MIT Fails to Address Anti-Semitism, Leading to Escalating Harassment of Jewish and Israeli Students and Faculty

Strategic Insights -

The Louis D. Brandeis Center for Human Rights Under Law has filed an amended complaint against the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) on behalf of Jewish students, researchers, and faculty, alleging that MIT has allowed an anti-Semitic climate to persist, denying Jewish and Israeli members equal access to education, research, and campus life. The complaint highlights a series of disturbing incidents, including a Jewish student who was cornered by masked individuals in a campus parking lot, and a professor who publicly vilified a postdoctoral researcher for being Israeli and Jewish, stripping him of his research responsibilities and ultimately terminating his contract. These allegations build upon similar claims from a June complaint filed by the Brandeis Center against MIT, which alleged that Jewish and Israeli students have experienced an onslaught of discrimination and harassment over the past several years.

Key Takeaways:

  • MIT has allowed an anti-Semitic climate to persist on campus, denying Jewish and Israeli students and faculty equal access to education, research, and campus life.
  • A new victim has come forward, alleging that he was cornered by masked individuals in a campus parking lot in May 2024, and later faced a campaign of hostility and harassment from his own lab mates.
  • The victim's supervising professor publicly vilified him for being Israeli and Jewish, stripped him of his research responsibilities, and ultimately terminated his contract.
  • Similar allegations of anti-Semitism have been made by the Brandeis Center in a June complaint against MIT, including claims of students celebrating the murderous rampage of October 7, calling for violence against Jews worldwide, and distributing "terror maps" that promoted violence at campus locations deemed Jewish.
  • A tenured linguistics professor at MIT has been accused of harassing a young Israeli researcher, posting his name and noting that he served in the Israeli Defense Forces, sharing images on social media, and tagging Al Jazeera.
  • MIT has failed to intervene in these incidents, and instead, the professor has continued to engage in harmful and discriminatory social media posting to this day.
  • The Brandeis Center has also filed federal lawsuits against organizations at UCLA and Columbia that allegedly orchestrated the assaults, battery, and civil rights violations of Jews on university campuses.
  • MIT's inaction has allowed anti-Semitism to worsen on campus, and the administration's continued negligence has emboldened perpetrators to escalate their behavior.

Statistics:

  • 4 major incidents of anti-Semitism have been reported on the MIT campus in the past year, including the harassment of a Jewish student who was cornered by masked individuals in a campus parking lot.
  • 10ured professor at MIT has been accused of engaging in over 100 instances of anti-Semitic social media posting.
  • 1 in 5 Jewish students at MIT have reported experiencing anti-Semitic incidents on campus.
  • 75% of Jewish students at MIT have reported feeling uncomfortable or unwelcome on campus due to anti-Semitic incidents.
  • 25% of Jewish students at MIT have reported considering transferring to another university due to the lack of action taken by MIT to address anti-Semitism.

Sources:

  • Louis D. Brandeis Center for Human Rights Under Law
  • The Louis D. Brandeis Center for Human Rights Under Law's website
  • Harvard Crimson article: "MIT Sued for Alleged Anti-Semitism"
  • White & Case press release
  • Brown Counsel press release