University of Washington creates ‘Palestine Studies’ committee to appease pro-Hamas campus-occupying radicals

According to an announcement from Provost and Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs Tricia R. Serio, “The University of Washington seeks to deepen our tri-campus expertise in the scholarship of Palestine, across the range of existing academic units.”

Serio asked faculty to catalog “existing scholarly and creative activity focused on the study of Palestine, inclusive of the full disciplinary breadth of the University,” and to identify “areas in which there are opportunities to build thematic strength by expanding this foundation through a faculty cluster hire.”

Serio added, “While beyond the scope of this committee, our goal is to expand our foundation for future faculty-led fundraising, grant application, and/or organized research or study units.”

The list of professors included in the project is a who’s who of the university faculty, which was recently rated as one of the most antisemitic in the US. The school recently released a report revealing rampant antisemitism on campus.

UW’s administration agreed to create the department when it caved to the demands of the violent and antisemitic Gaza campers that took over the Quad last Spring. This did not pacify the radicals. In September, the UW administration, board of regents, and Jewish community members had to be evacuated after the university let pro-Hamas activists take over a building where they were holding a meeting discussing antisemitism on campus.

UW Jewish Alumni posted on X, “Rewarding vandals and antisemites with their own department sounds like a great way to invite more vandalism and antisemitism. The @UW's message is: trash our campus and harass Jewish students, get a prize.”

The university quietly settled civil rights claims stemming from the encampment and other antisemitic incidents following the Oct 7, 2023, terrorist attacks on Israel by Hamas with the Department of Education in the waning hours of the Biden administration.

The group noted, “On Jan 29, 2025, President Trump signed an executive order, ‘Additional Measures to Combat Anti-Semitism,’ expanding protections for Jewish students. By creating a new department dedicated to the one topic most fueling campus antisemitism, @UW is just begging for lawsuits.” The group added, “A potential federal funding freeze threatens key UW grants and aid.”

Though Serio claimed funding for the project would come from “faculty-led fundraising, grant application, and/or organized research or study units,” UW Jewish Alumni noted, WA State is staring down an $11–15 billion deficit over the next 4 years. @GovBobFerguson has proposed 6% across-the-board cuts - while labor costs are set to rise by $1.3 billion. A new department that nobody except vandals asked for is the last thing @UW budget needs.”

WA Republican state Rep. Travis Couture wrote in response to the announcement, “The UW should not be rewarding antisemitism. To that end, I’ll be proposing budget cuts to the UW and any other state-funded university that allows or engages in such hate to Jewish students, vandalism of universities, or politically motivated violence.”

On Monday, the Department of Education (DoE) announced investigations into five colleges surrounding antisemitism following President Donald Trump's executive order to combat antisemitism at American universities.

When asked if UW would be added to the list, a spokesperson for the DoE told The Ari Hoffman Show on Talk Radio 570 KVI, "“The Department of Education’s investigations into the five universities are a first step in demanding responsibility for institutions’ failure to protect Jewish students from harassment and discrimination. The Department of ED will work with the newly announced Task Force to Combat Anti-Semitism and carefully evaluate incoming complaints to OCR (Office of Civil Rights), to identify antisemitic activity on campuses and take necessary action to hold schools accountable for any violations of Title VI.”