Brandeis Center
January 21, 2025 · freespeechproject.georgetown.edu ↗
Policy now maps certain Israel-criticism tropes onto the same track as racial harassment.
Why It’s Conflation
Harvard settled two lawsuits by agreeing to use the IHRA definition in its discrimination rules. One IHRA example is calling the existence of Israel "a racist endeavor." That’s a harsh opinion about a country. Under the new rules, saying it can be treated as discrimination against Jewish students.
What Actually Happened
Harvard, settling lawsuits, agreed to adopt the IHRA definition in antidiscrimination policy, including examples that treat denying Jewish self-determination / "racist endeavor" as antisemitic.