Congress Pressures Universities over Antisemitism

What’s happening: Members of Congress are demanding that Columbia University President Nemat Shafik resign amid pro-Hamas demonstrations on campus.

Radical protests: Demonstrators blocked a Jewish professor from Columbia’s campus, praised Hamas, and told Jewish students that Oct. 7 will “be every day” for them, among other threats. Protests continued despite dozens of students being arrested or suspended, and classes were moved online for the rest of the semester.
In the hot seat: House Republicans feel Shafik hasn’t responded strongly enough to antisemitic incidents. They pressured her during a recent hearing to fire professors with a history of pro-Hamas statements, which she indicated she would do.

Why it matters: Republicans are more comfortable leveraging political power against campus radicalism in the wake of the Israel-Hamas war — an aggressive shift which could change their approach toward contentious issues in higher education, such as the rise of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) material.

Federal probes: The House opened investigations into antisemitism at six elite schools in recent months.
Financial pressure: Representatives proposed revoking the tax-exempt status of Cornell University, Harvard University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and University of Pennsylvania. Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-NY) wants the Biden administration to rescind Columbia University’s federal funding.
Condemnation: An antisemitism hearing with House Republicans in December resulted in the resignations of Harvard and UPenn presidents. This month, the GOP-controlled House passed a resolution condemning college students who chant, “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free.”

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Val Spadaro2 years ago

It infuriates me that these universities mentioned above, and others, get federal funds at all. For what they charge for tuition, the way student debt is soaring, all federal funds should be stopped. This system is perverse.