A powerful Congressional committee on Friday accused the Massachusetts Institute of Technology of a systematic “failure to protect Jewish students,” including anti-Semitic incidents on the anniversary of Kristallnacht.
The Republican-led House Education and Labor Committee has expressed “grave concerns” about how Ivy League universities have dealt with anti-Semitism since the Oct. 7 massacre of hundreds of Israelis by Hamas terrorists. , demanded the production of evidence of the act.
It demanded that MIT President Sally Kornbluth and MIT Corporation Chairman Mark Gorenberg be subpoenaed if they did not produce a number of documents by March 22nd.
The move comes as part of an investigation that began after damning testimony about anti-Semitism by Kornbluth, then-Harvard University President Claudine Gay, and then-University of Pennsylvania President Elizabeth McGill. This was done after subpoenaing records related to dealing with Semitism.
All three presidents did not condemn calls to kill Jews in schools, saying it depends on the “situation.” Mr. McGill resigned shortly after his appearance, and Mr. Gay resigned in January amid mounting allegations of plagiarism, leaving MIT’s Mr. Kornbluth as the sole survivor.
A 12-page letter from the committee’s chair, Congresswoman Virginia Foxx, stated that 73% of Jewish students “feel uncomfortable on MIT’s campus being publicly Jewish, Israeli, or pro-Israel.” MIT was warned that the
On November 9, 2023, the anniversary of Kristallnacht, the CAA banned students from attending classes. MIT’s response was to warn Jewish students to avoid interacting with protesters for their own “physical safety and well-being,” the letter said.
The campus group Coalition Against Apartheid also found that “in the course of conducting anti-Israel demonstrations, they disrupted classes, harassed Jewish students, incited violence, and violated other MIT rules.” .
It also said 59% of Jewish students said they had experienced some form of hatred since the Oct. 7 Hamas terrorist attack in Israel.
When Jewish teachers tried to take action, they were not taken seriously, the letter said. An advisory group of Jewish faculty set up to combat anti-Semitism has been disbanded after the school announced a series of lectures featuring anti-Semitic speakers.
“Massachusetts Institute of Technology has invited Dalia Mogahed, who has supported Hamas’s terrorist attacks in Israel, to give a lecture on Islamophobia,” the letter reads.
Fox condemns MIT leaders who praised Kornbluth after his disastrous appearance in Congress. “Despite widespread public criticism of Dr. Kornbluth’s testimony, the MIT Corporation continues to support Dr. Kornbluth’s efforts to lead our community, including in addressing anti-Semitism, Islam, and other forms of hate. He has done a great job with the project,” he wrote, announcing his support.
These include police records and disciplinary memos, as well as communications related to funding anti-Israel groups on campus, according to a March 8 letter from North Carolina Rep. Virginia Foxx, who chairs the committee. It is also included.
The Post has reached out to MIT for comment.
