ADL (the Anti-Defamation League) calls on universities and colleges to enforce their own codes of conduct and campus policies to restore calm and ensure students can learn, study, participate in activities and celebrate commencement and the close of the semester as they deserve – in a safe, welcoming environment. The current disruptive protests on campus have been marked by vicious antisemitic rhetoric, harassment and intimidation. This has had a serious impact on Jewish students. Indeed, all students – whether Jewish or not – are being impacted by attempts to block their passages to class and other activities and by disruptive tactics interfering with classes and other events. This is unacceptable and violative of many codes of conduct. Such violations cannot go unaddressed; there must be swift and certain consequences. Administrators must communicate clearly and immediately that the following policies are in place and will be enforced:
- Enforce Rules and Ensure Consequences for Disruptive, Unsanctioned Protests
- Enforce time, place, manner restrictions and permitting requirements.
- Enforce campus codes of conduct during protests, and ensure that there are serious consequences for violations, up to and including suspension, expulsion, and bans from participating in campus events, including commencement.
- Make clear that professors and other faculty members cannot cancel class or exams for the purpose of encouraging students to attend protests; and/or offer class credit for participation in such protests.
- Make clear that students will not be able to make up exams or receive credit for exams or school work missed due to protests.
- Plan for and Protect Upcoming Commencement Events
- Make a plan – follow protocols used for concerts, sporting events on campus – e.g., tickets required for entrance, clear instructions for what can and cannot be brought into graduation, clear guidelines for what graduates can and cannot display or hold during the ceremony, etc. The plan should include a clear protocol for admissions, crowd control, and preventing interference with any ingress or egress; as well as a process for swiftly and safely escorting individuals from the premises if, after a clear warning, protesters persist in disruptive conduct that interferes with the ceremony.
- Clearly communicate these guidelines and the fact that there will be swift and certain consequences for violations – including removal from the graduation proceedings. Enforce these guidelines and ensure consequences immediately upon breach.
Since the start of the 2023 Fall semester, ADL has been communicating with university and college leaders about the rise of antisemitism on campus and how leaders can respond. We did so based on our own research and data collection and in line with the National Strategy to Counter Antisemitism, which called for a whole of society approach, including for action by our educational institutions. Since October 7, the issue has only become more acute, with a shocking rise in antisemitism, following the Hamas attack on Israel and the ensuing war.
On October 8, we reached out to campuses urging action to demonstrate solidarity and ensure security for Jewish students, faculty and others on campus. On November 7, with key partners, we launched the Campus Antisemitism Legal Line to answer the overwhelming volume of requests for legal support from students and their parents in the wake of incidents on campus. To date, there have been over 600 inquires received from individuals regarding more than 225 campuses.
As the fall semester concluded, we again urged action in the face of what had been a devastating time period for our students, with an open letter calling on campus leaders to use the winter break to prepare for the new semester and to commit to adopting new policies where necessary and enforcing existing codes of conduct for students and faculty. We urged campus leadership to commit to No Tolerance for Antisemitism and offered six core commitments that would create a pathway to achieving that status.
In the ensuing months, we have drafted sample policies and launched the first Campus Antisemitism Report Card. We have created resources for administrators, students, parents and alumni. We have offered to be a partner in helping to solve the crisis on campus.
While some universities have adopted new policies, pledged to make changes in the next school year, or even taken some disciplinary action against students, faculty and student organizations violating rules and codes of conduct, too many others have failed to do so. The result has been another semester marked by shocking levels of antisemitic incidents on campus.
And now, as graduation season is upon us, on campuses across the country, disruptive protests and encampments marked by antisemitic rhetoric, harassment, intimidation and in some cases violence are taking place. It is clear that many have been emboldened by the failure to enforce codes of conduct and to clearly impose consequences for violations by students, student organizations, and faculty. Immediate action is needed to protect students, safeguard campuses, and ensure a peaceful end to the semester and to planned commencement activities.