The Lawfare Project announced on Saturday that it filed a lawsuit against Hunter College, which is part of the public City University of New York system, “for failing to take meaningful action to address the rampant antisemitism on campus.”
“CUNY Hunter failed to protect Jewish students, faculty and staff by allowing antisemitism to flourish on campus,” stated Brooke Goldstein, founder and executive director of the Lawfare Project. “Our lawsuit not only seeks justice for our plaintiff but aims to hold CUNY Hunter responsible for their lack of action to address bigotry and intimidation.”
The plaintiff in the suit, Leah Garrett, Jewish studies chair and director of Hebrew and Jewish studies at Hunter, alleges in the suit that “an independent investigation dating back to 2016 revealed that CUNY Hunter demonstrators openly chanted slogans such as ‘Jews out of CUNY’ and ‘Death to Jews’ without facing consequences,” Campus Reform reported.
Hunter “silenced Jewish expression by refusing to allow the menorah lighting on Chanukah, while enabling anti-Jewish expression on campus, including the screening of the antisemitic film ‘Israelism,’” per Lawfare Project.
Gina Vergel, director of communications and college relations at Hunter, told JNS that “Hunter College has no tolerance for antisemitism or hate of any kind, and we’re committed to fostering a safe and welcoming campus environment for everyone.”
“We cannot comment on pending litigation,” Vergel added.
Ziporah Reich, litigation director at the project, stated that the suit “seeks to confront CUNY Hunter’s disregard for the pervasive antisemitism that has taken root on its campus.”
“CUNY Hunter’s failure to protect its Jewish community underscores a deeply troubling systemic issue, and the institution must be held accountable,” she added.
On Dec. 23, Hunter wished those who follow it on social media a “Merry Christmas” but did not mention Chanukah, which begins the same day. A two-minute-32-second “season’s greetings” video, which the college posted, also didn’t mention Chanukah. It contained imagery of several students who were visibly members of other faith groups, but not anyone identifiably Jewish.
