Walberg & Stefanik Lead Colleagues Outlining Concerns in Harvard's Antisemitism Task Force Report

Washington, D.C. -- Reps. Tim Walberg (MI-05) and Elise Stefanik (NY-21) led 26 colleagues in sending a letter to Harvard University Interim President Alan Garber criticizing the inadequacies of the findings of the Antisemitism Task Force Report and calling for an end to their relationship with Birzeit University.

In their letter, the lawmakers wrote: "The task force gave insufficient attention to Harvard's failures in imposing discipline for antisemitic misconduct and left numerous other significant issues wholly unaddressed, including academic programs that have become hotbeds of antisemitism and delegitimization of Israel; Harvard student organizations' repeated violations of University rules while engaging in antisemitic conduct; the failure by Harvard's Office of Equity, Diversity, Inclusion, and Belonging to support Harvard's Jewish community and address antisemitism; dramatic declines in Jewish enrollment; a lack of viewpoint diversity on issues related to the Middle East and more broadly; the need to address masked protest; and the need to examine potential foreign malign influence."

The lawmakers also criticized Harvard's relationship with Birzeit University; they wrote: "We find Harvard's relationship with Birzeit University, whose student government openly supports Hamas, and names buildings after convicted terrorists, to be extremely concerning. The university also has had a policy of barring Israeli Jews from campus. Shockingly, following the October 7 attack, Birzeit University posted, "Glory for martyrs, recovery for wounded ones, and freedom for the captives." This type of behavior stands in direct opposition to the values Harvard claims to uphold."

The full letter can be read here.