George Washington University Students continue pro-Palestinian demonstrations at George Washington University in Washington DC, United States on May 07, 2024.
Good Wednesday morning.
In today’s Daily Kickoff, we report on today’s House hearings on antisemitism in K-12 schools and D.C.’s response to The George Washington University encampment, and talk to congressional lawmakers about the U.S. delay of weapons transfers to Israel. Also in today’s Daily Kickoff: Emerson College President Jay Bernhardt, Sen. Joni Ernst and Kevin McCarthy.
On the heels of two blockbuster hearings with university presidents, and amid an expansive ongoing investigation into antisemitism on college campuses, the House is set to turn its attention today to how officials in Washington, D.C., have responded to the ongoing anti-Israel protest encampment on The George Washington University’s campus, as well as K-12 schools, Jewish Insider’s Marc Rod reports.
Rep. James Comer’s (R-KY), who chairs the House Oversight Committee, scheduled a hearing on the D.C. government’s handling of the GW encampment, which was finally taken down this morning after repeated public requests from GW’s administration. The Oversight Committee called D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser and Pamela Smith, the district’s chief of police, to testify.
Around 3 a.m. this morning, D.C. police began clearing the encampment and made arrests, according to authorities. The D.C. police department said in a statement that “a gradual escalation in the volatility of the protest” led to the police action. Big picture: Today’s congressional oversight hearing likely played a role in forcing Bowser’s hand.
Sen. Steve Daines (R-MT), the chair of the National Republican Senatorial Committee, visited the encampment on Tuesday and met with Jewish students at GW Hillel, describing the scene as “shocking” and “reprehensible.” He said that political leaders across the spectrum need to offer “full-throated condemnation,” that Congress should consider cutting off federal funding to universities where antisemitism is running rampant and that Bowser needs to take action.
Daines also suggested the encampments could be a political wedge issue. “This should not be a partisan issue. And sadly it seems it’s mostly the Republicans who are condemning the actions of these encampments,” Daines alleged. “I wish there were strong bipartisan condemnation, but if we don’t see the bipartisan condemnation, I think it will turn into a political issue.”
Separately, the House Education and the Workforce Committee’s subcommittee on Early Childhood, Elementary and Secondary Education is holding a hearing today with public school officials from New York City, Berkeley, Calif., and Montgomery County, Md., on antisemitism in their districts. An attorney from the American Civil Liberties Union is also set to testify.
Rep. Aaron Bean (R-FL), the subcommittee chair, told JI on Monday that Jewish students, faculty and employees “don’t feel safe right now” and that he plans to press the leaders on what they’re doing to ensure Jewish students’ safety. “What we’re seeing is there’s been no consequences,” Bean said. “We have to hold people accountable, and right now our biggest power is shining the spotlight.”
Bean said that some have claimed that ongoing antisemitic incidents on college campuses have their origins in primary and secondary education, where “these kids are being taught to hate, the teachers are teaching the hate — so let’s go to the roots and see where the trail leads.” New York City schools face a lawsuit over antisemitism, while Berkeley’s school district is being investigated by the Department of Education. Read the full story here.
Elsewhere in Washington, the Biden administration was expected to issue a report today on Israel’s compliance with U.S. humanitarian aid efforts and international law, amid ongoing intense debate over Israel aid on Capitol Hill. Any finding that Israel is not in compliance could prompt penalties, including the possible suspension of U.S. aid.
But that report is now delayed for an uncertain period of time. Lawmakers who had been driving forces for the policy say they don’t expect an extensive delay, however: Francesca Amodeo, a spokesperson for Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), told JI that Van Hollen “has been assured the report is forthcoming.”
The administration is facing significant political pressures, in multiple directions.
Progressive Democrats have said repeatedly that they believe Israel to be in violation of U.S. law — which they believe the report will reflect — and they expect the administration to respond. On Tuesday, Sen. Peter Welch (D-VT) and eight other Senate Democrats accused the administration of failing to apply U.S. humanitarian law to Israel over the course of years, and Israel of repeated gross violations of human rights.
