How Elite Colleges Became A Breeding Ground For Antisemitism

Warning: This article contains content involving terrorism, murder, and rape.

On October 7, 2023, Hamas terrorists attacked hundreds of people attending the Tribe of Nova Music Festival. It’s estimated that 364 people were murdered at the festival, but the horror didn’t stop there. Hamas also raided 22 Israeli villages, brutally murdering civilians in their homes before taking over 200 hostages into Gaza. It’s estimated that Hamas killed over 1,200 people, mostly civilians, on October 7. This was not only the largest terror attack in the history of Israel but also the largest mass slaughter of Jewish people in a single day since the Holocaust. Since the attack, Israel has been at war with Hamas in Gaza.

The Israel-Palestine conflict is nuanced and complicated for many reasons, one being that both groups have legitimate ancestral claims to the land. However, many who subscribe to the neo-Marxist theory of the oppressor versus the oppressed believe that the conflict is black-and-white, seeing the Israelis as oppressors and the Palestinians as the oppressed. As images of the terror attack flooded social media, millions were horrified, but those who saw it as an issue without nuance were quick to blame the Israelis and to use antisemitic tropes to justify the attacks.

Unfortunately, this ideology is rampant on college campuses, and the October 7 attacks have exposed many elite colleges as breeding grounds for antisemitism.

Antisemitism vs Criticism of the Israeli Government

Before tackling this topic, it’s important to define the difference between criticizing the Israeli government and antisemitism. According to the Anti-Defamation League, criticizing the actions of the Israeli government isn’t inherently antisemitic, but it crosses the line when “all Jews are held responsible for the actions of Israel, Israel is denied the right to exist as a Jewish state and equal member of the global community, and traditional anti-Semitic symbols, images or theories are used.”

Due to some protestors displaying Nazi imagery at pro-Palestine protests, calling for the destruction and elimination of the Jewish state, and saying that victims of the October 7 attacks deserved what happened to them because they were either Jewish or Israeli, it’s safe to say that the line has been crossed into antisemitism.

Antisemitism on the Rise after Terrorist Attack in Israel

There have been countless incidents of antisemitism on college campuses since the October 7 attacks, but no college seems to appear in the headlines as much as Harvard. Less than 24 hours after the attack, the Harvard Undergraduate Palestine Solidarity Committee released a statement, co-signed with 33 other student organizations, that blamed Israel for the attack. “Today’s events did not occur in a vacuum,” the statement reads. “For the last two decades, millions of Palestinians in Gaza have been forced to live in an open-air prison. Israeli officials promise to ‘open the gates of hell,’ and the massacres in Gaza have already commenced. … The apartheid regime is the only one to blame.”

Harvard and other Ivy League colleges have a history of discriminating against Jewish students.

The letter is not only horrifying because it justifies the rape, murder, and torture of innocent people, but because it also blames the victims for what happened to them. This letter did not occur in a vacuum, either — Harvard and other Ivy League colleges have a history of discriminating against Jewish students, especially in the first half of the twentieth century, and Harvard has historical connections to the eugenics movement. While you could argue that progress has been made since then, recent events show that antisemitism is still alive and well at Harvard. 

This type of sentiment at Harvard quickly spread to other colleges like George Washington University and New York University (NYU). On October 24, the student group Students For Justice In Palestine (more on them later) projected anti-Israel messages onto a school building that many students argued were antisemitic. One of the messages was “Free Palestine From The River To The Sea,” a controversial yet popular phrase that many Jewish groups believe calls for the murder of all Jews in Israel. At NYU, law student Ryna Workman released a statement after October 7 that said, in part, “Israel bears full responsibility for this tremendous loss of life.” Workman lost a guaranteed position at a prestigious law firm due to the backlash her statement received. Similar incidents have happened at other colleges, and while this doesn’t represent all pro-Palestine protestors, the antisemitism and lack of empathy toward the victims of the October 7 attacks in many of these students is alarming.

Unfortunately, this isn’t limited to American college campuses, either. Sahar Shehadeh, a student at Durham College (DC) in Ontario, Canada, went viral for a disturbing video praising Hamas and the October 7 attacks. “I support Hamas. History was made that day. I’m very proud of my people,” she says as she begins the now-viral video. “I would love it if they would do it again, and again, and again, and again, and again, and again. No, they’re not terrorists. I support every decision, and you know what, what they did was history.”

After the video went viral, Durham College took to X (formerly known as Twitter) to address the incident. The post says, “DC is aware of a disturbing video of an alleged student making antisemitic comments in support of terrorism. Per our Student Conduct Policy, the Office of Campus Safety has contacted the individual & is taking all necessary actions, including working with the DPRS on this matter.”

The statement continues, “Durham College unequivocally condemns the inflammatory statements made in this video and does not tolerate antisemitism, Islamophobia, or any form of hate, discrimination or promotion of acts of violence. DC is a welcoming, inclusive, and diverse community, and we remain committed to non-violence and the safety and well-being of the DC community.”

Why Is There So Much Antisemitism on College Campuses?

According to Noa Tishby, former Special Envoy for Combating Antisemitism and author of Israel: A Simple Guide to the Most Misunderstood Country on Earth, the infamous student group, Students For Justice In Palestine (SJP), is responsible for many of the anti-Israel protests that cross the line between criticizing the Israeli government and blatant antisemitism. “SJP called the (October 7) assault a ‘historic win’ and shared promotional materials featuring a Hamas terrorist on a paraglider, an instrument of death using the Hamas assault on a music festival that murdered over 260 young people and abducted many more that are now hostages in Gaza,” Tishby says in a viral Instagram reel.

