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    Trump Pulled $400 million From Columbia. Other Schools Could Be Next.

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    The administration has circulated a list that includes nine other campuses, accusing them of failure to address antisemitism.The Trump Administration’s abrupt withdrawal of $400 million in federal funding from Columbia University cast a pall over at least nine other campuses worried they could be next.The schools, a mix that includes both public universities and Ivy League institutions, have been placed on an official administration list of schools the Department of Justice said may have failed to protect Jewish students and faculty.Faculty leaders at many of the schools have pushed back strongly against claims that their campuses are hotbeds of antisemitism, noting that while some Jewish students complained that they felt unsafe, the vast majority of protesters were peaceful and many of the protest participants were themselves Jewish. The Trump administration has made targeting higher education a priority. This week, the president threatened in a social media post to punish any school that permits “illegal” protests. On Jan. 30, his 10th day in office, he signed an executive order on combating antisemitism, focusing on what he called anti-Jewish racism at “leftists” universities. Then, on Feb. 3, he announced the creation of a multiagency task force to carry out the mandate.The task force appeared to move into action quickly after a pro-Palestinian sit-in and protest at Barnard College, a partner school to Columbia, led to arrests on Feb. 26. Two days later, the administration released its list of 10 schools under scrutiny, including Columbia, the site of large pro-Palestinian encampments last year.It said it would be paying the schools a visit, part of a review process to consider “whether remedial action is warranted.” Then on Friday, it announced it would be canceling millions in grants and contracts with Columbia.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

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      CUNY Removes Palestinian Studies Job Listing on Hochul’s Orders

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      The language in the listing included terms — like “settler colonialism,” “apartheid” and “genocide” — that Jewish groups said were offensive when applied to Israel.When Nancy Cantor became president of Hunter College last fall, she asked faculty, students and staff what they wanted from the school. One answer was more attention to Palestinian studies.Faculty members began working on possible approaches. They came up with a plan for two tenure-track faculty positions that would cross several departments and began drafting job descriptions.The Hunter College job listing for Palestinian studies called for scholars who could “take a critical lens” to issues including “settler colonialism, genocide, human rights, apartheid” and other topics.When the listing was posted last weekend, Jewish groups protested the inclusion of words that they said are antisemitic when applied to Israel. Their objections were first reported in The New York Post.By Tuesday, Gov. Kathy Hochul demanded that the college, a part of the City University of New York, take down the listing.“Governor Hochul directed CUNY to immediately remove this posting and conduct a thorough review of the position to ensure that antisemitic theories are not promoted in the classroom,” a spokesperson said in a statement, adding, “Hateful rhetoric of any kind has no place at CUNY or anywhere in New York State.”We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

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      Ye Advertised Website Selling T-Shirts With Swastikas in Super Bowl Commercial

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      The commercial aired in some local markets several days after the rapper and designer called himself a Nazi in a series of social media posts.Ye, the rapper and designer formerly known as Kanye West, aired a commercial in some markets during the Super Bowl that promoted a website selling a single product: T-shirts with swastikas.In the 30-second commercial, Ye appears to be filming a close-up of his face while lying in a dentist’s chair. “I spent, like, all the money for the commercial on these new teeth,” he said, smiling into the camera. “So, once again, I had to shoot it on the iPhone.”Ye then directs people to his online store, Yeezy.com, which was selling only one item as of early Tuesday: a $20 white T-shirt with a black swastika. According to Variety, when the commercial aired Sunday night, the website was selling a range of non-branded clothing, but shortly after it was selling only the shirt with the swastika.On Tuesday morning, the website for his store appeared to have gone offline, replaced by a message that said, “This store is unavailable.” A spokesperson for Shopify, the online platform that processes the website’s orders, said that Ye’s online store “did not engage in authentic commerce practices and violated our terms so we removed them from Shopify.”The ad aired days after Ye unleashed a rant on social media in which he called himself a Nazi and professed his love for Adolf Hitler. He later deactivated his X account. On Monday, the Anti-Defamation League condemned the commercial, writing on X that “there’s no excuse for this kind of behavior.”We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

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      Private Schools Group Apologizes After Claims of Antisemitism at Event

