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More than 500 days have passed since the brutal attack by Hamas on October 7 – the deadliest attack on Jews since the Holocaust.
More than 500 days of platitudes from certain politicians. More than 500 days of empty words. And yet hatred against Jews does not decrease – it explodes. In New York, the home of the greatest Jewish population outside of Israel, Jewish students are not only undesirable, they are unsafe.
Jewish students in New York are besieged. The numbers do not lie:
- 72% of Jewish students feel undesirable on campus.
- 52% have experienced personal anti -Semitism at their school.
- 67% say that their university has done nothing to protect them after 7 October.
- 43% actively hide their Jewish identity for fear.
This crisis is real and it gets worse. New York reports in the “Hall of Shame” for campus anti -Semitism. Institutions such as Cornell, Columbia, the new school and NYU have achieved failing figures for their handling of attacks on Jews. City University of New York (CUNY) and State University of New York (Suny) schools are also plagued by repeated incidents of anti -Semitic intimidation. It is more than unacceptable – it is a shame.
The NYPD has cleared Pro-Palestinian protesters from Barnard College after a group of student demonstrators occupied the Milstein library on Wednesday evening. (Lokman Vural Elibol/Anadolu via Getty images)
Let’s be clear: free speech does not mean that the free toedle terrorizes Jewish students. At Barnard College we witnessed pro-Palestinian classroom disruptions, protesters storm the campus, injure a school employee and escalating tensions that go beyond control. These people did not express an opinion. They made it impossible for Jewish students to learn safely.
Students have the right to protest. They do not have the right to order property, intimidate their classmates or spread violent hatred. If you exceed the border from protest to prosecution, the correct response is not a warning. It is expulsion. While states such as Florida and Texas take daring action, New York’s leadership remains asleep. In the meantime, Senator Chuck SchumerGov. Kathy Hochul and mayor Eric Adams give the same tired speeches, condemn hatred in press releases and then do nothing. Jewish students are still harassed, attacked and silent. The Democratic leaders of New York take the Jewish voice as a matter of course – but she shouldn’t. They have allowed this crisis to festive under their watch.
As a proud Jewish-American legislator and member of the Jewish legislators Caucus in the New York State Assembly, I refuse to stay while our students are forced to live in fear. Fighting anti -Semitism is not about politics. It’s about moral clarity. And that is why I take action.
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A woman has a poster of Israeli hostage Omer Neutra during a memorial vigil for the Israeli people killed by Hamas during the attack of 7 October, in New York City on November 1, 2023. (Angela Weiss/AFP via Getty images)
I introduced the United Against Agth Hate Act, a daring, common sense plan to combat anti -Semitism through education, consciousness and action. My bill includes:
- A license plate “New York stands with Israel” – so that New Yorkers can proudly show their support while financing hostages.
- An art competition in high school throughout the state – students teach about the dangers of anti -Semitism and the reality from 7 October to creative expression.
This is not just about policy – it is about ensuring that the next generation understands that Jew is not an abstract concept. It is a real and current danger.
While the Democratic leaders of New York offer lip service, President Donald Trump Has been the strongest defender of Jewish students in America. His administration took real action against campus anti -Semitism when others only offered empty words. President Trump’s executive order on combating anti -Semitism has enabled the Ministry of Education to hold universities responsible under title VI of the Civil Rights Act. Because of this order, the federal government has started investigations into five universities where anti -Semitic intimidation has become unbridled. This is really leadership. And that is the standard that we should demand.
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Demonstrants demonstrate near Columbia University on 2 February 2024 in New York City. (Alexi J. Rosenfeld/Getty Images)
History will assess us on what we are currently doing. Shall we assist while hatred against Jews is not spreading, or will we take daring action to stop?
Jewish students should not hide their identity to feel safe at school. They should not wonder whether their professors, classmates or managers will defend their rights. And they should certainly not be left to take care of themselves, while politicians offer nothing but hollow statements. If schools and universities refuse to act, we must hold them responsible. If they tolerate anti -Semitism, they must be drought – plunder and simple.
This is a test of moral clarity. I know where I am. Where are the New York leaders?