Progressives are likely to use the report to push for conditions to or a suspension of U.S. aid to Israel, or to criticize the administration if the report finds Israel in compliance with U.S. aid provisions.
Meanwhile, Republicans are expressing anger over delays in arms transfers to Israel. Some have urged the administration to repeal the policy memo that mandates the new report. Pro-Israel Democrats have also said they oppose any effort to delay or suspend aid. Any effort to further penalize Israel would likely meet opposition from both groups.
In election news, Indiana state Sen. Mark Messmer comfortably defeated former Rep. John Hostettler (R-IN) by 19 points (39-20%) in the GOP primary for an open Indiana congressional seat — in a race where pro-Israel groups poured several million dollars to oppose Hostettler.
“Tonight, we succeeded in keeping a vocal anti-Israel candidate out of the Republican conference. This is a major victory for the RJC, the Jewish community, for all pro-Israel Americans, and for common sense,” Republican Jewish Coalition National Chairman Norm Coleman and CEO Matt Brooks said in a statement.
speaking out
Biden condemns violent campus protests, Oct. 7 denialism and defenders in Holocaust remembrance speech
In a forceful speech on Tuesday at the annual Holocaust Remembrance Day ceremony on Capitol Hill, President Joe Biden delivered some of his strongest denunciations of antisemitism and Hamas in months, denouncing violent anti-Israel protests on college campuses, harassment and violence targeting the American Jewish community and ongoing efforts to deny, downplay or move past the Oct. 7 Hamas attack on Israel, Jewish Insider’s Marc Rod reports.
Campus concern: The president said that the right to hold strong beliefs about world events and to “debate, disagree, protest peacefully” is fundamental to America, but that there is “no place on any campus in America, any place in America for antisemitism, hate speech or threats of violence of any kind.” Biden emphasized that attacks and destruction of property — which have happened on a number of campuses — are not protected speech and are illegal. “We are not a lawless country, we are a civil society. We uphold the rule of law,” Biden said. “No one should have to hide or be afraid just to be themselves.”
Pushing back: Biden also condemned those who have already moved past the Hamas attack on Israel or are seeking to deny, downplay or justify the attack. “Now, here we are, not 75 years later, but just seven and a half months later,” Biden said. “People are already forgetting that Hamas unleashed this terror. It was Hamas that brutalized Israelis, it was Hamas that took and that continues to hold hostages. I have not forgotten and neither have you. And we will not forget.”
Making connections: House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) drew direct connections between the Holocaust, and the events that led up to it, and current events on U.S. college campuses, highlighting the role of German universities in perpetuating antisemitism and ultimately atrocities during the Holocaust. “We remember what happened then, and now today, we are witnessing American universities quickly becoming hostile for Jewish students and faculty,” Johnson said. “The very campuses [that] were once the envy of the international academy have succumbed to an antisemitic virus… Now is the time for moral clarity, and we must put an end to this madness.”
up in arms
Congressional lawmakers urge Biden administration to quickly reverse any delays of weapons transfers to Israel
Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle are urging the Biden administration to reverse course on any delayed congressionally approved weapons transfers to Israel. Reports have circulated in recent days that the Biden administration is holding up the pending sale of two types of Boeing precision bombs to Israel “to send a political message” about U.S. disapproval of a Rafah invasion, Jewish Insider’s Emily Jacobs and Marc Rod report.
Stuck in limbo: While the U.S. has not formally declined the sale, the administration has refused to take any action to move the sale forward, thus preventing the weapons transfers. The sale in question would cover 6,500 Joint Direct Attack Munitions, which turn bombs into precision-guided weapons, and an unknown number of Small Diameter Bombs.