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      After criticism from Jewish groups over speeches at a conference, the president of the National Association of Independent Schools said future addresses would be vetted.A prominent national private schools group has apologized for remarks some speakers made at a conference about diversity and inclusion earlier this month, after leaders of several Jewish organizations condemned the comments as antisemitic.The speakers, whose remarks were recorded, characterized Israel’s war in Gaza as a genocide and the establishment of the state of Israel as a racist project. They were addressing an annual gathering of students and educators held by the National Association of Independent Schools, which includes about 1,700 private schools across the United States, including 60 Jewish day schools. The event, known as the People of Color Conference, has been held for nearly four decades and focuses on helping schools create inclusive communities.Some of New York City’s most prestigious private schools sent delegations to the conference, including the Dalton School on Manhattan’s Upper East Side, which sent 48 administrators, faculty and staff members, according to its website.The leaders of several Jewish groups, including the Anti-Defamation League, denounced the remarks in an open letter to the association sent last Wednesday. Citing complaints from attendees, the letter described the atmosphere at the conference, held in Denver from Dec. 4 to Dec. 7 and attended by about 8,000 adults and students, as “toxic.” Some Jewish students were frightened, the letter said, to the point that some who were wearing Star of David jewelry felt compelled to hide it.“No student should ever be made to feel this way because of their identity,” said the letter, which was signed by the A.D.L.’s chief executive, Jonathan Greenblatt, as well as three chief executives of prominent Jewish groups, Paul Bernstein of Prizmah: Center for Jewish Day Schools; Ted Deutch of the American Jewish Committee; and Eric Fingerhut of the Jewish Federations of North America.In response to the criticism, Debra Wilson, the association’s president, issued an apology and said that future speakers’ addresses would be vetted. “That any student would feel the need to conceal their identity at our conference is antithetical to our mission and our values,” Ms. Wilson wrote.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

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      Gaza War Strains Europe’s Efforts at Social Cohesion

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      Institutions meant to promote civility, from soccer to song, have come under severe stress from rising antisemitism and anti-immigrant politics.The various institutions of postwar Europe were intended to keep the peace, bring warring peoples together and build a sense of continental attachment and even loyalty. From the growth of the European Union itself to other, softer organizations, dealing with culture or sports, the hope has always been to keep national passions within safe, larger limits.But growing antisemitism, increased migration and more extremist, anti-immigrant parties have led to backlash and divisions rather than comity. The long war in Gaza has only exacerbated these conflicts and their intensity, especially among young Muslims and others who feel outraged by Israeli bombings and by the tens of thousands of deaths in Gaza, a large proportion of them women and children.Those tensions were on full display in the recent violence surrounding a soccer match between an Israeli and a Dutch team in Amsterdam, where the authorities are investigating what they call antisemitic attacks on Israeli fans, as well as incendiary actions by both sides. Amsterdam is far from the only example of the divisions in Europe over the Gaza war and of the challenges they present to European governments.The normally amusing Eurovision Song Contest, which was held this year in Malmo, Sweden, a city with a significant Muslim population, was marred by pro-Palestinian protests against Eden Golan, a contestant from Israel, which participates as a full member.The original lyrics to her song, “October Rain,” in commemoration of the 1,200 Israelis who died from the Hamas-led attack on Oct. 7, which prompted Israel’s response in Gaza, were rejected by organizers for their political nature, so were altered to be less specific. Her performance was met with booing and jeering from some in the audience, but she did receive a wave of votes from online spectators, pushing her to fifth place.It was hardly the demonstration of togetherness in art and silliness that organizers have always intended.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

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      Trump Sees Antisemitism in Only One Direction: On the Left

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      Former President Donald J. Trump on Monday blamed Democrats for antisemitism at an event commemorating the Oct. 7 Hamas terrorist attack on Israel, then claimed there was no antisemitism in the ranks of the Republican Party, even as his own endorsed candidate for governor in North Carolina is at the center of a scandal involving antisemitic remarks.Mr. Trump’s comments, delivered to more than 100 invited guests at his private resort in Doral, Fla., were softer than past speeches addressing the conflict in the Middle East. He shied away from direct attacks against his political opponents or from insulting Jews who support them, instead taking swipes at the Biden administration in an address that veered between solemn memorial and political rally.Before Mr. Trump’s remarks, a rabbi led a ceremony in which a number of Jewish leaders and elected officials lit memorial candles and delivered remarks to honor the more than 1,200 people killed when Hamas attacked Israel last year. Event organizers left a section of chairs empty on either side of the stage with photos of hostages who remain in Gaza, a statement about their continued captivity.But the energy changed with Mr. Trump’s arrival. He stood basking in applause and gave a small shuffling dance as “God Bless the U.S.A.,” his typical entrance music, played. He opened his remarks by talking about the hurricane approaching Florida, then indirectly criticized the Biden administration’s response to Hurricane Helene.Mr. Trump then decried the Oct. 7 attack. He vowed to back Israel’s right to defend itself, once again insisting that Israel had to finish its war quickly, and he called for the United States to play a stronger role in bringing about the end of conflict in the Middle East. “You have no idea the role that the United States has to play in order to get that ball over the goal line,” he said.Mr. Trump did not blame the Biden administration for the Mideast conflict. But as he blamed “the leadership of this country” for a rise in antisemitism — ignoring the rise in reported antisemitic acts during his presidency — someone in the crowd called out “what leadership?”We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

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      Oct. 7: For Jews in America, a Time of Reflection

