U.S. Investigating Antisemitism Claims At University Of Vermont

BURLINGTON, VT — The U.S. Department of Education has launched an investigation into the University of Vermont after campus organizations filed a complaint claiming Jewish students are subjected to "severe and persistent" antisemitic harassment and discrimination on campus.

According to the complaint filed last year by the Louis D. Brandeis Center for Human Rights Under Law and Jewish On Campus, antisemitic incidents ranged from excluding Jewish students from a campus sexual assault survivors group and book club to online harassment of Jewish students by a university teaching assistant.

The complaint claims university officials have allowed "a hostile environment to proliferate on its campus in violation of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964."

As a result, University of Vermont students are afraid to identify publicly as Jewish. In contrast, some have hidden their Jewish identity and others have transferred to other schools, the Brandeis Center said in a news release.

"It can’t be that today, the only community that’s not welcomed to bring their full identity to the table are the Jews," Alyza Lewin, president of the Brandeis Center, said in an interview with The Associated Press. "And that’s what’s happening now at the University of Vermont, is that they’re saying to everyone, 'we welcome you to our table with your full identity, except the Jews.'"

According to the Brandeis Center's complaint, harassment and intimidation of Jews have existed at UVM for years. It intensified, however, in 2021 when a university teaching assistant "repeatedly instigated hate against Jewish students who express support for Zionism," according to the Brandeis Center. In some cases, the teaching assistant reportedly threatened to lower student grades.

The complaint also claims two student groups deliberately excluded Jewish students from membership. According to a report by The Burlington Free Press, rocks were also thrown through dormitory windows at UVM Hillel.

According to the Brandeis Center, more than 150 students have contacted UVM Hillel expressing concern about antisemitism on campus.

"On multiple occasions, UVM students have met with UVM administrators and shared stories with them of how the students have been personally harassed and harmed by the hostile anti-Semitic environment on campus. To date, however, the university has taken no steps to rectify the situation," the Brandeis Center said in a news release.

University of Vermont spokesperson Enrique Corredera told The AP that officials are looking forward to providing the Department of Education with a complete response to the allegations.

"UVM seeks to foster a culture of inclusiveness for all students, faculty, and staff, including members of our Jewish community, and does not tolerate acts of bias or discrimination related to religion, race, culture, gender, or sexual orientation on our campus,"' the statement said.

Antisemitic incidents reached an all-time high in the United States in 2021, according to the Anti-Defamation League. In all, 2,717 assault, harassment, and vandalism incidents were reported to ADL in 2021, the highest on record since the organization began tracking antisemitic incidents in 1979.

Specifically, incidents on college campuses rose by 21 percent in 2021, according to the ADL.