The Media Line: US DoE, Universities Settle Federal Anti-Arab and Antisemitic Harassment Suits

The US Department of Education announced a settlement with Johns Hopkins University on Wednesday following federal complaints of discrimination and harassment targeting individuals of Arab and Jewish ancestry on campus.

Under the settlement, the university will review its anti-harassment policies and provide training to staff and students to address discrimination based on ancestry and ethnicity. A spokesperson for Johns Hopkins confirmed the agreement, stating that “discrimination of any kind, including antisemitism and anti-Arab bias, is not only at odds with university policy, but is also antithetical to our most fundamental values.”

The settlement comes after the university received 99 complaints of harassment between October 2023 and May 2024, according to the Education Department’s Office for Civil Rights. Reports included allegations of professors using slurs against Arabs and Palestinians and students displaying antisemitic imagery during protests.

One incident reportedly involved a professor stating, “Those brutal Arabs will, God willing, pay a price like never before.” In another, a protester displayed a swastika while expressing support for Hamas.

The complaints arose amid heightened tensions on US campuses following Israel’s military campaign in Gaza after Hamas’ deadly October 7, 2023, attack. Rights groups have reported rising antisemitic, anti-Arab, and Islamophobic incidents during this period.

Johns Hopkins joins other universities, including the University of California and Rutgers, in settling similar complaints with the Education Department. Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibits racial discrimination in federally funded education programs.