A year after Israel-Hamas war began, students say free speech has been chilled in classrooms

A year after Israel-Hamas war began, students say free speech has been chilled in classrooms

Schools

At Harvard University in Massachusetts, a recent survey found that many students and faculty are reluctant to share their perspectives in class.

George Washington University student Ty Lindia poses for a photo at the site of last spring’s student tent encampment at the George Washington University Yard in Washington, Wednesday, Oct. 2, 2024. AP Photo/José Luis Magana

WASHINGTON (AP) — As a junior at George Washington University, Ty Lindia meets new students every day. But with the shadow of the war between Israel and Hamas hanging over the Washington, DC, campus, where everyone has a political opinion, each new meeting is fraught with pitfalls.

“The idea that I might say the wrong things scares me a little,” said Lindia, who is studying political science. “You have to tiptoe around in politics until someone says something that means they have a certain opinion on the issue.”

He has seen friendships – including some of his own – end because of views on the war. In public, he keeps his position to himself, for fear that future employers will hold it against him.

“Before October 7, there really wasn’t much fear,” said Lindia, of Morristown, New Jersey.

A year after the Hamas attack in southern Israel, some students say they are hesitant to speak out because it could pit them against their peers, their professors or even their potential employers. Social bubbles were cemented at the same time as the divisions of war. New protest rules on many campuses increase the risk of suspension or expulsion.

Tensions over the conflict flared last year amid emotional protests following the Oct. 7 attack. In the spring, a wave of pro-Palestinian tent encampments led to some 3,200 arrests.

The atmosphere on American campuses has calmed since these demonstrations, but unease persists.

Students reconsider what to say in class

During a recent class discussion about gender and the military at Indiana University, sophomore Mikayla Kaplan said she planned to mention her friends who serve in the Israeli military. But in a room full of politically progressive classmates, she decided to remain silent.

“In the back of my mind, I’m always thinking about things I should or shouldn’t say,” Kaplan said.

Kaplan, who proudly wears a Star of David necklace, said that before college she had many friends of different faiths, but after Oct. 7, almost all of her friends are Jewish.

The war began when Hamas-led fighters killed around 1,200 people, mostly civilians, in the Oct. 7 attack on southern Israel. They kidnapped 250 other people and still hold around 100 hostages. The Israeli campaign in Gaza has killed at least 41,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza’s health ministry.

At the University of Connecticut, some students said the conflict doesn’t appear as much in class. Ahmad Zoghol, an engineering student, said the issue remains tense and he has heard of potential employers scrutinizing political statements made by students at the university.

“A lot of people, myself included, are worried that if we talk about it, there will be some sort of repercussion,” he said.

Campuses grappling with divisions

Compared to the much larger campus protests during the Vietnam War era, when few students openly supported the war, campuses today appear more divided, said Mark Yudof, former president of the University of California. For many, the problems are more personal.

“Teachers disagree with each other. The student body is at odds with each other. There is a war of ideologies going on,” he said.

Some universities are trying to bridge the gap by organizing on-campus events around civil discourse, sometimes inviting Palestinian and Jewish speakers to share the stage. At Harvard University in Massachusetts, a recent survey found that many students and faculty are reluctant to share their perspectives in class. A panel suggested solutions, including “classroom confidentiality” and teaching about constructive disagreement.

Meanwhile, many campuses are adding policies cracking down on protests, often banning encampments and limiting protests to certain times or locations.

At Indiana University, a new policy bans “expressive activity” after 11 p.m., among other restrictions. Doctoral student Bryce Greene, who helped lead a pro-Palestinian encampment last semester, said he was threatened with suspension after organizing a vigil at 11:30 p.m.

This is a stark contrast to previous campus protests, including a climate protest in 2019 that drew hundreds of students without interference from the university, he said.

“There is certainly a chilling effect when free speech is restricted in this way,” said Greene, who is part of a lawsuit challenging the new policy. “This is just a way for them to prevent people from speaking out for Palestine. »

New rules authorize demonstrations, but under conditions

The tense atmosphere has led some faculty members to rethink teaching certain subjects or participate in certain debates, said Risa Lieberwitz, general counsel for the American Association of University Professors.

Lieberwitz, who teaches labor law at Cornell University, was alarmed by the growing number of universities requiring students to register protests several days in advance.

“It’s so contradictory to the way protests and demonstrations are happening,” she said. “They are often spontaneous. They are not planned in the same way that events are usually planned.

Protests continued on many campuses, but on a smaller scale and often under new rules.

At Wesleyan University in Connecticut, police handcuffed pro-Palestinian students participating in a campus sit-in last month before they agreed to leave. Wesleyan President Michael Roth said he supports students’ free speech rights, but that they “don’t have the right to take over part of a building.”

Wesleyan is offering new courses on civil disagreements this year, and professors are working to foster discussion among students.

“It’s a challenge for students, as it is for adults: Most adults don’t have conversations with people who disagree with them,” Roth said. “We are so isolated in our bubbles.”

Schools try to strike a balance when it comes to free speech

American universities pride themselves on being places of open debate where students can engage across their differences. Since October 7, they have been under enormous pressure to defend freedom of expression while protecting students from discrimination.

The U.S. Department of Education is investigating more than 70 universities for reports of anti-Semitism or Islamophobia. The leaders of several prestigious universities have been summoned before Congress by Republicans who accuse them of being soft on anti-Semitism.

However, it is more difficult than ever to find the limit where protected speech stops. Leaders are weighing whether to allow chants seen by some as calls of support for Palestinians and by others as a threat against Jews. It’s especially complicated at public universities, which are bound by the First Amendment, while private colleges have the ability to impose broader speech limits.

At George Washington University, Lindia said the war came up often in her classes, but sometimes after a warm-up period: In one class, the discussion slackened after the professor realized that most of the students shared similar points of view. Even while walking to class, the tension remains visible. High fences now surround University Yard, the grassy area where police dispersed a tent encampment in May.

“It’s a place of free speech, but now it’s completely blocked,” he said.

Some students say moderate voices are getting lost.

Nivriti Agaram, a student at George Washington, said she believes Israel has the right to defend itself, but she questions U.S. spending on the war. That view puts her at odds with more liberal students, who call her a “genocide facilitator” and worse, she said.

“It’s very stifling,” she said. “I think there’s a silent majority that doesn’t speak.”

Associated Press writer Michael Melia in Storrs, Connecticut, contributed to this report.