Feds sue Harvard over antisemitic harassment of students

The Department of Justice filed a sweeping lawsuit against Harvard University on Friday, accusing the Ivy League institution of violating federal civil rights law by failing to protect Jewish and Israeli students from harassment and discrimination on campus.

The complaint, filed in federal court in Massachusetts, alleges that Harvard allowed a “hostile educational environment” to fester in the wake of Hamas’ October 7, 2023, terrorist attacks on Israel. According to the filing, Jewish and Israeli students were subjected to harassment, intimidation, and even physical assault, while the university allegedly failed to act.

The lawsuit alleges that over the past 2 years, Jewish students were “harassed, physically assaulted, stalked, and spat upon,” and in some cases felt compelled to hide visible signs of their identity, such as yarmulkes, out of fear.

Federal officials argue that protests and demonstrations at Harvard went far beyond protected speech. Instead, they claim certain activities crossed into targeted harassment, including blocking access to buildings, disrupting classes, and directing threatening language at Jewish and Israeli students. The complaint also points to findings from Harvard’s own internal task force, which reportedly identified the “exclusion of Israeli or Zionist students from social spaces and extracurricular activities” as a serious issue.

At the core of the government’s case is the claim that Harvard selectively enforced its policies, cracking down in some situations, while allowing alleged antisemitic conduct to continue unchecked. The DOJ alleges the university ignored repeated violations of campus rules, including building occupations and disruptive protests, and failed to meaningfully discipline those involved. That inaction, the government argues, amounted to “deliberate indifference” under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act, which prohibits discrimination in federally funded institutions.

The lawsuit further claims Harvard’s response sent a message that Jewish and Israeli students were not equally protected under university policies.

Harvard currently receives more than $2.6 billion in federal funding through active grants, according to the complaint. The DOJ is seeking not only to force the university into compliance with civil rights law, but also to recover taxpayer funds allegedly received while in violation of those rules.

Attorney General Pamela Bondi said the lawsuit reflects a broader effort to address rising antisemitism on college campuses. “Too many of our educational institutions have allowed antisemitism to flourish,” she said. “This litigation underscores our commitment to demanding better.”

Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. echoed that sentiment, emphasizing that institutions receiving taxpayer dollars have a responsibility to protect students’ civil rights. Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon added that the DOJ “will not tolerate” harassment or intimidation targeting Jewish and Israeli students.

Last week, the Harvard Jewish Alumni Alliance (HJAA) released a report, A Narrowing Gate: Jewish Enrollment at Harvard and Its Peers: 1967–2025, documenting what it describes as a significant and anomalous decline in Jewish undergraduate enrollment at Harvard University over the past two decades. The report found that Jewish enrollment at Harvard is only 7 percent, the lowest recorded since before World War II, roughly half what it was a decade ago, and the lowest among Ivy League institutions.