The House Committee on Education and the Workforce has called upon Columbia University to give over documents about details regarding claims of anti-Semitism at the school’s Morningside Heights campus.
The demands were made in a letter sent by committee Chair Tim Walberg to Columbia President Katrina Armstrong on Feb. 13.
“Columbia has failed to uphold its commitments, both because the disciplinary process has failed and because the campus administration has refused to enforce its pre-existing rules,” Walberg wrote. “Columbia’s continued failure to address the pervasive antisemitism that persists on campus is untenable, particularly given that the university receives billions in federal funding.”
“Unfortunately, Columbia’s Trustees, interim president, and deans have not met their promises or commitments,” Walberg continued. “Their negligence has created a hostile environment for members of Columbia’s Jewish communities and resulted in severe disruptions to the university’s learning environment.”
At the end of the letter, Walberg demanded that the university administration hand over a series of documents before Feb. 27. The documents are each related to disciplinary measures and investigations between April 2024 and this January, including the takeover of Hamilton Hall that occurred during the spring 2024 semester.
“Columbia has cooperated extensively with the previous congressional inquiries and will continue to do so,” the university said in a statement to Campus Reform. “Since assuming her role in August, Interim President Armstrong and her leadership team have taken decisive actions to address issues of antisemitism.”
“Under the University’s new leadership, we have established a centralized Office of Institutional Equity to address all reports of discrimination and harassment, appointed a new Rules Administrator, and strengthened the capabilities of our Public Safety Office,” the statement continued.
Columbia has continued to deal with anti-Semitic instances throughout the past several months. After the announcement of a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, members of an anti-Israel student group at the school advocated that pro-Palestine activists “fight and escalate.”
“Ceasefire today, liberation tomorrow,” the Columbia University Apartheid Divest organization announced.
In December, members of Columbia’s chapter of Students for Justice in Palestine distributed a publication called “The Columbia Intifada,” which contained an article entitled, “Zionist Peace Means Palestinian Blood.”
More recently, masked protesters disrupted a class on the “History of Modern Israel” at Columbia, chanting “Free Palestine” and accusing Israeli soldiers of “[raiding] the homes of martyrs.” In response to the disruption, the university administration placed security personnel outside other courses that it deemed at “risk for disruption.”
This article was originally published at campusreform.org
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