Reps. Tim Walberg (R-Mich.), chairman of the House Education and Workforce Committee, and Burgess Owens (R-Utah), chairman of the House Higher Education and Workforce Development Subcommittee, sent records request letters to the presidents of three universities scheduled for a May 7 congressional hearing on antisemitism.
The presidents of California Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo, Calif., Haverford College in Haverford, Pa., and DePaul University in Chicago will “answer for mishandling of antisemitic, violent protests” during the hearing, titled “Beyond the Ivy League: Stopping the Spread of Antisemitism on American Campuses.”
The hearing is part of an effort to “ensure Jewish students across the nation don’t face threats or harassment in violation of Title VI,” Walberg said.
Each letter cited different instances of antisemitism, but all three letters requested the same records in addition to specific campus incident records. The records request included documents and policies showing changes to each school’s code of conduct following the Hamas-led terrorist attacks in southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, as well as documents detailing each school’s relationship with pro-Palestinian and pro-Hamas groups such as Students for Justice in Palestine and Jewish Voice for Peace.
“In the month after the attack, antisemitic incidents in the United States increased 388 percent,” read the letter to Cal Poly. “America’s colleges and universities have been a major source in this rise in antisemitism.”
“In particular, the committee has found that ‘in the aftermath of that horrific event, American institutions of higher education were upended by an epidemic of hate, violence, and harassment targeting Jewish students,’” the letter continued.
Earlier in April, the Lawfare Project filed a lawsuit against DePaul on behalf of two students who allege antisemitic discrimination.