specifically to American Jews, the Committee found that 93 percent said anti-Semitism is a problem, with 53 percent calling it a “very serious problem” and 41 percent saying it is “[s]omewhat of a problem.”
[RELATED: THAT’S NOT HOW IT WORKS: Princeton pro-Hamas students take turns hunger striking due to ‘health concerns’]
Though students surveyed in the U.S. News poll stated that anti-Semitism is a problem, many still expressed support for anti-Israel protests that have seen several incidents that some have viewed as anti-Semitic. More specifically, almost half of students polled said they approve of the anti-Israel demonstrations.
Campus Reform has reached out to the Anti-Defamation League and Columbia University, Harvard University, and the University of Pennsylvania for comment. This story will be updated accordingly.