Rutgers Student Sues University Over Antisemitism

Rutgers Student Sues University Over Antisemitism

The last time we reported on Rutgers University, its president had agreed to eight of the ten demands given to him by the pro-Hamas mob that forced the school to cancel final exams when they occupied Voorhees Mall.

Ultimately, Rutgers did not agree to divest from companies with ties to Israel or sever its relationship with Tel Aviv University.

The move was spineless, and both New Jersey lawmakers and students at the institution are unhappy with the deal.

The agreement, which is contingent upon no more disruptions or protests breaking out on campus, is facing criticism from some lawmakers, including New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy, who said Tuesday the university’s approach to hearing demands from protesters differed from how it handled Jewish student complaints on antisemitism.

On Wednesday, some Jewish students and leaders told CBS New York the agreement doesn’t sit well with them, either.

A billboard with pictures of hostages kidnapped by Hamas on Oct. 7 sits in front of Chabad of Central New Jersey on the New Brunswick campus. Rose Gottschalk, a Jewish freshman, said it is her safe place after being harassed on campus and in her Arabic class.

“It got to a point that where I started to feel harassed and felt unsafe. I ended up dropping the class and the university is really taking care of it. They are helping me. They are getting it off my transcript,” Gottschalk said.

Rivka Schafer, who is also Jewish, said someone plastered a photo of them at a pro-Israeli rally at her dorm with the words “Free Gaza” on it.

In fact, Schafer is so unhappy with how Rutgers has handled the anti-Israel demonstrations that she has sued the institution, alleging she was harassed in her dorm after she attended a pro-Israel event. The lawsuit was filed with the New Jersey Superior Court and seeks unspecified monetary damages from the school.

In her complaint, Schaefer notes that Jewish students have repeatedly reported antisemitic acts for years. As Rutgers has allegedly not acted on those reports, the suit asserts that it has created a hostile environment for Jewish students.

“For years, Rutgers’ Jewish students have reported incidents and concerns to Rutgers; yet Rutgers continues to tolerate faculty members, guest speakers, groups, students and student organizations that legitimize or endorse antisemitic expression and actions,” the lawsuit says.

According to the suit, Rivka was targeted by fellow students after she went to an event intended to rally support for Israel this spring. That came amid a nonbinding student referendum on whether Rutgers should divest its endowment from companies with ties to “the government of Israel’s human rights violations.”

Two days later, on March 28, Rivka found fliers with her photo posted throughout her dormitory, the lawsuit says. The picture was accompanied by the messages “Free Palestine” and “Free Gaza” and urged students to vote in favor of the Rutgers boycott, divestment and sanctions (BDS) student referendum proposal.

“The message to Rivka and her peers was clear,” the suit says. “Don’t support Israel, we know where you sleep.”

Meanwhile, Rutgers University President Jonathon Holloway faced brutal questioning from New Jersey lawmakers about his handing of the Hamas-Hate-Camps. This occurred during a state Senate Budget Committee hearing he attended.

Lawmakers pressed Holloway for explanations on why Jewish students weren’t included in negotiations over protestors’ demands, how university officials would deal with future protests, and whether Rutgers is a safe and respectful environment for all of its students.

“As the father of a Rutgers graduate and the father-in-law of a Rutgers graduate, I don’t know if I could answer to my children whether their children would be safe at Rutgers right now,” said Assemblyman Gary Schaer (D-Passaic), who is Jewish.

…Sen. Declan O’Scanlon asked Holloway why university officials didn’t make counterdemands to the protestors, a comment that garnered applause from people in the audience wearing “Rutgers: no to antisemitism” shirts. Holloway repeated that the situation was changing so quickly, university officials didn’t want to escalate it.

O’Scanlon said he believes Princeton University handled the encampments on its campus better by not negotiating with protestors and sending in police to deal with the disruption, sending a clear message that they wouldn’t give in to protestors’ demands. There, 13 protestors were arrested, and university officials relocated the protest to a smaller courtyard.

“I think this situation is happening because you missed the decision early on to nip in the bud. But we’re humans, we make mistakes, we learned from this,” O’Scanlon said.

Holloway will face congressional committee later this month along with other college presidents on their handling of the protests on campuses across the country.

One has to wonder what the start of the next academic year will look like, given how this one ended.  One can only hope the university officials have learned some valuable lessons these past few weeks.

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