House committee claims Mayor Biss put Jewish students at risk

Allegations Against Evanston Mayor Regarding Jewish Student Safety

The mayor of Evanston, Illinois, is facing accusations of “endangering” Jewish students at Northwestern University, based on documents acquired by the House Education and Labor Committee. On Wednesday, Tim Wahlberg, the committee’s chair from Michigan, sent a letter to Mayor Daniel Biss, urging him to respond to claims that he didn’t act regarding anti-Israel demonstrations during the recent Gaza conflict.

“This meeting will help the committee evaluate if there’s a need for legislative changes, potentially to address anti-Semitic discrimination specifically,” Wahlberg stated in his correspondence. The letter references Biss’s alleged refusal to dismantle a protest encampment at Northwestern.

In his letter, Wahlberg expressed serious concerns over Biss’s lack of action to safeguard Jewish students, particularly by withholding necessary police support to dismantle a hostile encampment in April 2024. He pointed out that Biss referred to the protesters as “peaceful,” despite signs of anti-Semitic harassment and various assault incidents at the site.

Protests erupted at Northwestern, similar to many campuses across the U.S., following the Hamas attack in Israel on October 7, 2023.

Notably, the encampment lasted four days in April 2024 and marked a rare agreement reached between demonstrators and the university. Following a federal investigation, the Trump administration disclosed an agreement requiring Northwestern University to pay $75 million and ensure protection for its Jewish students and staff from hostile conditions.

The Secretary of Education, Linda McMahon, described the agreement with Northwestern as a “major victory” for the university community and American higher education as a whole.

The university is among Evanston’s largest employers, with a staff and faculty count exceeding 6,500. Wahlberg called out the university’s trustees, who criticized Biss for allegedly avoiding action against the encampments to cater to progressive support. He noted that when authorities attempted to detain some protesters, a lack of police presence—due to the mayor’s inaction—made it difficult to proceed safely.

Wahlberg’s letter indicated that Biss had publicly expressed a reluctance to support the campus, aiming to enhance his progressive image. He quoted a trustee advising then-President of Northwestern that if circumstances grew unfavorable, Biss would simply “throw you under the bus.”

With ongoing demonstrations against Israel ongoing, Wahlberg emphasized the necessity for Biss to coordinate with local law enforcement in preventing anti-Semitic activity on campus.