Students at Tri-State Area colleges say antisemitism & Islamophobia are reaching a boiling point amid Israel-Hamas war
NEW YORK -- Antisemitism and Islamophobia are reaching a boiling point on campuses in the Tri-State Area, according to students.
Several Jewish students at New York University have filed a federal lawsuit alleging the school is violating civil rights laws, and at Rutgers University, Muslim students tell CBS New York's Lisa Rozner they don't feel safe either.
Rozner spoke with Sabrina Maslavi about antisemitism she says she's experienced at NYU and Jannine Masoud about Islamophobia she's encountered at Rutgers Law School.
Maslavi is one of three students who filed a nearly 100-page lawsuit against NYU on Tuesday, alleging she's "been the target of verbal and physical threats, and made to feel unsafe on campus "just because she's Jewish and supports Israel."
"At a dual protest somebody screamed at me, a singular person who covered their face, 'The good Jews are the ones from Germany.' My friend heard, 'Gas the Jews,'" Maslavi said.
The lawsuit says NYU's failure to take disciplinary action has created a hostile education environment and other Jewish NYU students are experiencing pervasive acts of discrimination.
"I want them to speak out against hate crimes that are committed against Jews just like they've done for other minority groups," Maslavi said.
An NYU spokesperson said in part, "The assertions in this suit do not accurately describe conditions on our campus or the many steps NYU has been taking to fight antisemitism and keep the campus safe..."
Dani Dayan, chairman of Yad Vashem, the World Holocaust Remembrance Center, says he flew from Israel to New York this week to speak to leaders at NYU, Columbia University and Queens College.
"The Holocaust didn't start with gas chambers. It started with ideas, vicious ideas. It started with statements," he said.
A protest was held Wednesday evening outside Columbia. Organizers said they were protesting what they call the university's systemic discrimination of pro-Palestinian groups, as well as the suspension of two student groups -- the Students for Justice in Palestine and Jewish Voice for Peace.
Vicious statements are also being alleged at Rutgers University Law School. Muslim student Jannine Masoud said text messages sent to her from a group chat allege she held "an event in the spring ... about Palestine and how the Jews are evil," which she says isn't true.
"I've been called a terrorist on campus," Masoud said.
She says she and several Muslim students, as well as pro-Palestinian allies, were recently doxxed, which means their personal information was published online in an attempt to embarrass them. One threatening text said, "Your employers have a right to know you support terrorist organizations."
"It is not hate speech to defend and stand in solidarity with Palestinians," Masoud said.
"They've had internships rescinded, they've had employment offers rescinded, simply because they said, 'I support Palestine,'" said Dina Sayedahmed, communications manager for CAIR-NJ.
"We've all put in conduct complaints around the group of students that were involved in this conspiracy," Masoud said.
They say Rutgers Law School hasn't taken disciplinary action and instead, it temporarily suspended the Student Bar Association in response to an antisemitism complaint.
In a statement, Rutgers Law said in part, "When the university receives these types of complaints, an inquiry is conducted in accordance with university policy."
Jewish and Muslim advocates say the growing hate hurts the long-standing relationship the two communities have with one another.
On Wednesday, NYU announced the establishment of the NYU Center for the Study of Antisemitism. The center is expected to open in fall 2024.