The U.S. Department of Education announced Friday that it had reached an agreement with the University of California to resolve complaints filed by Jewish and Muslim students of discrimination and harassment during last spring’s protests against the war in Gaza.
The department’s Office for Civil Rights said it investigated nine complaints against schools at the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA), Santa Barbara, San Diego, Davis and Santa Cruz. The complaints alleged that schools failed to respond effectively to anti-Semitic and anti-Arab harassment.
The civil rights office concluded that universities “do not appear to have responded promptly or effectively” to allegations of discrimination and harassment brought to administrations’ attention.
Under the agreement, schools must increase reporting of complaints to the OCR office and review all harassment complaints and reports from the past two academic years to determine whether additional action is necessary. The agreement also calls for more training for university employees and campus police officers on their obligations under federal law.
The University of California system said the agreement was one of several steps taken to ensure its campuses are respectful and welcoming to all.
“Ensuring an inclusive academic environment requires sustained focus and action,” the system said in a written statement.
Colleges and universities across the country saw tensions and sometimes violence erupt on campuses after the start of the war between Israel and Hamas, with dueling campus rallies and widespread allegations of anti-Semitism and anti-harassment. Arab.
The Department of Education investigated dozens of complaints that campuses violated Title VI, which prohibits discrimination or harassment based on race, color and national origin at colleges and universities receiving funding federal. Examples of harassment can include insults, taunts, stereotyping, name-calling and racially motivated attacks or hateful behavior, according to the department’s website.
The department entered into a similar agreement with Brown University in July.
A separate investigation found that the University of Cincinnati failed to respond appropriately to reports of harassment, the Office for Civil Rights said Friday. Examples from around 20 complaints include a Palestinian student who said he received death threats, which the university did not investigate, and an anonymous complaint that a Jewish student’s house had been emptied and covered with excrement.
The University of Cincinnati said in a statement that it would review its policies and previously filed complaints, and take steps “to tangibly strengthen ongoing efforts to prevent discrimination and harassment.” The university said it investigated the complaint of vandalism at the Jewish student’s home, which was filed directly with the federal office, but found no reports or evidence of the incident.
The manner in which UCLA dispersed its encampment in the spring drew widespread criticism. Chaos erupted after hundreds of protesters defied orders from campus police to leave the encampment. One night, counter-protesters attacked the pro-Palestinian encampment, throwing traffic cones and firing pepper spray; fighting continued for hours before police intervened.
The investigation into UCLA stems in part from compliance issues related to approximately 150 reports the school received regarding rallies in October and November 2023 as well as a pro-Palestinian encampment in the spring, the department said.
“Reports of violence against students of Jewish origin … and violent attacks by counterprotesters against pro-Palestinian demonstrators” at the encampment were particularly concerning, the department said.
At the rallies, protesters chanted “Death to Israel” and “No peace until they are dead,” the department said. At the encampment, protesters maintained checkpoints that excluded Jewish students from the protest zone and parts of the campus, prompting the school’s chancellor to issue a statement saying that Jewish students on campus , among others, felt “a state of anxiety and fear”.
Muslim and Palestinian students were “filmed, doxxed, and unwantedly followed” on or near the UCLA campus, the department said. A task force report cited by the department said counterprotesters heckled people inside the camp, saying things like “you are a jihadist” and “you are a terrorist.”
UC’s four other campuses also experienced “widely reported incidents” of alleged harassment against students, the civil rights office said. UC Santa Barbara was notified of anti-Semitic vandalism in a dormitory and signs posted in a student center specifically targeting Jewish students; UC San Diego and UC Davis have also received complaints about students experiencing or witnessing anti-Semitic comments or actions from students and faculty.
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