Jewish Institutions Must Do Better When It Comes to Jewish Students

A few weeks ago, the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) sent out a “Campus Crisis Alert” featuring the “persistent and pervasive” antisemitism” at Sarah Lawrence College where I teach, focusing in particular on my experiences. The alert came as a surprise as I had not been contacted by the ADL, but I was nevertheless extremely glad my story was being widely shared. It is good for the world to see that students have tried to cancel me for being a Zionist who believes in Israel’s right to self-defense and to simply exist.

Hatred toward Jews and Israel is rampant on our nation’s colleges and university campuses and has taken many forms. In this case, a group of students calling themselves the “Divestment Coalition” had launched a cancellation campaign to prospective students in my courses by messaging them directly and libeling me as “a professor with a pattern of unrepentant racist, misogynistic, and reactionary behavior” who is “a staunch advocate of Israel’s right to self-defense even when it includes the murder of tens of thousands of Palestinian civilians.”

This “coalition” attempted to organize a boycott of my classes and campus public speaking events. These students disrupted other students to the point that many were afraid to take my classes. On public social media posts, the boycotters referred to my work as “racist, misogynistic, and genocidal rhetoric.” Unsurprisingly, the school presumably supports and endorses these student actions and sentiments because it has not publicly responded to any of the recent vile and illiberal behaviors.

The school did not condemn the students’ overt antisemitism despite the president asserting last year that “there is not, nor can there be, any place for antisemitism or hate speech of any kind on our campus.” Sarah Lawrence also failed to respond to the fact that boycotts are completely antithetical to the school’s mission of a broad liberal education where diverse views are embraced with curiosity and empathy. Nor did the school address the fact that disruptions of teaching run directly against the school’s stated rules.

While I’m grateful for the efforts of the ADL and others for bringing attention to the deeply antisemitic environment at Sarah Lawrence and on other collegiate campuses, what I find most missing from these efforts is follow-up on the ground for the far too many bad situations that Jewish students and communities have been confronting for a year now.

Many Jewish organizations claim to support Jewish students via task forces, initiatives, public position taking and social media work, and fundraising drives in response to the Oct. 7th massacre and the antisemitic responses that have emerged since this tragedy. But many students tell me that they see little real action on the ground, where it matters to them, and that it is needed in their immediate circumstances

Certainly there are instances where Jewish students have been supported by the ADL and others. But based on meeting with scores of Jewish students on many college and university campuses around the country, and seeing my own troubles connecting with organizations who could help me in my own campus fight against antisemitism, I believe that our Jewish organizations are often overly focused on fundraising and virtue signaling and are not spending enough time listening to students and understanding their needs. The desire to help may be there, but when it comes down to it, in many cases our organizations are simply not working in the trenches and on the ground with students.

In some cases, students feel that organizations are talking over them and using them as examples of a need but then failing to meet them on college campuses; these organizations rarely offer the real support to students who need safe spaces, legal advice, media training and the affirmation that they are part of a bigger community.

In March of 2024, the American Jewish Committee (AJC) and Hillel International, for instance, announced that they will expand their partnership to counter antisemitism on campus with new “work aim[ing] to more deeply engage college and university administrators on responding to antisemitism.” Other organizations have announced that they have similar initiatives, and maybe this is happening to some degree, but so far, the students who I try to help nationwide have seen no or minimal offers of concrete help. In reality, students from around the country regularly report to me that they feel overlooked, marginalized, and have needs that have been ignored by administrators and college presidents. Devastatingly, these students often have faces of despair and disbelief when I tell them that Jewish organizations are mobilizing to support them as they witness behaviors like that of the new president of Columbia who said nothing about the safety of Jewish students but instead apologized to pro-Palestinian students who were “hurt” by NYPD encampment sweeps.

Data from three annual surveys of Jewish students across the nation—well-conducted by Professor Eitan Hersh and the Jim Joseph Foundation—capture just how difficult life has been for Jewish college students since Oct. 7. Growing numbers of Jewish students hide their Jewish identity to fit in on campus. They widely report that people judge them negatively for participating in Jewish activities, and that they pay a social cost for supporting the existence of Israel as a Jewish state.

The data reveal that Jewish organizational programs focused on the Israel-Hamas war were not particularly popular with Jewish students. In my countless discussions, I learned that Jewish students do not want to talk about the war; they want to feel safe and supported. The Jim Joseph Foundation studies confirmed the finding that Jewish students who did attend Jewish programming on campus participated primarily in Shabbat/holiday or social events.

In my countless discussions, I learned that Jewish students do not want to talk about the war; they want to feel safe and supported.

A recent, large event in New York that featured French philosopher Bernard Henri-Levi and students from three east coast campuses confirmed that they all feel very isolated and perceive a deep lack of support from the Jewish organizational world. The students emphatically told the audience that no one is paying attention to them. They also declared that when community groups and foundations want to talk about how to counter outbreaks of hate on the campus, Jewish students should be in the room and part of the discussion.

The harsh truth is, as I have written previously, that embattled Jewish students need “localized responses,” which have been to date “remarkably weak, poorly coordinated, and ineffective.” What is needed is “on-the-ground tactical training for Jewish student activists and leaders.” This “strategy has been neglected and is something that must be corrected if the Jewish community is going to push back against this madness and protect college students.” Jewish community centers, local Federation offices and organizations, and synagogues must reach out to let students know that they are there for them. Local institutions can open their doors to provide safe spaces, meals and places to celebrate holidays and simply offer social support and a place to rest.

My personal experience with the lack of communal support is illustrative and all too common. The bottom line: I have been given absolutely no meaningful support by any Jewish groups in my fight at Sarah Lawrence College, no support to push back the deep antisemitism present, and I have seen no support offered to scared and exhausted Jewish students.

And to be clear: Not only were these organizations not proactive, but also I directly asked for help from a number of Jewish institutions and have been ignored. Fortunately, I have tenure, and I can express my thoughts about Israel as I have academic freedom; I will ride out this mess but it will continue to hurt. As I live in New York, I have support networks. In contrast, these days so many Jewish faculty and students are feeling threatened, unsupported and need help especially as the hate and vitriol started up immediately as our campuses reopened this fall.

Jewish students want and need on-the-ground support, real legal and practical guidance, and proof that they are not alone. The ample elite chatter and position-taking is insufficient.  We as a community need to listen to Jewish students to ensure that their views and needs are central to our meetings, events and actions. Jewish organizations and their resources must be on the ground and help students on their terms and with their needs, which will vary based on schools and particular circumstances. In short, the time for action exclusively via press releases, conferences and briefings, and lobbying is over; Jewish organizations and the larger Jewish community must be physically present and walk arm in arm with the brave students on their campuses to help them push back against hate and violence.

Samuel J. Abrams is a professor of politics at Sarah Lawrence College and a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute.