Brown University is under investigation for alleged antisemitism

The Department of Education decided to launch the investigation after hearing a journalist report that "pro-Israel students are targets of attacks and threats."

Universidad de Brown. — Brown University (

Published by

Alejandro Baños

10 de enero, 2024

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The Office of Civil Rights (OCR), part of the Department of Education (DOE), is investigating Brown University, located in Rhode Island, for allegedly discriminating against Jewish students.

According to Fox News, the investigation was opened due to several cases reported in recent months. One of them was when a student shouted "glory to our martyrs from the river to the sea... Palestine is the hope of the world," adding that Palestinians would die "for justice" and to "return to our land."

On another occasion, a section of Brown University called Students for Justice in Palestine went viral after, in a statement, it blamed Israel and its allied countries for the war in Gaza and the deaths caused. They also singled out the school's president, Christina Paxson, for giving privileges to Jewish students.

"Pro-Israel students are targets of attacks and threats"

The DOE decided to undertake this investigation after Dr. Zachary Marschall, editor-in-chief of the conservative website Campus Reform, reported that "pro-Israel students are targets of attacks and threats."

Following this, a spokesperson for the university stated that the DOE informed the institution of the opening of an investigation into alleged antisemitic discrimination:

Our understanding from media reports is that the complaint originates from beyond Brown’s campus and specifically from an editor of the online publication Campus Reform. The letter characterizes the investigation as fact-finding, requests information from Brown and states clearly that ‘opening the complaint for investigation in no way implies that OCR has made a determination on the merits of the complaint.’

This same spokesperson added that Brown University's position is to ensure the safety of all its students, regardless of religion or ethnicity:

Amid the anxiety, tension, debate and fear prompted by the devastating events in the Middle East, Brown’s primary focus has been, and will continue to be, on supporting the needs and safety of our students, faculty and staff who are Jewish, Muslim, Israeli, Palestinian, have ties to the region, and are feeling impacted by current events. We remain resolved in our cross-campus efforts to ensure a community where all individuals feel safe and valued and where no instance of antisemitism, Islamophobia or bias based on religious, cultural or ethnic differences is tolerated. We will provide additional details directly in our response to OCR.