Rafah concerns: Congress was first informed of the deal in January, though a senior administration official said on Tuesday that discussions on pausing additional weapons sales began in April when they claim “Israel seemed to approach a decision on Rafah without fully addressing U.S. concern.” The official said of the 3,500 bombs, “We have not made a final determination on how to proceed with this shipment.”
Letter to Biden: Sens. Joni Ernst (R-IA) and Ted Budd (R-NC) penned a letter to Biden urging him to “immediately restart the weapons shipments to Israel today as it continues to fight Iran, Hamas, Hezbollah, and other Iran-backed threats. We are shocked that your administration has reportedly decided to withhold critical ammunition to Israel,” the duo wrote. “You promised your commitment to Israel was ironclad. Pausing much-needed military support to our closest Middle Eastern ally signals otherwise. We are deeply concerned that your administration failed to notify Congress about this decision.”
Dem opposition: A few Democrats distanced themselves from the newly discovered delays, with Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA) telling Fox News, “I don’t think we should be withholding any kind of munitions” to Israel. “If there should be any kind of conditions, it should be on Hamas and its enablers and its benefactors,” Fetterman added.
Read the full story here.
IDF comment: Asked about the issue at a Yediot Ahronot conference today, Israeli army spokesman Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari said Israel and the U.S. resolve any disagreements “behind closed doors” and lauded the coordination between the two countries as having reached “a scope without precedent, I think, in history.”
candid convo
Former Speaker McCarthy warns that far-right and far-left lawmakers threaten world peace
In a no-holds-barred speech on Tuesday at the Milken Institute Global Conference in Los Angeles, former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) decried growing extremism in Washington, alleging that fringe lawmakers in both parties threaten world peace, Jewish Insider’s Gabby Deutch reports.
Negotiating powers: McCarthy, who resigned from Congress at the end of last year after being ousted as House speaker, blasted Congress for taking six months to pass a bill to increase aid to Ukraine and Israel, and suggested the Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) should have done more to negotiate with President Joe Biden.
Look for compromise: “If you don’t use the power of the speakership — because what happened? You say, Why did he change his mind? He overwhelmingly was getting rolled by the Senate bill that sat there. That’s what transpired,” McCarthy said. “We have a system designed to find compromise, but we don’t reward it.”
Peace at stake: McCarthy warned that far-right and far-left figures in Washington threaten global peace, which he said America has maintained for the 79 years since the end of World War II.
Washington worries: “The world looks like the 1930s. You’ve got the Axis of Evil back together. You’ve got a weakness inside Washington. You’ve got an isolationist working inside the Republican Party, you’ve got a Democratic Party moving away from Israel. You’ve got a populism growing — there’s no principle behind it,” said McCarthy. “That is a perfect storm for someone to make something stupid.” It was not clear whether he was referring to a specific Republican individual as “isolationist.”
trip talk
‘I wish they were close to getting a deal,’ Joni Ernst says following Israel visit
Sen. Joni Ernst (R-IA), following a trip to Israel and broader Middle East over the weekend, expressed hesitance about the possibility of a hostage release deal, arguing that continued Israeli military pressure on Hamas is likely the only path to ultimately achieving a deal, Jewish Insider’s Marc Rod reports.
Talking talks: “I wish they were close to getting a deal,” Ernst said. “But from [Israel’s] perspective, they feel that the military action is the only way that they have leverage over Hamas. And I think they are probably right. So they felt that Rafah was important and that would be used as leverage to bring Hamas to the table. What other leverage do we have?”
Poor partners: Ernst said that U.S. allies Qatar and Egypt aren’t being helpful in the negotiations. “Look at the deal that they put forward. Israel wasn’t even included in that discussion,” Ernst said. “It was made up by Egypt, Qatar and Hamas. Of course Hamas is going to accept it — they wrote it. Egypt and Qatar, they have to do more.” She called Egypt “just as bad” as Qatar, which she has spent months criticizing, and said the U.S. must reconsider its military relationships with and funding of both.
