Good morning and welcome to the Campus Crisis Alert.

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As the school year comes to an end, we’re taking a break from the daily cadence of our Campus Crisis Alert. We will send you this email on a weekly basis as we continue to closely monitor college campuses while some are still in session over the next few weeks. We also will share special updates to address any major developments. In the meantime, stay on top of the latest news regarding antisemitism and anti-Israel protests through our other newsletters and by following us on X/Twitter @ADL.

These are tough times for students, parents, and any of us who care about our alma maters. We’re so glad this alert has been able to keep you informed — and keep you activated. Stay in the fight because never is now!

Top Stories

Michigan. The exterior of the law office building of a Jewish Regent of the University of Michigan was vandalized with angry pro-Palestinian graffiti in what appeared to be a protest against Israel, the war in Gaza and the school. This comes two weeks after anti-Israel demonstrators at the University of Michigan escalated their protests with intimidation and trespassing by strewing fake corpses and bloody toys on the lawns of members of the Board of Regents’ homes.

(AP Photo/Corey Williams)

Columbia. In case you missed it, yet another encampment of anti-Israel protesters at Columbia University has come and gone, though protesters vow to continue “targeted attacks on all aspects of University life.”

DEEPER. Students for Justice in Palestine’s group at Columbia has migrated its social postings to Telegram. The group has shared posts there that explicitly support acts of terror, including Resistance News Network’s fawning guide to “the resistance,” which features terror orgs like Hamas. Read more about RNN and its radical anti-Zionist, antisemitic propaganda collective.

Pitt. A group calling itself Pitt Divest from Apartheid has set up a new encampment at the University of Pittsburgh. The University’s leadership says this new protest has damaged property and that “a group of self-proclaimed leaders has emerged asking for meetings, but none of these leaders are students, and their affiliations are with organizations that also have no connection to the University.” One demonstrator, not affiliated with the University, has been taken into police custody for aggravated assault, resisting arrest and obstruction. Among the demands of the protest group is the end of the Pitt chapter of Hillel as well as assorted BDS complaints.

UCSD. Following workers at three other schools in the UC system, UAW Local 4811 workers at University of California, San Diego were called on to go on strike on Monday by the union chapter. These workers include teaching assistants and researchers. The University terms this an unlawful strike that encourages members to damage the ability of students to navigate finals and end-of-year events. Last month at UCSD, tensions spiked after an encampment was taken down by police who arrested dozens of protesters. More than 1,000 protesters marched and then students and faculty staged a walkout and march on the University president’s home that included protesters wearing keffiyehs and calling for BDS goals.

DEEPER. ADL condemns a hateful new “tour of complicity” virtual map created by UCSD graduate assistants. The online map claims to show campus labs that “get money from the Zionists.”

House of Representatives. ADL is encouraged to see Congress continue its investigation into organizations that are fueling antisemitism on college and university campuses. Last week, the U.S. House Oversight Committee sent a letter to National Students for Justice in Palestine requesting documents and information to better understand SJP’s funding sources and its glorification of terrorism in the wake of October 7.

Wayne State. At Wayne State University in Michigan, police finally cleared away an encampment that had been presenting legal, health and safety challenges for the school and its students. “It is a scary time to be a Jewish university student,” Miriam Starkman, executive director of Hillel of metro Detroit said. She even saw a sign at the encampment that read: “Zionists are not welcome in Detroit.” A dozen people were arrested when the protesters stayed after being given multiple warnings by the university and police. The protesters have vowed to come back.

DEEPER. Wayne State’s Department of African American Studies was among the endorsers of last week’s hate-filled “People’s Conference for Palestine” in Detroit, where thousands of in-person and online attendees cheered leading anti-Zionist voices who overtly supported U.S.-designated terror groups and Hamas’ October 7 attack.

Campus Champions

Tales of a Wounded Wildcat. The guidance from leadership has been starkly different than it used to be for students at Northwestern University, one of America’s top journalism schools. Steven Thrasher, the ‘chair of social justice in reporting’ at the j-school recently told students at the University protest encampment that “our work is not about objectivity.” Alum Gil Hoffman pointed out that the school’s president, Michael Schill, was forced to testify before a Congressional hearing in recent days to explain his and his school’s inaction. As Hoffman noted, “I also believe the backlash against university presidents who caved in to the encampments will deter their colleagues from similar surrendering that would endanger Jewish students.”

Yeshiva. Harvard’s loss is Yeshiva University’s gain. Since the October 7 Hamas terror attack, YU has seen a rise in enrollment by roughly 52% to record high levels, say school officials, who say that many of them are Jewish students from Ivy League colleges, who wanted a more secure environment. As one such Ivy transfer said of YU, “It’s a safe environment where you’re able to focus on your actual studies and not focus on fighting antisemitism every day.”

The American (Movie) President. While visiting Israel on a solidarity trip, Hollywood star Michael Douglas visited the sites of the October 7 massacres by Hamas, met with Israeli President Isaac Herzog and mourned with survivors of the killings. He brought words of support from the United States, and shared his shock at the anti-Israel protests on campuses in the U.S., where he suggested that the protesting students underwent “brainwashing... because when you try to talk to many of them, there is no education, there’s no knowledge.”

Am Yisrael Chai 💪✡️

Parading our Support. At this weekend’s annual march for Israel, the mood was of pride — and solemn resolve — in a year like no other. Tens of thousands of marchers and spectators waved Israeli flags and were joined by a wide array of political leaders. The October 7 attack was never far from the scene: Over 70 members of the families of hostages marched at the head of a large contingent from the Hostages and Missing Families Forum, and almost every marching group had dog tag necklaces, “bring them home” signs or other displays of support for those still held in cruel captivity in Gaza. Students of all ages joined the march, as did a contingent from Mothers Against College Antisemitism (M.A.C.A.). ADL sent our largest delegation ever this year, as our staff and supporters amplified the call to fight hate and #BringThemHome.

Am Yisrael High. Last week, Israel’s Ran Kraus stood at the summit of Mt. Everest, which he says he conquered in a poignant remembrance of a friend who was a victim of the Nova music party massacre. As he said in an interview, “I wanted to dedicate this emotional moment to my friend Matan Mordechai Lior, who was cruelly murdered on October 7, while helping whoever he could with supreme heroism to save many lives.” Lior had been helping others escape during the attack, providing directions to emergency exits amidst the chaos, until he was killed. Kraus becomes the 11th Israeli to summit Everest.