Desecrating 10/7. On the first anniversary of the Hamas terrorist attack in which they massacred hundreds of innocent men, women, and children, there were too many anti-Israel, antisemitic protests to count across U.S. colleges and universities. We don’t know every detail of every incident, but here’s a sampling of what we know so far.

• Students for Justice in Palestine at the University of Texas at Dallas posted a video of marchers holding a sign stained with red hands that read “UTD your hands are red. UTIMCO divest from death.” (see below)
• The Swarthmore College SJP wished students a “Happy October 7th” and asked for donations “in honor of this glorious day and all our martyred revolutionaries.” (see below)
• Faculty for Justice in Palestine and other anti-Israel groups at Grand Valley State University organized a “die-in and read-in for Palestine” to “commemorate one year of resistance.”
• Anti-Israel protesters at Vanderbilt University erected a giant sign on campus that read “The Nakba never ended.” (see below)
• The SJP at California State University Northridge promoted a “People’s Trial” that accuses Israel, the United States and CSUN of supporting genocide. (see below)
• Chalked graffiti at Chapman University in Orange, California included: “Death to Israel” and “Death to America.”
• The Chicago-Kent College of Law led-off a week of October 7 events with an event “Commemorating the Palestinian martyrs.” It is amazing to see how far some will go to try and change history.
• SJP at the University of California Riverside organized an event “honoring our martyrs” at the same time as a memorial organized by the local Hillel. (see below)
• Anti-Israel groups at several schools across the New York City area promoted a city-wide walkout, including: The New School, CUNY’s Queens College, CUNY’s Graduate Center, Columbia University and New York University.

Top Left: (Source: sjputd | Instagram) Top Right: (Source: swarthmoresjp | Instagram) Bottom Left: (Source: gvsusds | Instagram) Bottom Right: (Source: sjpvanderbilt | Instagram)

Top Left: (Source: sjpatcsun | Instagram) Top Right: (Source: sjpchapman | Instagram) Bottom Left and Right: (Source: sjpucr | Instagram)

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Princeton. Anti-Israel protesters have claimed responsibility for vandalizing buildings on Princeton University’s campus early yesterday morning, according to the president of the group “Tigers for Israel.” Protesters smeared red paint across the entrance to the University’s investment office and wrote “$4Genocide” in paint. Later in the day, several protesters met on the Princeton campus, one holding a sign that extolled the terrorists who killed more than 1,200 people on 10/7: “Glory to the martyrs. Glory to the resistance.”

(Source: Maximilian Meyer | X/Twitter)

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Tufts. The SJP chapter at Medford, Mass.’s Tufts University was suspended recently for multiple violations of university policy, including calling on students there to “Join the Student Intifada” and illustrating it with assault weapons. Unfortunately, that didn’t stop the group from convening an anti-Israel protest yesterday on the green at Tufts. The protest then made its way down the street to a first-floor cafe in the Science and Engineering Complex, where they occupied it and chanted anti-Israel slogans — a violation of University policy. Tufts spokesman: “We will hold accountable anyone found to have violated university policy and the student code of conduct during today’s event.” Jewish Tufts sophomore: "On this horrific day one year after the massacre of Oct. 7, people are cheering on those who massacred so there is something wrong here.”

(Source: ADL)

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Michigan. A group calling itself “Unity of Fields” took credit for vandalizing the homes of two University of Michigan leaders, President Santa Ono and Chief Investment Officer Erik Lundberg, as well as buildings tied to Jewish organizations. On 10/7, the vandals spray-painted anti-Israel messages such as "Free Palestine" and "Coward" on their homes. In a statement, the group described itself as an "anti-imperialist propaganda front" and said, "To mark one year of genocide against the Palestinian people, we visited the homes of two University of Michigan leaders." A university spokesperson confirmed that President Ono’s home was among the vandalized properties. Also in Ann Arbor, anti-Israel protesters organized a protest at the Rackham building. An individual was arrested, and when a group of protesters surrounded a police car to prevent its passage, they were pepper sprayed.

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Maryland. The University of Maryland SJP chapter yesterday papered the College Park campus with flyers calling on the university to divest and brushing aside “all qualms about methods of resistance.” Despite their threats and a federal court filing to allow the SJP 10/7 event, the Jewish community at Maryland was not deterred from commemorating the attacks. In addition to an all-day Hostage Square Memorial, the Maryland Hillel also held a midday reading of the victims of the 10/7 assault, and then more than 1,000 students held a moving vigil yesterday evening.

Bruin Brawn. Alarmed at the antisemitism they were seeing on campus, faculty at UCLA formed the Jewish Faculty Resilience Group (JFrg) in November of 2023. A couple of weeks ago, the group held an event to kick off the new academic year. Nearly 300 people attended, largely students and faculty. In a powerful call to action, Kira Stein, founder and chair of the JFrg at UCLA said ‘Your support is the oxygen that keeps this movement alive’, urging them to ‘stand tall and proud for Zionism.’

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Lions Roaring. As anti-Israel protesters marched through the Morningside Heights campus of Columbia University on Monday, part of a larger 10/7 protest across New York City, pro-Israel demonstrators came out in full force. A “sizable crowd” gathered outside the gates of Columbia, waving Israeli flags and hostage posters, while another group gathered on the campus itself, surrounded by anti-Israel protesters. According to the New York Post, one pro-Israel demonstrator said through a PA system: “On October 7th at 6:29 a.m., terrorists wearing the exact same regalia as the protesters here, carrying the same flags, shot every person they could get their hands on. And for those they couldn't get their hands on, they lit their homes on fire to cause them to flee so they could kill those that took shelter. The only people from Gaza who were killed on this day in Gaza were terrorists. This is not what Columbia University stands for. We are here grieving in public, maybe we're scared, maybe our knees are trembling, but we're here to say that we are not going anywhere.”

(Source: Gil Zussman | X/Twitter)

Berlin Backing. Last night, the German capital’s iconic Brandenburg Gate — once used as a Nazi Party symbol last century — was lit with an Israeli flag, and the message of “Bring Them Home Now.” The ceremony was attended by Ron Prosor, Israel's ambassador to Germany, who emphasized the significance of Berlin’s support.

(Source: Niv Calderon | X/Twitter)

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Feels on The Bus. Recently, an Israeli man began singing Yerushalayim Shel Zahav (Jerusalem of Gold), a song that rose to national prominence during the 1967 Six-Day War, to his fellow passengers on a crowded city bus. And in a heartwarming moment of Jewish pride, other passengers and the driver quickly joined in.

(Source: mybeautifullandofisrael | Instagram)

• Students — how to take action, deal with antisemitism, and organize your community.
• Alumni — how to organize a sign-on letter, answer a fundraising request, or write a letter to a university president.
• Parents — write a letter about commencement, organize a dial day, or get help selecting a college for your student.
• Glossary of Commonly Used Antisemitic Phrases Heard at Protests.
• Campus Antisemitism Report Card — see the grade a college earned in this first-ever report card.
• Report an Antisemitic Incident.
• Are you a student or know one who needs legal help? Contact our Campus Antisemitism Legal Line (CALL), run by ADL, Hillel, the Brandeis Center, and Gibson Dunn. Hundreds of incidents have been reported. You are not alone!

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