The Federal Task Force to Combat Antisemitism is visiting 10 schools — including Northwestern — that have “experienced antisemitic incidents since October 2023,” the U.S. Department of Justice announced in a news release Friday.
Senior Counsel to the Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights Leo Terrell, who leads the task force, said in the release that the purpose of these visits is for the task force to “meet with university leadership, impacted students and staff, local law enforcement and community members as it gathers information about these incidents and considers whether remedial action is warranted.”
The planned visits follow a Jan. 29 executive order signed by President Donald Trump, which called in part for “additional measures” to combat antisemitism in schools and on college campuses. In addition, the University is actively under investigation by the U.S. Education Department for antisemitism.
The order implored heads of government executive departments and agencies to submit reports that identified civil and criminal authorities or actions within the jurisdiction of that agency that “might be used to curb or combat anti-Semitism.” It also demanded an inventory and analysis of every pending complaint “against or involving institutions of higher education alleging civil rights violations” related to campus antisemitism following Hamas’ attack on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, which killed about 1,200 Israelis, according to Israeli officials. Since then, Israel’s military action in Gaza has killed more than 48,000 Palestinians, according to Palestinian officials.
NU has been the subject of government scrutiny since last April’s Deering Meadow encampment. In May, University President Michael Schill testified before the House Committee on Education and the Workforce regarding allegations of campus antisemitism.
The task force, which was formed on Feb. 3, stated its priority is “to root out anti-Semitic harassment in schools and on college campuses” in a DOJ news release.
In addition to NU, the task force will also visit Columbia University; George Washington University; Harvard University; Johns Hopkins University; New York University; the University of California, Los Angeles; the University of California, Berkeley; the University of Minnesota; and the University of Southern California.
Terrell said in the release that the task force informed each university Thursday that it was aware of allegations that “the schools may have failed to protect Jewish students and faculty members from unlawful discrimination, in potential violation of federal law.”
“We’re going to use every tool in the toolbox — civil, criminal activities — to stop the harassment of Jewish students,” Terrell told Fox News in a televised interview Feb. 8. “That means we’re going to take criminal action. We’re going to cut off funding. We’re going to do everything — and we’re formulating that right now.”
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