White House and NY Governor Condemn Antisemitic Protests on College Campuses

By Hamodia Staff

White House press secretary Andrew Bates condemned the blatant antisemitic rhetoric and intimidation occurring on college campuses in the past few days.

“While every American has the right to peaceful protest, calls for violence and physical intimidation targeting Jewish students and the Jewish community are blatantly antisemitic, unconscionable and dangerous – they have absolutely no place on any college campus or anywhere in the United States of America,” White House deputy press secretary Andrew Bates said. “And echoing the rhetoric of terrorist organizations, especially in the wake of the worst massacre committed against the Jewish people since the Holocaust, is despicable. We condemn these statements in the strongest terms.”

While the statement did not specifically mention the calls for violence at the recent days of protest at Columbia University, many understood the statement to be directed at the demonstrations which have dominated the campus over the past few days.

New York State Governor Kathy Hochul added her own condemnation, specifying the recent events at Columbia University.

“The First Amendment protects the right to protest, but students also have a right to learn in an environment free from harassment or violence,” she said. “At Columbia or on any campus, threatening Jewish students with violence or glorifying the terror of October 7 is antisemitism.”