University of Pennsylvania Faces Anti-Semitism Probe as House Committee Demands Documents

‘We have grave concerns regarding the inadequacy of Penn’s response to anti-Semitism on its campus’

Rep. Virginia Foxx talks at American Enterprise Institute in Washington D.C., about student loan forgiveness. Madalina Vasiliu/The Epoch Times

The House Committee on Education and the Workforce has demanded that the University of Pennsylvania (Penn) provide documents and information regarding its response to anti-Semitism amid a rise in anti-Semitic incidents on its campus.

“We have grave concerns regarding the inadequacy of Penn’s response to anti-Semitism on its campus,” the committee’s chairwoman Virginia Foxx (R-N.C.) wrote in a letter dated Jan. 24 to the university’s chair of the board of trustees, Ramanan Raghavendran, and interim president Larry Jameson.

“An environment of pervasive anti-Semitism has been documented at Penn dating back to well before the October 7, 2023, terrorist attacks,” the letter noted. It cited Brandeis University’s study, which ranks Penn last in the “highest anti-Semitic hostility” category “consisting of the most hostile 25 percent of universities surveyed.”

The committee announced an investigation into Harvard, the University of Pennsylvania, and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology last month following their presidents’ controversial congressional hearing over anti-Semitism on campus. When asked if “calling for the genocide of Jews” violates university rules, all three leaders gave closely guarded answers, claiming “It depends on the context.”

After the hearing, the University of Pennsylvania’s president, Liz Magill, resigned under intense pressure from lawmakers, donors, and students. Its board of trustees chair, Scott Bok, also stepped down. Days later, Harvard’s president Claudine Gay also stepped down over alleged plagiarism and her handling of anti-Semitism on campus.

In the letter, Ms. Foxx listed multiple anti-Semitic incidents at the university, which raised concerns over “Penn’s failure to address anti-Semitism on its campus.”

Notably, the letter highlighted that the University of Pennsylvania hosted the Palestine Writes Literature Festival in September 2023, during which many speakers allegedly made anti-Semitic comments. These accusations include calling Israelis “human garbage” and describing Israel as a “colonial apartheid state” that will “eventually be wiped off the map.” Multiple speakers invited to the festival have long histories of alleged anti-Semitism, such as comparing Israel to the Nazis.

‘Deeply Troubling Incidents’

The letter alleged that there have been “patterns of deeply troubling incidents” of anti-Semitism, such as “anti-Semitic vandalism and harassment” at the university.

The cases included the spray-painting of a swastika and the word “intifada” on campus grounds. There were incidents of anti-Semitic obscenities being shouted, and staff members received emails threatening violence against Penn Hillel, a Jewish student organization. Anti-Semitic phrases were projected on buildings, such as “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free.”

Other incidents involved tearing down posters featuring Israeli hostages captured by Hamas and occupying the student center to protest Israel, among others. Ms. Foxx also accused some University of Pennsylvania professors of making anti-Semitic acts and remarks, such as posting a Hamas flag on Facebook and celebrating the October. 7 terrorist attacks.

“In defense of this disgraceful record, Penn has cited its supposed commitment to free speech,” the letter said. “However, Penn has demonstrated a clear double standard by tolerating anti-Semitic vandalism, harassment, and intimidation, but suppressing and penalizing other expression it deemed problematic.”

Documents Deadline

The committee has requested that the university provide a broad range of documents related to “the anti-Semitism crisis at Penn,” including its procedures for handling anti-Semitic acts or incidents, among other documents, by Feb. 7.

The letter comes on the same day that Ms. Foxx condemned Harvard for its “unacceptable response” to documents requested by the committee. She said the information the school provided was “woefully inadequate.” Earlier this month, the committee opened a similar probe into Harvard, asking it to turn over records of how it handles incidents targeting Jewish individuals on campus.

According to the Anti-Defamation League, from Oct. 7 to Jan. 7, anti-Semitism incidents dramatically surged to 3,291 from 712, a 361 percent increase, compared to the same period one year ago. College campuses reported at least 500 incidents, a significant rise from only 12 cases over the same period last year.

The U.S. Department of Education opened civil rights investigations into multiple schools and universities in mid-November following allegations of anti-Semitism and Islamophobia since the start of the Israel-Hamas war. Among the higher education institutions under investigation are four Ivy League schools: Columbia, Cornell, Harvard, and the University of Pennsylvania.

The Epoch Times has reached out to the University of Pennsylvania for comment.