The speech climate at schools is dramatically influenced by administrators’ behavior

By Samuel J. Abrams

Hamas’ terror attack and the ensuing war has led to antisemitic protests on scores of American college campuses, with some leading to violence or school closures. Israel’s response to Hamas has exposed how deep the hatred toward Jews runs among students, faculty and administrators on some American campuses — particularly some who run purported diversity, equity and inclusion offices.

The past month has shown just how weak educational leadership is; foundational higher education principles, like free speech, are under immense threat. Jewish students are afraid to speak and genuinely fear for their safety — I know from firsthand experience. Since Oct. 7, I have been traveling along the East Coast supporting Jewish students at a host of schools.

Unfortunately, the current campus culture leaves little space for voices to question and challenge the illiberal and dangerous views among those who are the most vocal — like DEI administrators, “scholar-activist” faculty and student activist groups.

This is a critical function of the university. College and university presidents should be protecting Jewish students and defending open exchange; it is their job to create a campus culture that protects speech and promotes robust debate and dialogue. Jewish students who fear for their lives and safety — as was made vividly clear recently at the University of Pennsylvania and the New School in New York — represent an abdication of the college presidents’ moral duty to protect students.

This trend has gotten worse, but it’s not new. Unsettling data from the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression starkly underscores the prevalence of self-censorship among students. The data reveals that a majority of students, regardless of their backgrounds, self-censor with other students on campus, in conversations with professors and during classroom discussions. College administrators have let a culture of self-censorship and anti-Jewish bigotry fester on campus. For all the talk about inclusion, tolerance and acceptance of difference, students do not think that they can speak freely.

https://www.deseret.com/2023/11/19/23962459/free-speech-college-presidents-israel-hamas