American anti-Israel campus activists and protest groups have been amplifying “official” propaganda from Hamas and other designated terrorist organizations, according to a study from the Anti-Defamation League’s Center on Extremism.
“Protestors and activists are not merely praising the activity of terror groups; they are actively sharing their official propaganda, disseminating communiqués, videos, and other materials directly onto mainstream platforms,” the study says.
“Those who share [Foreign Terrorist Organization] propaganda are aware of its violent nature and origins yet exhibit no concern about pushing materials from groups responsible for killing scores of civilians,” according to the report, adding that it reflects “an acceptance of violence against civilians as a legitimate viewpoint.”
The study found that activists have circulated terror content across Telegram, X, and Instagram since Hamas’s Oct. 7, 2023, massacre in Israel, accelerating what researchers described as the “normalization of rhetoric and messaging from terror organizations that overtly encourage acts of violence against Israel and Jewish people.” Researchers warned the trend coincides with record levels of anti-Semitic incidents nationwide and an “unprecedentedly high threat landscape” for American Jews.
The findings were based on evidence compiled from protests and social media. In January 2025, for example, Keffiyeh-clad protesters at Columbia University stormed a classroom and passed out flyers glorifying Hamas, depicting a crushed Star of David and threatening violence, the Washington Free Beacon reported. “THE ENEMY WILL NOT SEE TOMORROW,” read one flyer using imagery tied to Hamas targets.
At Northwestern University in April, anti-Semitic vandals used red paint to write “Death to Israel” and draw Hamas triangles on a Northwestern building that houses the school’s Holocaust center as Jewish students observed Passover.
At George Mason University, its Students for Justice in Palestine chapter released a recruitment video in August set to music praising former Hamas commander Mohammed Deif after police seized terrorist propaganda and weapons linked to their organization’s leader.
The ADL urged social media companies to enforce bans on content from foreign terrorist organizations and called on Congress to advance legislation cracking down on extremist material online.
“This propaganda spread functions to normalize the eliminationist goals and terrorist tactics espoused by groups like Hamas and the [Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine] within certain activist circles in the U.S. It blurs the line between legitimate political protest and explicit endorsement of terrorism and antisemitic violence,” the study states.
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