Glimmer of hope: The senators’ visit to the United Arab Emirates provided a “little bit of optimism” on the trip, Ernst said. “I think [President Mohammed bin Zayed] really is exhibiting a high level of leadership for the region, and working with Israel and other Arab nations,” Ernst said.
Looking ahead: She said the UAE is willing to involve itself in postwar reconstruction and reorganization efforts in Gaza under the condition of a lasting peace between Israel and Gaza. Israel’s leadership, on the other hand, is less focused on the day after the war in Gaza, Ernst assessed. “I don’t even know that the prime minister is able to see what the day after looks like right now.”
Read the full story here.
Mystery solved?: Potentially providing insight into a mystery that has plagued Washington for nearly a year, Sen. Jim Risch (R-ID) and Rep. Michael McCaul (R-TX) alleged in a new letter to Secretary of State Tony Blinken that their investigations have found that suspended Iran Envoy Rob Malley is under investigation for transferring classified documents to his personal email account and downloading them to his personal cell phone, enabling a “hostile cyber actor” to breach Malley’s account or device and access the information.
protesters’ protection
Emerson College president offers to pay bail for anti-Israel protesters arrested at school
The president of Emerson College became the latest university leader to face sharp criticism for his handling of the anti-Israel encampment protests after he offered to pay bail for protesters arrested at the Boston liberal arts school and requested that they not be prosecuted, eJewishPhilanthropy’s Haley Cohen reports for Jewish Insider.
You’ve got mail: Following the arrest last week of 118 “Gaza solidarity encampment” protesters, who camped out in tents for weeks in the middle of campus, Emerson President Jay Bernhardt sent a campus-wide email last week saying that the school “has continued to be supportive in multiple ways – sending staff to all the precincts and posting bail for arrested students, canceling and modifying classes so our community could process what had occurred, and providing additional care and support for our community to heal.” Bernhardt, who is Jewish, added, “The College will not bring any campus disciplinary charges against the protestors and will encourage the district attorney not to pursue charges related to encampment violations.”
Hate speech: Roni Moser, an Israeli freshman at Emerson, said in a speech at a pro-Israel rally in Boston on April 28 that the encampments have been the “climax” of the anti-Israel rhetoric that has engulfed the Boston campus since Oct. 7. While Emerson’s undergraduate enrollment is only about 4,000 students, its Students for Justice in Palestine account has more than 6,000 followers. Moser said that the protesters have “written hateful speech on walls and screamed violent chants repeatedly.” She said that, “People have the right to protest. People shouldn’t have the right to use such violent and antisemitic speech,” pointing to slogans that have been thrown around campus including “Long live the intifada” and “Israel is antisemitic.”
Harassment: “Jewish students were personally harassed, to the point where many had to be removed from campus, and temporarily placed in hotels,” Moser said, adding that “friends of mine were called terrorists.”
Bonus: In a Wall Street Journal op-ed, University of Chicago President Paul Alivisatos explains why he shut down his school’s anti-Israel encampment.
Worthy Reads
Campus Fever: In the Detroit Free Press, Mitch Albom considers the motivations of the campus protests. “Let’s face it. The U.S. has a soft spot for protests. We are proud of our free speech principles. And baby boomers who fondly remember the 1960s seem to reflexively associate campus unrest with righteousness. But this is not ‘hell-no-we-won’t go.’ And just because you congregate lots of people doesn’t make you noble. Especially in the days of Instagram and Signal, where inviting a million souls is as simple as flicking a finger. In the end, this campus fever was about many things, some of them earnest, some of them pathetic, but only one of them vile and terribly dangerous: the elimination of the only country on earth that calls itself a home to Jews, and the hostile backdrop of antisemitism behind it which left Jewish students across the country studying online, hiding their yarmulkes and Jewish stars, or weeping on school staircases, wondering how bad this will get. Go back to Poland? Final Solution? Murdering Zionists? We wouldn’t tolerate that for any other minority groups. Why on earth have we been tolerating it up till now?” [Freep]
Iran’s Aim: In The New York Times, Karim Sadjadpour argues that Iran has prioritized the destruction of Israel over its own well-being as a nation. “Iran and Israel are not natural adversaries. In contrast to other modern conflicts — between Israel and Palestine, Russia and Ukraine, China and Taiwan — Iran and Israel have no bilateral land or resource disputes. Their national strengths — Iran is an energy titan and Israel is a tech innovator — are more complementary than competitive. The nations also have a historical affinity dating back over 2,500 years, when the Persian King Cyrus the Great freed the Jews from the Babylonian Captivity. Iran was the second Muslim nation, after Turkey, to recognize Israel after its founding in 1948. … After decades of living under an economically failing, socially repressive police state, Iran’s people long ago recognized that the greatest obstacle between themselves and a normal life is their own leadership, not America or Israel. In a 2021 public opinion poll conducted from Europe, only around 1 in 5 Iranians approved of their government’s support of Hamas and ‘Death to Israel’ slogan.” [NYTimes]
Where’s the Outrage?: Bloomberg’s Marc Champion looks at how Iran is benefitting from the global fixation on the Israel-Hamas war. “For a while the world was seized with outrage at the sight of women and girls getting arrested, or in some cases beaten or even killed, for refusing to dress the way a regime of aging male religious fundamentalists thought appropriate. But that was before Gaza seemed to suck away all available indignation, whether at the brutalizing of women in Iran, the killing or deliberate starvation of as many as 600,000 people in Ethiopia’s Tigray province or the 8 million displaced by war and now threatened with famine in Sudan. The social media channels used by those active in the Woman, Life Freedom movement went suddenly dark in the days after Hamas struck and Israel began its retaliation. They’ve resumed since, but the attention – especially from the West – never really returned.” [Bloomberg]
No Pigskin on Shabbat: The Athletic’s Ari Wasserman spotlights Texas A&M football receiver Sam Salz, believed to be the only current Orthodox Jew playing college football. “For an observant Orthodox Jew, Shabbat is an entire day meant for communing with God, whether it be studying Torah, praying or being with your community. Judaic law limits distractions. There’s no work, no lifting weights, no cooking, no cleaning, no business transactions, no usage of electricity and no riding in motorized vehicles, among other rules. And, obviously no playing football. … Salz said he felt a desire to prove to himself — and to other Orthodox Jewish people — that religious beliefs don’t have to infringe on goals or pursuit of happiness. For him, for some reason, that involved football. ‘I’ve always been a “see if I can do it” type,’ Salz said. ‘I don’t know how this got into my head. People think I’m BS-ing, but I always had this belief in my head, back to when I was a little kid, that I had to play college football or else I wouldn’t have done everything I could’ve — or should’ve — in life.’” [TheAthletic]
Around the Web
Burns and Bibi: CIA Director Bill Burns is slated to meet with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu today amid ongoing discussions about a hostage release deal.
Crossing Reopened: Israel reopened the Kerem Shalom Crossing for the entry of humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip, following its closure in recent days due to Hamas rocket fire in the area that killed four Israeli soldiers.
Hostage-Deal Daylight: The Atlantic’s Yair Rosenberg breaks down the daylight between a cease-fire and hostage-release deal that had been accepted by Israel, and the one Hamas claimed to accept earlier this week.
Survey Says: A new survey of American college students found that the Israel-Hamas war ranks below more than half a dozen other issues as a top concern, and that 8% of college students have engaged in protests or demonstrations related to the war.
Bernie and Joe: The Associated Press spotlights the relationship between President Joe Biden and Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) and their differing views on the U.S. approach to the Israel-Hamas war as Sanders prepares to serve as a key surrogate for Biden among progressive voters.
