Get the latest Syracuse news delivered right to your inbox.
Subscribe to our newsletter here.

I woke up on a cold Monday morning ready for my first day of the spring semester at Syracuse University. The wind bit at my face as I moved outside, the kind of sharp chill only central New York delivers. The scent of fresh coffee and toasted bagels filled the air as students huddled over their breakfasts at Goldstein Student Center, still shaking off the morning frost.

I caught the South Campus bus, gripping the icy metal pole as it lurched forward, sensing an air of optimism about classes starting fresh. Stepping off, I braced myself and walked toward my first class, the crunch of salt and snow beneath my boots grounding me in the possibilities of a new term.

For most students, the first day of college is a moment of excitement. But for Jewish students at Columbia University this year, that sense of anticipation was shattered mere moments into a specific lecture on the history of modern Israel.

A group of masked students flooded into the room, their movements swift and deliberate. They distributed flyers emblazoned with the image of a boot crushing the Star of David — a symbol not simply of opposition to Israel, but of open hostility toward Jews themselves.

The protesters’ message was not an invitation for discussion. Rather, it was an unmistakable attempt at intimidation and a blatant display of antisemitism intended to isolate and silence Jewish students and faculty. The classroom, meant to be a sanctuary for learning, was turned into a battleground of hostility and fear.

Columbia responded by suspending the students involved, a swift disciplinary action that suggests a commitment to accountability. But the reality remains — this incident is not just about a single act of harassment. It is a symptom of a deeper systemic issue. Suspension may serve as a consequence, but it doesn’t address the underlying environment that allowed such an act to occur in the first place. The fact that this happened at all concerns me deeply.

A few students gathered their belongings and left, unwilling to endure the overt harassment. The mob succeeded — not by implementing change, but by creating an environment of exclusion.

This wasn’t an isolated incident, symbolizing a growing trend of antisemitic behavior on college campuses. At Harvard, student groups circulated a letter blaming Israel entirely for the Oct. 7 attacks, creating an environment where Jewish students faced doxxing and harassment.

At SU, multiple instances of antisemitic graffiti have been reported on campus, including swastikas and other hateful symbols defacing campus property. In November 2023, more than 200 protesters participated in a “Shut It Down for Palestine” event on campus. During the protest, one speaker criticized the university for allowing Hillel and Athletes for Israel to hold events in support of Israel and named other Jewish organizations who co-sponsored the events as being “complicit,” accusing them of “directly promot(ing) the ethnic cleansing of Gaza.”

Consistently, universities have allowed activists to dictate what can and can’t be said in classrooms, failing their Jewish students by refusing to enforce the same standards of discipline that apply in other cases of harassment.

Such refusal reflects a dangerous double standard. Universities often position themselves as champions of diversity and inclusion, yet when faced with blatant discrimination, choose to look the other way. This hypocrisy emboldens those who seek to harass and oppress, sending a clear message that Jewish students don’t receive the same protections as others on campus.

There is no justification for what occurred in that classroom at Columbia. The American protection of free speech doesn’t extend to the disruption of an academic setting, nor does it allow for acts of terror. Universities must recognize that their reluctance to rapidly enforce consequences for such actions sets a dangerous precedent — one that risks legitimizing future harassment under the guise of activism.

Students deserve to learn without anxiety of being targeted. When institutions fail to address these violations, they create an atmosphere where such behavior is tacitly condoned.

Students who choose to engage in true activism should do so without infringing on the rights of others. There is a fundamental difference between advocating for Palestinian rights and storming a classroom to intimidate Jewish students.

Universities must draw a clear line that disruption of education and incitement of hatred will not be tolerated. The right to education shouldn’t be compromised by those who impose their beliefs through coercion and fear mongering.

When academic spaces are disrupted, the institution itself is weakened and the very mission of higher education is called into question.

This places American colleges at a crossroads. This isn’t a matter of silencing political opinions, but instead ensuring that hate speech doesn’t find a home within academic settings. If a group storms a classroom to promote hatred again, there must be swift and genuine consequences.

Academic institutions are places where students deserve to engage in challenging discussions, not where they must endure subjugation. Universities nationwide must rise to the occasion considering the conflict between Israel and Hamas. They must set clear standards and ensure that education remains a space free from alarm and distress. The time for complacency is over.

Universities must enforce their own policies and protect their classrooms, or risk sending the message that intimidation and harassment are permissible forms of expression. Beyond these principle solutions, they must stop normalizing tolerance in the place of acceptance. It’s not enough to speak for unity — they must actively demand and uphold it.

Max Lancer is a junior majoring in chemistry, biochemistry and mathematics. His column appears weekly. He can be reached at mlancer@syr.edu.

Published on January 29, 2025 at 11:09 pm