House lawmakers condemned a trio of college presidents for their response to a rising trend of antisemitism on university campuses across the country, marking the latest backlash toward their testimony during a congressional hearing last week.
Lawmakers voted 303-126 on Wednesday to agree to a bipartisan resolution condemning the rise of antisemitism on college campuses, particularly denouncing the increased reports of hate speech or acts of violence that have occurred since war broke out in Israel in early October. The resolution passed with overwhelming Republican support, with a majority of Democrats voting against the measure, citing opposition that the vote was merely symbolic and didn’t go far enough to address antisemitism.
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“This is not a partisan issue but a question of moral clarity, which is why our colleagues from across the aisle have come together,” House GOP Chairwoman Elise Stefanik (R-NY) said in a statement. “We are only just beginning to address the pervasive rot of antisemitism that has infected America’s higher education system, and we will not stop until it is rooted out and those responsible for fostering its growth are held accountable. Antisemitism has no place in America.”
The resolution comes in response to testimony from three college presidents from Harvard, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and the University of Pennsylvania last week. During that hearing, the three presidents struggled to articulate their position on whether students calling for the genocide of Jews would violate the schools’ codes of conduct.
The hearing specifically focused on the hundreds of protests and counterprotests on college campuses since the Hamas militant group attacked Israel on Oct. 7. Protests have resulted in physical fights and, in some cases, death threats, prompting criticism of the lack of action by the college leadership.
At one point during the hearing, Stefanik pressed UPenn President Elizabeth Magill on whether calling for genocide “constitute[s] bullying or harassment,” which resulted in a tense back-and-forth between the two.
“If it is directed and severe, pervasive, it is harassment,” Magill responded, adding later, “It is a context-dependent decision, congresswoman.”
“That’s your testimony today?” Stefanik shot back. “Calling for the genocide of Jews is depending upon the context?”
The exchange resulted in sharp backlash, including widespread calls for Magill and the other presidents to resign from their top positions. Magill resigned just four days later.
The testimony prompted widespread criticism from both Republicans and Democrats, especially toward the other two presidents, Claudine Gay of Harvard and Sally Kornbluth of MIT, which resulted in the bipartisan resolution that passed the House Wednesday.
“These are Ivy League university presidents that were asked a softball question: ‘Does calling for the genocide of Jews count as harassment under their school’s policies?’” said Rep. Jared Moskowitz (D-FL). “That’s not a trick question, and it’s infuriating that these leaders of young people would try to equivocate with some nonsense about ‘it depends on the context.’ Sub out Jews for any other persecuted minority group, and they would never have given that answer. They failed the test, and just like their students there, are no makeups.”
However, some Democrats pushed back against the resolution, arguing Congress should not involve itself with the personnel decisions of colleges even in cases of antisemitism.
“Like most people, I was appalled when the presidents of three elite universities were unable to state unequivocally that calling for genocide against the Jewish people would violate their campus codes of conduct,” Rep. Jerry Nadler (D-NY), one of the Democrats who voted against the measure, said in a statement ahead of the vote.
But, he added, the resolution does not go far enough to prevent further antisemitism on campuses. Instead, he argued the resolution presented a “gross overreach” of lawmakers seeking to “meddle in the hiring and firing of college presidents” and “score political points.”
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“Just as these college presidents fell short in protecting the Jewish community, so too does the current Republican Congress. It is not enough simply to condemn antisemitism, as we have in toothless resolution after toothless resolution — and as the House has yet again today,” Nadler said. “We need action, not words.”
The resolution is one of several pieces of legislation to pass the House this year denouncing the rise of antisemitism and affirming lawmakers’ support for Israel. Those proposals have seen some pushback from a handful of progressive Democrats who have repeatedly called for a ceasefire in Israel, which could hand Republicans campaign fodder to use in the 2024 cycle to accuse their colleagues across the aisle of voting against opposing antisemitism.
