Harvard University said Wednesday that it will “take steps” to address antisemitism on campus after a federal judge ruled that a lawsuit accusing the school of failing to protect Jewish students could proceed.
Jewish students at Harvard University filed the lawsuit in January, alleging that the school selectively applied discrimination policies and hired professors who “support anti-Jewish violence and spread antisemitic propaganda.” The university filed a motion to dismiss the case in April, however Massachusetts District Judge Richard G. Stearns ruled Tuesday that the lawsuit could advance.
“Harvard has and will continue to take concrete steps to address the root causes of antisemitism on campus and protect our Jewish and Israeli students, ensuring they may pursue their education free from harassment and discrimination,” Jason Newton, director of media relations and communications, told the Daily Caller News Foundation.
“We appreciate that the Court dismissed the claim that Harvard directly discriminated against members of our community, and we understand that the court considers it too early to make determinations on other claims,” he continued. “Harvard is confident that once the facts in this case are made clear, it will be evident that Harvard has acted fairly and with deep concern for supporting our Jewish and Israeli students.”
Pro-Palestinian protesters have “marched by the hundreds through Harvard’s campus, shouting vile antisemitic slogans and calling for death to Jews and Israel,” as well as occupied campus buildings and assaulted students, since the Oct. 7 attack on Israel, the lawsuit alleges. The complaint further accuses the university of refusing “to lift a finger to stop and deter this outrageous antisemitic conduct.”
“This case has its roots in an outburst of antisemitic behaviors on the Harvard University campus following the October 7, 2023, terrorist attack by Hamas on Israel,” the Tuesday ruling reads.
Stearns did not rule on the merits of the allegations, but did find that the plaintiffs “plausibly pled” they faced a hostile environment on campus. He further questioned Harvard’s argument that it could not intervene on the basis of free speech.
“The court consequently is dubious that Harvard can hide behind the First Amendment to justify avoidance of its Title VI obligations. At any rate, whether this argument has any teeth is a decision best reserved for a later day,” the document reads. “The record is too thin to determine whether Harvard in fact acted to protect free speech rights as it contends Title VI required it to do and whether the protest activity itself comes within the protections of the First Amendment.”
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