Tishby continues, “As Jewish and non-Jewish students mourned at campus vigils held for the murdered and the abducted, SJP activists harassed them with hateful signs and chanting through bullhorns, ‘From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free,’ as in free of Jews.”

Any reasonable person can agree that what’s happening on college campuses in the wake of the October 7 attacks is disturbing, but it’s important to understand how the perpetuation of social justice ideology has allowed this to happen.

Julia Steinberg, a junior at Stanford University and intern at The Free Press, first learned about social justice theory in high school, particularly the neo-Marxist theory of the oppressed versus the oppressor. She writes, “Social justice theory became part of everything. My senior English class was not about great literature but about readings in critical theory, mostly about race and gender. I had a nonacademic weekly homeroom class in which we learned that every white person is racist and all men are evil. It took me a long time to shake off my hatred of men. It wasn’t socially acceptable to disagree, and no one really tried.”

She continues, “I see the biggest part of growing up to be the acceptance of gray areas. But Gen Z worships these identity categories and the distinction of oppressor/oppressed. I know that’s true – I am submerged in it every day. The oppressor is always wrong, and the oppressed are always right. Since high school, we’ve been trained to identify and slot people based on their identities alone. That’s intersectionality for you. The cheering of Hamas among people my age on college campuses in the U.S. might seem shocking to older people. But it doesn’t shock me. For most of my peers, social issues are unanimous.”

Statistics reflect this disturbing trend of antisemitic beliefs among college students. According to an NBC poll, 12% of college students interviewed believe that the October 7 massacre was a “justified act of resistance by Hamas.” Another 21% view it as “something else than an act of terrorism or resistance,” and 67% believe it was terrorism. 

This one-dimensional way of thinking about the world is slowly leading to the acceptance of terrorism if the “oppressed” attacks the “oppressor.”

Steinberg’s prognosis may feel like something out of a dystopian novel, but refuting her argument is difficult. If an entire generation has been led to believe that the oppressed versus oppressor narrative applies to everything and lacks the skills to recognize that the world is nuanced, it only makes sense that they’d believe victims of a horrific terrorist attack deserved it because they are the “oppressors.” Unfortunately, this narrative is dominant in progressive circles, so much so that progressive Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib was censured for tweeting a pro-Hamas slogan by both Democrats and Republicans in the House of Representatives. 

The truth is that life isn’t a Disney movie and that two sides of a complicated conflict can’t simply be boiled down to categories of oppressed and oppressor. This one-dimensional way of thinking about the world is slowly leading to the acceptance of terrorism (including the 9/11 attacks) if the “oppressed” attacks the “oppressor.” You could also argue that this way of thinking is similar to how the Nazis brainwashed Germans into demonizing the Jews after making them the scapegoat for Germany’s economic issues after World War I. It’s an ugly, slippery slope, and plenty of college students are buying into it.

Lack of Education about the Holocaust Feeds into Antisemitism

You could argue that much of this has to do with the lack of Holocaust education. According to a nationwide survey, one in ten adults under 40 have never heard of the Holocaust. Of those surveyed, 63% didn’t know that six million Jews were murdered in the Holocaust.

Violetta Benson, creator of the viral Daddy Issues Instagram account and host of the Almost Adulting podcast, has always been open about her Jewish heritage and has been vocal about the rise of antisemitism since the October 7 attacks. When asked if she believes that a lack of Holocaust education has contributed to the rise of antisemitism, she told Evie, “Absolutely. How can this change for future generations? Start with a more comprehensive education system that delves into the Holocaust. This should include distinguishing between the experiences of Ashkenazi Jews (in Europe) and Mizrahi and Sephardic Jews (in the Middle East) during the Holocaust since many people seem to conflate the two. Additionally, acknowledging ‘Jewish’ within the minority category and implementing measures to curb hate speech in schools are essential steps to protect Jewish students, just as other minority groups are safeguarded.”

Benson also believes that much of the antisemitism, both around the world and on college campuses, is rooted in ignorance and misinformation. “With just 0.2% of the global population being Jewish, I think many people have likely never encountered a Jewish person. It becomes easier to harbor hatred toward someone you've never met, especially amid a backdrop of rampant misinformation,” she tells Evie. “Let’s face it, nothing brings people together faster than hate. Especially when there’s a ‘common enemy.’ The thing about antisemitism is that it's so deeply ingrained in some people that they can't even whip up a decent reason for their disdain; they simply… just do.”

Despite the prejudice, many Jews aren’t relinquishing their pride in their religion and heritage. Benson says, “All this hate hasn't turned me into some timid mouse. It's done the opposite, really. It's during these dark times that I notice our Jewish community come together stronger than ever. We tighten our bonds, raise our voices, and swell with pride. When we said ‘no more trembling knees,’ we meant it.”

She continues, “I can't unlock the mystery of why antisemitism persists as I am not a mind-reader. However, I can tell you how to fight it: Embrace your Jewishness unapologetically. Be loud, be proud, and keep living — but above all, never stop being kind, continue to do good, and continue to bring light into this world. Because, believe me, light always outshines the darkest shadows every single time. It's not just a theory; it's our playbook for a brighter tomorrow.”

Closing Thoughts

The October 7 attacks have exposed the dark underbelly of antisemitism on college campuses and in Western culture as a whole. While it’s been incredibly disturbing to witness, it only goes to show how important it is to learn about history (especially the history of the Holocaust) in order to avoid repeating atrocities of the past.

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