‘I have been called ‘K*ke’ more times in the last five months than I have my entire life,’ University of Washington releases report on campus antisemitism

UW president Ana Marie Cauce established the task force in March following criticism that the administration was not addressing antisemitism at the university that had spiked in the wake of the Oct 7 massacre. Since that time, the university was slapped with a federal civil rights complaint for failing to address antisemitism on campus.

According to the results, students, faculty, and staff have been experiencing discrimination or harassment because they are on campus and UW can and must do more to make all students feel welcome. The task force surveyed “academic personnel, staff, and students,” and conducted focus groups to collect information.

One student told the task force, "I have been called 'k*ke' more times in the last five months than I have my entire life." Another claimed to have been spat on for having a menorah in their dorm window.

Multiple Jewish students reported being spit on and threatened with physical violence for their Jewish identity, with one telling the task force, "I personally took my Star of David off after I had it on and someone at the encampment while I was passing by called me disgusting for that...when they had the first protest someone spit in my face after that. So I personally didn’t feel comfortable wearing my Star of David necklace anymore."

Many of the complaints accused members of the UW faculty of trafficking in hate. A Jewish student told the task force they were told “'you don't belong here' by a UW professor." Another student alleged "I have had a UW professor call Jews white Supremacists, allowing the continual labeling of Jewish people in Israel as 'manifest destiny.' He also did nothing as another Jew in the class was called a 'f*cking cockroach' because she was Jewish."

Students also "reported that discussions were brought up in courses that had no explicit connection to the conflict often containing inaccuracies."

Students told the task force “of having to see threatening antisemitic posters and graffiti (e.g., death to Zionism/fascism) on a regular basis, hearing antisemitic rhetoric when they are trying to work and/or teach, experiencing verbal harassment because of their identities, and/or being exposed to threatening posts on the AAUP listserv."

The hate against Jewish students on campus increased exponentially after pro-Hamas activists established a Gaza camp on the Quad and blocked entry to Jewish students. One said, "I do not feel comfortable walking on campus hearing protesters scream 'kill all Jews,'" and another said they saw swastikas on the way to class. Students reported chants of “kill all Jews,” “globalize the intifada,” and “violence is justified."

One student said, "I have been called a Zionist pig and told to go die."

Students noted that sections of the campus were “blocked off as no-go zones for Jews," and that they were “screamed at by members of the encampment.” The same student added, “I watched Jewish students be surrounded and trapped while trying to walk through the quad."

One student said when they were walking to class while the activists were occupying the encampment, “3 fully masked large men ran up to me & surrounded me (I was wearing my Magen David). I had a panic attack and left campus & didn’t come back until my next exam 3 weeks later."

"Some students explained that towards the end of the academic year, they avoided going to classes that were being held in the Quad because they felt uncomfortable and/or unsafe getting there. Some professors canceled classes altogether due to the presence of the encampment and the distraction it was causing, further impacting their educational experience."

Additionally, "Some students also reported feeling uncomfortable when professors glorified the encampment, encouraging them to visit and learn more about their arguments."

One student lamented, "To be completely honest, I don't know if anyone is going to read this... it would not be the first time and not the last that something, someone pretended to care about Jews."

According to the task force, "Participants in the antisemitism focus groups explained that the UW has been largely silent, failing to address the widespread antisemitism on campus in a satisfactory manner or providing the necessary support for individuals who are struggling with both the events of October 7th and the impact of the hostile campus climate. Moreover, they commented on the safety issues surrounding the encampment and the failure to protect not only Jewish and Israeli students but all students on campus by not enforcing the Student Conduct Code."

The task force also noted that "Some faculty members reported feeling uncomfortable wearing t-shirts or necklaces in support of the hostages after receiving disparaging feedback or awkward silences from other faculty.”

"In addition, staff expressed that they felt responsible for identifying antisemitism and bringing it to the attention of the university, as one staff member stated: I don’t want it to be my responsibility, and I have to do this since October 7th, to raise my hand and say that’s not right. That’s antisemitism. And I’m tired of having to do that, and I don’t think it’s Jewish people’s responsibility."

"Both faculty and staff contrasted the response to the events of October 7th with responses to other events in recent history such as the George Floyd protests. A faculty member explained: 'It really contrasts to the messages that have been sent out when other hate crimes have happened, reach out to your friend who shares an identity with a targeted group. See how they’re okay, and now it’s just silence.'"

Jewish students and faculty agreed with the sentiment of one interviewee who told the task force, "I would never in a million years want the board of the University of Washington to pick a side in this conflict. I think they have – there’s no place for them to do that. It’s out of touch. It’s out of a lot of things, but the bare minimum is to make sure all of their students feel supported and that they are directly calling out hatred, threats of violence."

Some of the conclusions reached by the task force included that “Many survey or focus group participants were distressed by the growing signs of perceived antisemitism and anti-Israeli bias in protests, demonstrations and encampment in UW public spaces. We recognize the importance of preserving public free speech; however, the encampment and campus protests, at times, were perceived to go beyond these lines of argument and advocacy to call, implicitly or even explicitly, for violence.

Conversely, “Many survey or focus group participants were distressed by the perceived alienation and lack of support provided for Palestinian and Muslim members of our community. In voicing concerns related to the ongoing conflicts in the Middle East, they sought visibility for their cause and for the UW to provide a place where these local and global concerns could be focused on, feeling at times that their message and concerns were not adequately heard nor addressed.”