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7mo ago

House Republicans Challenge University Leaders on Campus Antisemitism

Republicans threatened to cut funding unless universities tightened discipline at the ninth hearing, prompting officials to underscore their free-speech safeguards.

Dr. Félix Matos Rodríguez, Chancellor, The City University of New York, testifies during a House Committee on Education and Workforce Committee hearing on "Antisemitism in Higher Education: Examining the Role of Faculty, Funding, and Ideology" on Capitol Hill, Tuesday, July 15, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Rod Lamkey, Jr.)
Dr. Rich Lyons, Chancellor, University of California, Berkeley, testifies during a House Committee on Education and Workforce Committee hearing on "Antisemitism in Higher Education: Examining the Role of Faculty, Funding, and Ideology" on Capitol Hill, Tuesday, July 15, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Rod Lamkey, Jr.)
Two weeks after the Hamas attack on southern Israel in October, 2023, hundreds of students gathered on UC Berkeley’s Sproul Plaza to call for a cease fire and end to the subsequent Israeli invasion of Gaza.
UC Berkeley Chancellor Rich Lyons testifies during a House Committee on Education and Workforce Committee hearing on “Antisemitism in Higher Education: Examining the Role of Faculty, Funding, and Ideology” on Capitol Hill, Tuesday, July 15, 2025, in Washington.

Overview

  • Republicans on the House Education and the Workforce Committee accused the three universities of permitting an antisemitic climate and warned they could withhold federal funds for inadequate responses.
  • Lyons, Groves and Matos Rodríguez detailed campus actions—from disciplinary measures and mandatory training to security funding and dialogue initiatives—aimed at combating antisemitism while preserving free speech.
  • Democrats decried the session as a 'kangaroo court' and criticized President Trump’s cuts to the Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights for undermining civil rights enforcement.
  • CUNY reported receiving 68 antisemitism complaints last year and disciplining 18 students over two years, while Georgetown placed a professor on leave for an antisemitic social media post.
  • This was the ninth hearing since October 2023, following high-profile resignations of Ivy League presidents whose testimonies before the same committee drew sharp criticism.