FOIA Reveals Anti-Israel Bias in Faculty and Student Groups at U. Arizona
“U of A initially refused, forcing Anderson to retain attorneys and threaten litigation, costing thousands of dollars before the June 2025 release.”
This is most likely the case at other schools across the country. It’s amazing how apparent it has become.
Arizona Free News reports:
University Of Arizona FOIA Reveals Anti-Israel Bias In Faculty And Student Groups
A year-long Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) battle has revealed over 1,000 pages of emails from the University of Arizona (U of A), exposing coordinated efforts between faculty and pro-Palestine groups to undermine condemnations of the Oct. 7th Hamas attacks on Israel. The documents, obtained through legal threats after an initial denial, detail attempts to soften U of A statements on terrorism and revise an anti-Semitism resolution to prioritize criticism of police responses to pro-Palestine protests.
Brian Anderson, founder of the Saguaro Group and Arizona Capitol Oversight, filed the FOIA request in May 2024 targeting communications post-Oct 7th when Hamas terrorists killed 1,200 Israelis, mostly civilians, and many children. U of A initially refused, forcing Anderson to retain attorneys and threaten litigation, costing thousands of dollars before the June 2025 release. He detailed the ordeal in an X post on November 1, 2025, linking to a 12-page report.
Former U of A President Robert C. Robbins condemned the “antisemitic hatred, murder, and atrocity” officially on Oct. 11, 2023, specifically criticizing Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) for endorsing the attacks. Faculty backlash was swift. On Oct. 12th, an associate emailed Faculty Senate Chair Leila Hudson, accusing Robbins of “smears” against SJP and coordinating with Jewish Voice for Peace on protests, threatening a Palestine Legal report. Hudson, an associate professor in Middle Eastern and North African Studies, replied supportively and issued a statement on Oct. 13th condemning “illegal violent collective punishment” on Gaza civilians, equating it to Hamas terrorism.
Faculty emails poured in praising Hudson. One cited distress among Saudi, UAE, and Yemeni students. Another called her “courageous,” noting that “Kochs Off Campus” planned to attend a faculty meeting. Hudson privately noted shortening her draft to avoid “comparisons to ISIS tactics,” instead favoring words that would “bring people into dialogue.”
Pro-Palestine activity intensified on campus. On Oct. 26, 2023, the Coalition of Black Students and Allies emailed faculty, calling Oct. 7th a “powerful emblem of Palestinian resistance” against Israeli “apartheid.” Hudson spoke at a Nov. 6 Faculty Senate meeting on the “genocide” in Palestine, sympathizing with protesters against “occupation” and U.S. policy. An interim provost announced a Nov. 9 “Walkout for Palestine,” and United Campus Workers of Arizona issued a Nov. 20 open letter accusing pro-Palestine critics of “retaliation.”
NEW 🚨 After a 1-year #FOIA fight, I have obtained 1,000 pages of internal emails exposing how @UArizona bent over backward for pro-Palestine activists after October 7
Incredibly grateful for @WSJ's editorial board writing about it in today's issue 1/4https://t.co/a2BbqIhb48 pic.twitter.com/dEm6WBkK2U
— Brian Anderson (@AZBrianAnderson) November 1, 2025
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