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A Harvard student said Jewish students on campus feel “unwelcome” in certain classrooms amid a new multibillion-dollar lawsuit from the Trump administration over the school’s mishandling of antisemitism.
Last week, Trump’s Department of Justice filed a 44-page lawsuit against the Ivy League institution for “[failing] to protect its Jewish students,” and Harvard sophomore Teja Billa told Fox News Digital that the university failed to implement all the steps to combat antisemitism the school said they would.
“Jewish students and Israeli students feeling very unwelcome in certain courses to do with the Israel-Palestine conflict,” Billa told Fox. “More broadly, I don’t think all of the steps that the task force outlined to address it have actually been implemented. It’s great to come out with a task force report, but it really necessitates action on the part of Harvard.”
“I really hope that Harvard and the administration can reach some sort of negotiated settlement that keeps the research funding that is so important to Harvard while also addressing the really, really widespread and critical instances of bias and anti-Semitism that we found in the report and haven’t fully addressed,” Billa added.
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The Trump administration announced the lawsuit last week, with Attorney General Pam Bondi criticizing the rise in antisemitism and the universities that “allowed” sentiments to exist at schools across the country.
“Since October 7th, 2023, too many of our educational institutions have allowed anti-Semitism to flourish on campus – Harvard included,” Bondi said in a statement. “[This lawsuit] underscores the Trump Administration’s commitment to demanding better from our nation’s schools and putting an end to discriminatory behavior that harms students.”
Robert Kennedy Jr. also weighed in on the suit, noting the significant amount of federal funding that is pouring into various educational institutions.
“Every student deserves to learn without fear of harassment or exclusion,” the Health and Human Services secretary said. “When institutions take taxpayer dollars, they accept a duty to protect civil rights. We hold Harvard accountable on the principle that antisemitism has no place in any program funded by the American people.”
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Last April, the Ivy League school revealed the findings of an internal task force investigation into antisemitism at Harvard. Their findings showed that nearly 40% of Jewish students do not feel “at home” at the university.
The task force’s report also found roughly 26% of Jewish students felt “physically unsafe.”
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Harvard University President Alan Garber apologized following the report’s release, while acknowledging the antisemitism that existed on campus.
“I am sorry for the moments when we failed to meet the high expectations we rightfully set for our community,” Garber said in a letter. “The grave, extensive impact of the October 7, 2023, Hamas assault on Israel and its aftermath had serious repercussions on our campus.”
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During Billa’s interview with Fox News Digital, he said one potential solution could involve determining just how “left-leaning” the faculty at the top university really is.
“I think there should be a broader diversity of viewpoints that we see among the professors,” Billa explained. “We’ll do a faculty survey, and it will show that the professors themselves are overwhelmingly left-leaning, and that can’t possibly get every valid viewpoint to an issue.”
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Billa also noted that students are fearful of speaking on hot topics because they are worried about conflicting opinions with professors impacting their grades.
“On the other hand, a lot of students are feeling hesitant or afraid to speak up in class on controversial issues,” Billa continued. “Most of the graduating seniors actually reported that they would not speak up in class out of fear of being canceled or fear of perhaps grading impacts.”
A spokesperson for Harvard told Fox News Digital that they have implemented policies to combat antisemitism and said the university “cares deeply about members of our Jewish and Israeli community.”
“Harvard has taken substantive, proactive steps to address the root causes of antisemitism and actively enforces anti-harassment and anti-discrimination rules and policies on campus,” the spokesperson explained. “We also have enhanced training and education on antisemitism for students, faculty, and staff and launched programs to promote civil dialogue and respectful disagreement inside and outside the classroom. Harvard’s efforts demonstrate the very opposite of deliberate indifference.”
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