U.S. Senator Katie Britt calls out university administrators over anti-Semitism on campuses

Sen. Katie Britt (R-AL) recently wrote an open letter addressed to “Jewish college students across the United States” which announces her party’s intentions to continue investigating and responding to anti-Semitic incidents at American colleges and universities.

The letter was published on Nov. 15 and expresses legislators’ intentions to step in for Jewish students where Sen. Britt believes that university administrations have failed.

“I want to make clear to each and every Jewish student on an American campus: I and my colleagues won’t stand for this,” Britt wrote. “While your administrators may not have your backs, we do.”

[RELATED: ‘BLOOD ON YOUR HANDS’: Anti-Israel radicals trash home, car of University of Washington president, issue threats]

“And the recent report by the U.S. House of Representatives’ Education and the Workforce Committee confirms what those of us watching American campuses over the past year, and Jewish students living on them, already knew: Higher education in this country — among other elite institutions — is infected with individuals practicing virulent antisemitism,” Britt continued.

“Many university administrators stood aside and watched their campuses become breeding grounds for the hatred of Jews—and in some cases actively helped,” Britt added.

In her open letter, Britt specifically critiques instances of anti-Semitism at Columbia University, Northwestern University, and the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA).

“At Columbia University, where student activists occupied a lawn, stormed a building, and assaulted Jewish classmates, administrators promised consequences for those who violated

school policy,” Britt wrote. “Those consequences never came, and those same administrators discussed ways to avoid accountability.”

Britt additionally accused Northwestern of cutting a “deal with the students organizing a pro-terrorism encampment” and UCLA of creating “what amounted to a Jew-free zone on campus.”

According to a study performed by the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) this year, anti-Semitic incidents on college campuses significantly increased following Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack against Israel.

[RELATED: SUNY Downstate Students for Justice in Palestine criticized for hosting event that spread ‘medical propaganda’ and ‘blood libel’]

Specifically, ADL found 2,087 anti-Israel occurrences such as “assault, vandalism, harassment, protests/actions and divestment resolutions,” marking a “staggering 477% increase in those categories compared to the same period in 2022-2023.”

“This marks the highest number ever documented by ADL,” the report stated. “These incidents included both blatant acts of antisemitism, as well as anti-Israel activity, which is not always antisemitic.”

“Campus groups responsible for much of the recorded anti-Israel activity in this report include Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP), Jewish Voice for Peace (JVP), Students for a Democratic Society (SDS), Young Democratic Socialists of America (YDSA) and Dissenters,” the report found.

Campus Reform has contacted Northwestern University, Columbia University, and UCLA for comment. This article will be updated accordingly.