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      More from our inbox:Republicans’ Plans to Challenge the VoteVanderbilt’s Leader: Why the College Rankings Are Flawed Mark Peterson/ReduxTo the Editor:Re “The Year American Jews Woke Up,” by Bret Stephens (column, Oct. 6):Mr. Stephens paints a disconcerting portrait of life for Jews in America, one that rings true for my family, as well as for those whom my organization works to serve. He does us a great service, and spurs us to find solutions to the problem and antidotes for the poison.To that end, the American Jewish Congress is about to launch a nationwide competition — a solutions challenge — that invites young American Jews to offer their views on how their country can best grapple with the increasingly rampant antisemitism in our midst.We hope this exercise will also demonstrate to the collective American conscience how deserving of support our Jewish citizens are. Has America forgotten the brave role played by Jews in the country’s defiant civil rights movement?Antisemitism existed before Oct. 7 and will, alas, exist in some quarters till the end of time. What is incumbent upon the Jewish community now is to quickly adapt to an ugly new reality and reimagine how Jewish identity and life in America can continue to flourish in conditions of adversity.This challenge will define the future not just of our Jewish compatriots, but also of America’s democracy.Daniel RosenNew YorkThe writer is president of the American Jewish Congress.To the Editor:Bret Stephens claims that the line between anti-Zionism and antisemitism has been blurred. As a proud Jew who is highly critical of today’s Israel and supportive of the Palestinian struggle, I see no blur; I see a bright red line.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

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      Antisemitic Incidents Reach New High in the U.S., Report Finds

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      The Anti-Defamation League has found that cases of antisemitism have surged in the wake of the Oct. 7 attack by Hamas against Israel last year.The number of antisemitic episodes in the United States surged to the highest recorded in a one-year period in the wake of the Hamas attack on Israel last year, the Anti-Defamation League said on Sunday.The new figures — covering Oct. 7, 2023, to Sept. 24 — were about triple the number of cases reported to the organization during the same period a year before, the A.D.L., a civil rights organization, said in a statement.The group identified more than 10,000 antisemitic incidents, which were split into categories such as verbal or written harassment, vandalism and physical assault. The largest number of cases — 8,015 — fell under verbal or written harassment, according to the figures.Jonathan Greenblatt, the chief executive of the A.D.L., said Oct. 7 would be “one year since the worst massacre of Jews since the Holocaust.”“From that day on, Jewish Americans haven’t had a single moment of respite,” he said, adding that instead “we’ve faced a shocking number of antisemitic threats and experienced calls for more violence against Israelis and Jews everywhere.”The organization has been tracking cases of antisemitic harassment, vandalism and assault in the United States since 1979 and publishes its research in an annual report.The group said it recorded “an unprecedented total number” of 8,873 antisemitic incidents in 2022, a 140 percent increase from the previous year.Its latest report is the fourth time in six years that the A.D.L. has said it inventoried a record-high count of antisemitic episodes.The states with the highest number of recorded cases in the most recent report were California (1,266), New York (1,218), New Jersey (830), Florida (463) and Massachusetts (440).The antisemitic incidents have increased since Hamas attacked Israel last year and the war became a heated issue on American college campuses, where numerous protests have taken place.The report noted that at least 922 episodes had taken place on college and university campuses. During the same period a year earlier, the organization had recorded nearly 200 cases on campuses.The A.D.L. also said that the number of bomb threats made to Jewish institutions such as synagogues had soared from its previous report to 1,000, from 81.In addition, the group said, its preliminary research found that more than 3,000 of the antisemitic incidents had occurred during anti-Israel rallies in public spaces, such as parks and streets.The A.D.L., which was founded in 1913, said it used the research to create and improve programs to counter and prevent the spread of antisemitism and bigotry.The organization said that it expected its preliminary figures to increase as it received more reports. Final data for 2024 will be published in the spring of 2025. More

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      Report on Antisemitism at CUNY Calls for Changes Across the System

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      The report, commissioned by New York’s governor, found that the city’s university system was ill-equipped to handle rising antisemitism. But it also said the problem was not widespread.An independent review ordered by Gov. Kathy Hochul has found that the City University of New York needs to “significantly” overhaul and update its policies in order to handle the levels of antisemitism and discrimination that exist on its campuses.CUNY campuses have been a center of pro-Palestinian activism for years, which Jewish students and elected officials have said sometimes manifests as antisemitism. Since the Hamas attack on Israel last October, there have been dozens of arrests of pro-Palestinian demonstrators on CUNY campuses, including at an encampment at City College in April that was shut down by the city police.The review, which was commissioned by Ms. Hochul last October after a surge in hate and bias incidents and was released on Tuesday, documented inconsistencies and a lack of oversight in how CUNY’s 25 campuses handled complaints of antisemitism and other bias among students and staff members.But the review, which included interviews with more than 200 people over 10 months, also found that it was a “small, vocal minority of individuals” responsible for antisemitic incidents, and not a widespread problem.The report’s author, Jonathan Lippman, a former chief judge of New York, offered more than a dozen recommendations to improve the campus climate, including the creation of a new CUNY center devoted to efforts to combat hate.CUNY said that it had already begun to put some of the recommendations into effect, including approving the anti-hate center, which will be called the Center for Inclusive Excellence and Belonging. Ms. Hochul said on Tuesday that she was directing CUNY to enact all of them.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More