Last year, at a national conference in Manhattan, New York University student Adela Cojab described a pattern of harassment that she and other Jewish students were facing on her campus. After hearing her speak, as was my job, I informed her that if she filed a complaint with the agency that I then headed, the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR), her claims would be carefully reviewed. Cojab, who has since graduated, did indeed file a formal complaint, and the recently-released resolution of her case sets a monumental new bar for campus anti-Semitism cases.
After learning of her experiences, President Trump praised Cojab, during his remarks at the Israeli American Summit in Florida, for “courageously” standing up against “incredible hostility and incredible bigotry.” The president then introduced Cojab and invited her to tell her story. Cojab explained how NYU had “failed to protect its Jewish community from ongoing harassment, from attacks on social media, to resolutions on student government, to boycotts, flag burnings, and physical assault.”
Last year, at a national conference in Manhattan, New York University student Adela Cojab described a pattern of harassment that she and other Jewish students were facing on her campus. After hearing her speak, as was my job, I informed her that if she filed a complaint with the agency that I then headed, the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR), her claims would be carefully reviewed. Cojab, who has since graduated, did indeed file a formal complaint, and the recently-released resolution of her case sets a monumental new bar for campus anti-Semitism cases.
After learning of her experiences, President Trump praised Cojab, during his remarks at the Israeli American Summit in Florida, for “courageously” standing up against “incredible hostility and incredible bigotry.” The president then introduced Cojab and invited her to tell her story. Cojab explained how NYU had “failed to protect its Jewish community from ongoing harassment, from attacks on social media, to resolutions on student government, to boycotts, flag burnings, and physical assault.”
Standing before the president, this brave young woman expressed gratitude that “as an immigrant myself from Mexico City, I am extremely thankful to live in a country where the Office of Civil Rights takes the concerns of Jewish students seriously.”
A few days later, Trump issued his Executive Order on Combating Anti-Semitism. This order, which codified actions taken earlier by OCR, confirmed that civil rights protections would be extended to Jewish students, and it directed agencies to consider the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s (IHRA) Definition of Anti-Semitism. The IHRA definition, which builds on the work of human rights leader Natan Sharansky, provides a consistent understanding of Jew-hatred which officials may use, both here and abroad, to understand and therefore to defeat this ancient bigotry. It is nearly identical to the definition that the U.S. State Department adopted during the Obama-Biden administration under Secretary Hillary Clinton.
Late last month, OCR finally reached a landmark agreement with NYU resolving Cojab’s complaint. Cojab’s case is the first resolved under Trump’s executive order. It sets a new bar for OCR campus anti-Semitism cases, more important even than recent cases at the University of North Carolina, Duke University and Williams College.
The key is that this agreement, for the first time, requires an institution to incorporate the IHRA definition of anti-Semitism into their anti-harassment policy. This echoes the recent announcement that Florida State University would voluntarily adopt that definition in response to concerns about anti-Jewish incidents there. On several other campuses, student government bodies have adopted the definition, but approval by the university’s leadership carries more weight.
To build on this success, the Trump administration should call on all colleges to adopt the same definition. This would advance the spirit of the Executive Order, which already incorporates the definition into federal enforcement. Best would be for the administration to follow through on its still-unfulfilled promise that the Department of Education will issue formal regulations implementing the Executive Order.
Such moves would align the United States with allies that have been earlier and more active in responding to similar problems. The United Kingdom has demanded that all U.K. colleges and universities adopt the IHRA definition. Twenty percent have already done so. In the United States, this would be considered a grand success. In the U.K., the Union of Jewish Students is calling for a “culture change” to persuade the rest of academia to follow suit.
The Biden campaign should not allow President Trump to own this issue. Rather, the former vice president should issue a similar admonition to all American colleges and universities. This would give substance to his campaign’s claim that the Biden “has consistently made…combatting anti-Semitism, and fighting for social justice pillars of his decades-long career in public service.” In light of Biden’s repeated efforts to make anti-Semitism an issue in this campaign, it is difficult to see how he can allow Trump to be stronger on fighting this form of bigotry than he is.
As Cojab’s case against New York University demonstrates, this is not about restricting speech. Cojab’s allegations, after all, involved physical assault, which is not protected under anyone’s interpretation of the First Amendment.
In moving forward, it is important that government officials stress the importance of protecting civil rights in ways that respect the freedom of speech. Speech that is critical (or supportive) of Israel, or of any group or nation, should not be censored. This is especially important at universities, where academic freedom is paramount. There should, however, be no tolerance for assault, vandalism and harassment.
Reviewing the latest work of my former OCR colleagues and subordinates fills me with hope. The battle against bigotry continues. OCR continues to fight. Now the only question is whether Trump will continue to lead and whether Biden will seize the day.
Marcus is founder and chairman of The Louis D. Brandeis Center for Human Rights Under Law and served as assistant U.S. secretary of education for civil rights.
