Washington —
The Trump administration announced on Tuesday it determined George Washington University had discriminated against federal civil rights law for Jewish, American Israeli, and Israeli students and employees and will seek "immediate remediation" from the university.
In a statement, the U.S. Department of Justice indicated GWU was "deliberately indifferent to the hostile educational environment for Jewish, American-Israeli, and Israeli students and faculty" when they were confronted with pro-Palestinian demonstrators in April and May 2024. Representatives for the Washington, D.C.-based university were not available to comment immediately.
In a letter to university President Ellen Granberg on Tuesday, Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon wrote that the Justice Department discovered members of the university community participating in "antisemitic, disruptive protests," including by creating an encampment at University Yard. Dhillon wrote that these were actions intended to "frighten, intimidate, and deny" Jewish, Israeli, and American Israeli students access to the university community.
“GWU’s department found that, despite being clearly aware of the abuses happening on campus, the university was deliberately indifferent to the complaints, the misconduct, and the harm that was caused,” Dhillon’s letter stated.
Dhillon stated the Justice Department is planning on going ahead with enforcement, but is giving the university a chance to settle the issue voluntarily through a resolution agreement. The university has until August 22 to state if it has "interest in such a dialog," the letter said.
George Washington is the newest university to be targeted by the Trump administration, which has made its intentions known to cut federal funding for universities for pro-Palestinian demonstrations against U.S. ally Israel's war in Gaza.
Protesters, including some Jewish groups, claim that the Trump administration incorrectly equates their opposition to Israel's military attacks in Gaza and its occupation of Palestinian land with antisemitism, and support for Palestinian rights as support for extremism.
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