Bacon’s Bite: Rep. Don Bacon (R-NE) introduced a resolution to censure Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) for “slanderous comments” accusing some Jewish students of being “pro-genocide,” which Bacon warned “could inflame violence against the the Jewish community.” He does not plan to force a vote on the censure.
DoE Dough: Rep. Dan Goldman (D-NY) introduced legislation that would provide an additional $280 million to support the Department of Education’s Office of Civil Rights, which department officials say is severely overstretched given significant increases in antisemitism and other complaints since Oct. 7.
ICC Sanctions: Reps. Brian Mast (R-FL), Chip Roy (R-TX), Elise Stefanik (R-NY) and other House Republicans introduced a bill to sanction anyone involved in the International Criminal Court’s efforts to investigate, detain or prosecute U.S. citizens or officials from allied governments. In addition, House Republicans, including House Foreign Affairs Committee Chair Mike McCaul (R-TX) are drafting legislation that would sanction International Criminal Court officials as a “precaution” should the ICC issue arrest warrants for Israeli officials.
Dear Protester: The New York Times’ Bret Stephens pens a letter to campus anti-Israel protesters, saying that their activism is a “daily reminder of what my Zionism is for, about and against.”
History Lesson: In The Wall Street Journal, Nathan Lewin, who was born in Lodz, reflects on calls from antisemitic demonstrators that Jews should “Go back to Poland.”
What is 770?: A recent episode of “Jeopardy!” featured a question about the Chabad-Lubavitch movement.
Nuke Talk: The head of the International Atomic Energy Agency, who returned from Tehran earlier this week, said that Iran’s cooperation with the nuclear watchdog is “completely unsatisfactory,” but that the body will continue talks with Iran aimed at reaching an agreement over the Islamic republic’s nuclear program.
Having Israel’s Back: French Prime Minister Gabriel Attal slammed far-left French politicians who have criticized Israel’s actions in its war against Hamas.
Remembering: Crossword creator and competitor Nancy Schuster died at 90. British psychologist and author Lesley Hazleton died at 78.
Pic of the Day
“Rimon’s Song,” written by Jerusalem Post senior editor David Brinn and performed by Libbytown, honors released Israeli hostage Rimon Kirsht Buchshtav, whose husband is still being held by Hamas, for her bravery. The song is dedicated to the some 130 hostages who remain in Gaza.
Birthdays
Rabbi in Dusseldorf, Germany, until moving to Israel in 2021, Rabbi Raphael Evers turns 70…
Retired senior British judge, Baron Leonard Hubert “Lennie” Hoffmann turns 90… Immediate past chairman of the board of the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee, Stanley A. Rabin turns 86… International chair of the Raoul Wallenberg Centre for Human Rights, Irwin Cotler turns 84… MIT biologist and 2002 Nobel Prize laureate in medicine, H. Robert Horvitz turns 77… Former MLB pitcher who played for the Angels, Rangers and White Sox, Lloyd Allen turns 74… CFO for The Manischewitz Company for 13 years until earlier this year, Thomas E. Keogh… Retired USDOJ official, for many years he was the director of the Office of Special Investigations focused on deporting Nazi war criminals, Eli M. Rosenbaum turns 69… Past president of Congregation B’nai Torah in Sandy Springs, Ga., Janice Perlis Ellin… Third generation furniture retailer in Springfield, Ill., Barry Seidman… President of Clayton, Mo.-based JurisTemps, Andrew J. Koshner, J.D., Ph.D…. CEO and founder of NSG/SWAT, Richard Kirshenbaum turns 63… Novelist, author of If I Could Tell You and movie critic for The Jerusalem Post, Hannah Brown… Co-founder of the disability advocacy nonprofit RespectAbility, Jennifer Laszlo Mizrahi turns 60… Israeli journalist, anchorwoman and attorney, she is the host of the investigative program “Uvda” (“Fact”) on Israeli television, Ilana Dayan-Orbach turns 60… Long-time litigator and political fundraiser in Florida, now serving as a mediator and arbitrator, Benjamin W. Newman… Canadian social activist and documentary filmmaker, Naomi Klein turns 54… Member of Knesset and chairman of the