U.S. Dept. of Education Announces Resolution of Antisemitism Complaints Against Brown

U.S. Dept. of Education Announces Resolution of Antisemitism Complaints Against Brown

In a 16-page letter to Brown University President Christine Paxson, the United States Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) outlined an agreed resolution to complaints of alleged harassment of students based on national origin (including shared Jewish, Palestinian, Arab, and/or Muslim ancestry).

The complaint was filed against Brown in December 2023, alleging Title VI violations.

According to the OCR, Brown “received some 75 reports of alleged antisemitic, anti-Palestinian, and anti-Muslim harassment against students from October 2023 through late March 2024. But [Brown] appears to have taken no or little action in response other than to acknowledge receipt of the reports, list support resources, and request to meet with the complainant, consistent with its policies then in effect. These reports include allegations of serious harm, including, for example: allegations that students pointed at a Jewish classmate’s Star of David jewelry and yelled ‘Zionist pig Jew;’ a Palestinian-American student’s roommate berated them about their Palestinian-American identity for weeks; and students blocked a Jewish classmate from attending a pro-Palestinian rally.

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In the announcement, the Department said OCR’s investigation confirmed that the university has taken notable proactive steps to support a nondiscriminatory campus environment, including updating its relevant policies and procedures in February 2024, providing university investigators with Title VI training specifically addressing shared ancestry discrimination in January 2024, and providing student and staff workshops on combating antisemitism and combating anti-Muslim hate in February and March 2024. However, OCR’s investigation also identified compliance concerns regarding the effectiveness of [Brown’s] response to notice of alleged shared ancestry discrimination that could contribute to or create a hostile environment for students.”

Further, the OCR announced on Monday that Brown had signed a resolution agreement that would effectively ensure the university’s compliance with Title VI’s requirement of nondiscrimination based on shared ancestry.

Investigation

During the investigation, Brown revised its practices to address a campus climate the university characterized as marked by anxiety, tension, and fear. The university reported organizing its updated practices around the following key priorities:

Protecting the safety of its community, in particular supporting the needs and safety of its students, faculty, and staff who are Israeli, Palestinian, Muslim, Jewish, have ties to the region, and are feeling impacted by current events.
Fostering welcoming, open, and respectful learning and living environments free of discrimination and harassment.
Providing care and empathy to affected members of the Brown community. And,
Taking the strongest possible stance against any form of discrimination and harassment including, but not limited to, antisemitism, anti-Muslim hate, or other unlawful discrimination based on actual or perceived shared ancestry or ethnic characteristics or citizenship or residency in a country with a dominant religion or distinct religious identity.

OCR determined that monitoring the university’s fulfillment of these key priorities through the following resolution agreement terms will effectively ensure the university’s compliance with Title VI’s prohibition on discrimination based on shared ancestry:

Further revising its policies and procedures to ensure all university offices consistently and effectively comply with Title VI, including with respect to protests and demonstrations.

Conducting annual training on nondiscrimination and harassment for all students and employees.

Maintaining records related to complaints or reports of discrimination under Title VI.

Conducting a review of the university’s response to complaints and reports of antisemitic and other shared ancestry discrimination during the 2023-2024 and 2024-2025 academic years, and taking remedial actions if required. And,

Analyzing the results of, and creating an action plan in response to, climate survey(s) and/or other review(s) focused on shared ancestry discrimination.