Washington University in St. Louis (WashU) has 1,850 Jewish undergraduate students, 24% of the population. There is a Hillel, Chabad and Jewish Greek life organizations.

What’s Happening on Campus?

Since October 7, a student group called Resist WashU has held anti-Israel rallies, walkouts and teach-ins, and called for university divestment from Israel. In an October 2023 letter to the WashU administration, the group demanded “that Washington University condemn both Israel’s genocide in Palestine and threats against Palestinians on our campus. It must also divest from Boeing for its role in arming mass murder.”

In November 2023, an anti-Israel art display on campus featured paintings with the lines: “Zionism kills” and “Zionism f***ing kills people.”

In March 2024, Resist WashU backed a resolution put forward to the Student Union Senate calling on WashU to divest from and cut professional ties with Boeing. The night of the vote, students held signs that read “Boeing Kills,” due to the company’s connections to Israel, and “Free Palestine.” The resolution passed in the Senate, 15 to 5.

In January 2024, a number of Jewish students enrolled at the University via a rare, mid-year transfer after reporting “feeling unsafe on their previous campuses due to antisemitism.”

University Policies and Responsive Action

Chancellor Andrew Martin put out a statement on October 10, 2023 denouncing the Hamas attack. On October 26, 2023, Martin issued a second statement condemning antisemitism and Islamophobia. In that statement, he wrote that he was “deeply disturbed to learn that during gatherings on campus in the past week, antisemitic phrases were chanted and written on signs.”

In a statement released on November 29, 2023, Martin wrote, “[T]he hatred associated with the phrase “from the river to the sea” is well understood by most in our community – and so, too, is the emotional and psychological impact of that phrase. To use that phrase, particularly in circumstances where we know it will have a harmful impact, is well beneath the dignity of every member of our community. This type of language does not build understanding; its contribution to the community is ill will, anger, distress, and sadness.”

The University has also mandated antisemitism education for its campus community. 

At the University, the administration asked protestors to disperse multiple times the day that the encampment was set up in April 2024. When protestors failed to leave, law enforcement was called in to support the removal of the encampment, leading to 100 arrests and 3 police officers reporting significant injuries. The administration subsequently released a strong statement denouncing the actions of the protestors and outlining the steps taken by the university and the reasons for police involvement. Several faculty members involved in the protests have been placed on leave.

Commendations

On June 18, 2024, ADL issued a commendation to Washington University in St. Louis for its swift action to address campus encampments.