For a Handful of Dollars: Columbia University Fights Anti-Semitism

From the President’s Desk
The Anti-Semite Corner of the Week

Do Jews love money? So do anti-Semites! The university that was tolerant of anti-Semitism during Biden’s time is now fighting it vigorously under Trump’s sanctions whip.

By: Anat Vidor, WIZO President

While eagerly awaiting Chuck Schumer’s new book, “Antisemitism in America: A Warning,” positive warnings are coming from Columbia University, where hatred of Jews that flourished on its grounds is being replaced with love for the eternal people. A direct line connects these two events.

There’s no doubt about Schumer’s love for Israel. The veteran New York Senator is a consistent and reliable supporter of Israel, and even his occasional attacks against Netanyahu and Israeli government policies—which some would argue provide tailwind to Israel’s haters—were presumably made out of concern rather than a desire to harm. And now, he’s publishing an entire book on anti-Semitism, as an unquestionable authority on the subject.

Under the Biden-Harris administration, Schumer was a senior member of the ruling party. In fact, out of 34 Jewish members of Congress, 30 are Democrats, so one would reasonably expect this party to carry the flag in the fight against anti-Semitism. But absurdly, exactly the opposite happened: when the October 7th massacre broke out, it became clear that Qatari dollar injections had turned American academia into bastions of anti-Semitism. Columbia University led the way, under its Muslim Egyptian-born president Minouche Shafik, who saw the riots as a kind of practical internship for the “Center for Palestinian Studies” operating there. Through its indifference, the university administration became an accomplice to the rioters. This policy paralyzed the institution’s activities and terrorized Jewish students, who make up 22% of all students there.

And what did Schumer do during those turbulent days? He instructed Columbia University to ignore the anti-Semitism on its grounds and to keep its head down “until the storm passes”— just like his ancestors during the Ukrainian pogroms. Schumer also promised the university administration a chain of personal immunity if it managed to ignore public criticism demanding practical actions to protect Jewish students and professors. There’s no doubt that if Kamala Harris had been elected, this would still be the “sane and logical” doctrine today, backed by the friendly Democratic Jews. But then a change occurred. In the White House, that is.

The incoming President Trump was less inclined to the containment approach, which is a good formula for floating between waves but certainly not for defeating the storm. Trump likes willing deals and meetings of interests. At the beginning of the month, his administration announced that due to its failure to handle anti-Semitism, federal grants to Columbia University would be canceled to the tune of $400 million, with a potential freeze of another $5 billion under consideration

Whoa… this language is well understood, and not just in the Economics department. Suddenly, fighting anti-Semitism became more profitable for the university than supporting it. Thus, under this economic incentive, the media was filled this week with different kinds of news, as reported by General Copy-Paste: “Columbia University announced the expulsion and suspension of students,” “Columbia University imposes heavy fines on participants in anti-Israel protests,” “Pro-Palestinian activists at the university arrested”! Indeed, new winds are blowing in New York! For the Trump administration, this is still not enough, and it continues to investigate the university’s support of those riot heroes.

So, what have we learned? That with anti-Semitism, you don’t bargain—you fight anti-Semitism, not with containment and bowing heads, or with pathetic clichés in Trudeau’s style, but with upright and decisive standing with practical solutions. We just have to wait for Chuck Schumer’s new book to discover if he too has already understood this.