World Likud, he served as Israel’s ambassador to the U.N., Ambassador Danny Danon turns 53… Stand-up comedian, writer, actress and author, Jodi Miller turns 53… Novelist and memoirist, Joanna Rakoff turns 52… Senior adviser at West End Strategy Team, Ari Geller… Director of strategic initiatives at J Street, Josh Lockman… Ice hockey player, now the assistant coach of the New Hampshire Wildcats women’s ice hockey program, Samantha Faber turns 37… Founder and CEO at Axion Ray, Daniel First… Canadian Olympic beach volleyball player, Sam Schachter turns 34… Former White House senior policy adviser in the Biden administration, Amiel Fields-Meyer…
Jewish Emerson students said they’ve been harassed on campus, and faced chants calling for an intifada
JOSEPH PREZIOSO/AFP via Getty Images
Police move in to arrest pro-Palestinian supporters who were blocking the road after the Emerson College Palestinian protest camp was cleared by police in Boston, Massachusetts, on April 25, 2024.
The president of Emerson College became the latest university leader to face sharp criticism for his handling of the anti-Israel encampment protests after he offered to pay bail for protesters arrested at the Boston liberal arts school and requested that they not be prosecuted.
Following the arrest last week of 118 “Gaza solidarity encampment” protesters, who camped out in tents for weeks in the middle of campus, Emerson President Jay Bernhardt sent a campus-wide email last week saying that the school “has continued to be supportive in multiple ways – sending staff to all the precincts and posting bail for arrested students, canceling and modifying classes so our community could process what had occurred, and providing additional care and support for our community to heal.”
“The College will not bring any campus disciplinary charges against the protestors and will encourage the district attorney not to pursue charges related to encampment violations,” Bernhardt, who is Jewish, wrote.
Roni Moser, an Israeli freshman at Emerson, said in a speech at a pro-Israel rally in Boston on April 28 that the encampments have been the “climax” of the anti-Israel rhetoric that has engulfed the Boston campus since Oct. 7. While Emerson’s undergraduate enrollment is only about 4,000 students, its Students for Justice in Palestine account has more than 6,000 followers.
Moser said that the protesters have “written hateful speech on walls and screamed violent chants repeatedly.”
“People have the right to protest. People shouldn’t have the right to use such violent and antisemitic speech,” she said, pointing to slogans that have been thrown around campus including “Long live the intifada” and “Israel is antisemitic.”
“Jewish students were personally harassed, to the point where many had to be removed from campus, and temporarily placed in hotels,” Moser said, adding that “friends of mine were called terrorists.”
Jonathan Greenblatt, CEO of the Anti-Defamation League, called on Bernhardt to “reverse this decision” and for “the Suffolk district attorney to enforce the law.”
“The president of Emerson is going out of his way to make sure students who broke the law and violated Emerson’s own policies face no consequences,” Greenblatt said in a statement.
Several universities around the country have recently struck deals with anti-Israel protesters to quell the turmoil on college campuses — including giving protesters a seat at the table regarding investment decisions, which Jewish leaders warn could further poison the atmosphere for Jewish students. But at most schools, the concessions have been largely symbolic.
Greenblatt said that in Emerson’s case, “This capitulates to the most extreme voices and rewards their disruptive conduct. The Emerson community deserves better.”
In a follow-up letter to students on Monday, Bernhardt announced that the university “will establish a campus bias rapid response team.”
“I deeply regret that despite our best efforts, our students’ activism resulted in police action over their encampment, especially in the heartbreaking way it occurred,” Bernhardt wrote.
He went on to say that, “Regarding financial divestment, the Board of Trustees has considered this request and may continue to do so further in the future.”