The U.S. Department of Justice announced Wednesday that it had begun a civil rights investigation into anti-Semitism allegations at the University of California, saying its lawyers believe there is a “potential pattern” of discrimination against Jewish employees in the state’s flagship higher education system.
The department said in a statement that the investigation will determine whether UC “is a model or practice that discriminates against its professors, faculty and other employees on a basis of race, religion and nationality.”
Hamas’ reports of Israel and Israel’s war in Gaza have attacked the anti-Semitism system since October 7, 2023. The department’s decision did not cite specific events on the UC campus, and has not yet been picked out of the campus except for a brief mention of UCLA.
UC officials were unable to comment immediately.
“This Justice Department will always defend Jews, protect civil rights, and use our resources to eliminate institutional anti-Semitism in our national universities,” General Pamela Bundy said in a statement.
Acting Deputy Attorney General and Chief of Staff of the Division, Chad Mizelle, in the statement, cited “the disturbing rise of anti-Semitism in educational institutions across California and across the country.”
The department said it will work with the Employment Opportunity Commission and the Federal Task Force to combat anti-Semitism research from the multi-agency group that was formed last month.
Leo Terrill, a senior attorney for the Department of Justice’s civil rights division, said in a statement after O.CT. 7 Landscapes lead to “an outbreak of anti-Semitic events in the leading higher education institutions in the United States, including my own alma mater on the UCLA campus.”
“The impact on UC students has been the subject of media attention and multiple federal investigations. But these campuses are also workplaces where Jewish faculty and staff should have a working environment without anti-Semitic hostility and hatred,” Trier said.
This story is developing and will be updated.
