Report: Overhaul of CUNY policies needed to address antisemitism

Policies at CUNY schools aimed at fighting bias and discrimination must be "overhauled" to better protect Jewish students, according to a report released Tuesday on antisemitism throughout the New York City college system.

The report, done by former state Chief Judge Jonathan Lippman and commissioned by Gov. Kathy Hochul, analyzed several alleged antisemitic acts on CUNY campuses last year, including hateful speech and rhetoric directed at students during protests and demonstrations over the Israel-Hamas war.

"While my mandate was not to opine on whether specific past conduct at CUNY constituted antisemitism," Lippman wrote in his 146-page report, "I feel compelled to note that recently there has been an alarming number of unacceptable antisemitic incidents targeting members of the CUNY community."

Overhaul needed

Lippman wrote that "CUNY’s current policies and procedures for preventing and addressing antisemitism and discrimination need to be significantly overhauled and updated in order to handle the levels of antisemitism and discrimination that exist on CUNY’s campuses today."

Lippman compiled a 10-month review of CUNY’s procedures based on more than 200 interviews and meetings with over 300 people, including students and staff from what the report described as diverse and wide-ranging backgrounds.

CUNY includes more than 10,000 students from Long Island enrolled at the 25 campuses in New York City's five boroughs, CUNY officials said. Overall, more than 230,000 students attend CUNY schools.

The report was commissioned after a series of antisemitic incidents both before and after the Oct. 7 attacks by Hamas in Israel. The attacks led to the deaths of nearly 1,200 people and the kidnapping of 250 hostages, according to the Israeli government. About 101 hostages are still being held captive while 35 hostages are believed to be dead.

Following the attacks, counterstrikes by Israel have led to the deaths of more than 41,467 Palestinians, according to the Health Ministry in Gaza.

Attitudes and perspectives

Lippman’s review looked at attitudes and perspectives of antisemitism on various CUNY campuses, university policies, procedures and systems of investigating antisemitism complaints. Lippmann said he expanded the scope of his report to address "antisemitism, Islamophobia, or hate of any kind."

Among the recommendations:

• Creating a universitywide center to address antisemitism and other forms of hate and instituting an internal antisemitism and hate monitor.
• Overhaul CUNY’s discrimination reporting portal for complaints of antisemitism and discrimination, as well as creating a victim’s advocate program.
• Help victims of antisemitism and discrimination navigate the investigative process and identify available resources by establishing a centralized victim's advocate program.
• Work with law enforcement to create safety protocols and improve safety on CUNY campuses and hold students and faculty accountable for violating university policies.  
• Place a significant focus on the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance definition of antisemitism. That definition covers certain criticisms of Israel. 
• Draft and adopt a comprehensive policy on "freedom of speech and expressive conduct," including rules for time, place and manner of "expressive conduct on campuses, consistent with the First Amendment."
• Promote dialogue among people holding different viewpoints and create additional joint programming.

"My expectation is that CUNY will enact these recommendations, and they have already taken initial steps to address the judge’s findings," Hochul said in a statement.  "I encourage every college and university in New York State to review Judge Lippman’s recommendations as a guide to help ensure that their campus community is a welcoming and safe place for people of every faith and background." 

Support for report

Several Jewish leaders, along with Mayor Eric Adams and CUNY Chancellor Felix V. Matos Rodriguez, praised the findings and recommendations.

"Amid a rising tide of antisemitism nationwide, CUNY has already taken critical steps to combat hate and discrimination," Matos Rodriguez said. "Recognizing there is always more to do, we look forward to working on implementing Judge Lippman's recommendations to redouble our efforts and build on our progress to create a more inclusive campus environment for students, faculty and staff."

CUNY’s Professional Staff Congress, an employee union representing 30,000 faculty and staff, agreed with the recommendations and noted that the university system needed to address antisemitism while also protecting free speech.

 "Students, faculty, and staff have a right to feel safe, welcome and respected at CUNY, regardless of their religion or ethnicity," the union said in a statement. "A public college campus that values honest academic discussion must protect safety, but cannot seek to guarantee an education free of uncomfortable ideas or to stifle students’ and employees’ rights of freedom of speech and assembly on campus. We are all here to be challenged and to develop through our interactions with others who do not share our backgrounds or opinions."

— With Matthew Chayes and AP

By John Asbury

john.asbury@newsday.comJohnAsbury

John Asbury is a breaking news and general assignment reporter. He has been with Newsday since 2014 and previously worked at The Press-Enterprise in Riverside, California.