The Trump administration on Monday sent letters to 60 colleges and universities — 10 of them in California — warning of “potential enforcement” against them, days after canceling $400 million in federal funding to Columbia University and accusing it of ignoring antisemitism allegations.
“We know there are more students at Columbia and other Universities across the Country who have engaged in pro-terrorist, antisemitic, anti-American activity,” Trump wrote in a social media post. “We will find, apprehend, and deport these terrorist sympathizers from our country — never to return again.”
Also Monday, UCLA announced a new campuswide initiative to combat antisemitism, with Chancellor Julio Frenk saying the university is at an “inflection point” that compels it to “end hate however it manifests itself.” UCLA was not among the California universities that received the Education Department letter, but it is under multiple federal investigations by the Trump administration into alleged anti-Jewish incidents.
Pro-Palestinian students, staff and faculty accused UCLA of prioritizing efforts to tackle antisemitism while avoiding equal focus on reports of racism and bias against Arab Americans, Palestinian Americans and Muslim Americans, saying the university was overreacting in fear of the Trump administration’s threats to cut funding. Roughly $1.1 billion of UCLA’s $11 billion budget comes from federal sources.
UCLA officials denied the allegation, saying the university is working to address all reports of discrimination and has been planning its antisemitism initiative since January, but was delayed by the Los Angeles fires, which briefly prompted classes to go online. UCLA has aided in recovery by allowing FEMA to use an expansive Westside property for a disaster recovery center.
U.S. universities, many roiled by protests last spring, are on alert as the Trump administration threatens to yank federal funding and crack down on campus demonstrations against Israel that erupted after the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas attack in southern Israel and the ensuing war in Gaza.
After immigration authorities over the weekend detained a Palestinian activist who helped lead antiwar protests at Columbia, Trump warned Monday that the man’s possible deportation was the first of “many to come.”
The detained activist, Mahmoud Khalil, is a lawful U.S. resident and was a Columbia student until December. He is accused of supporting Hamas, which the U.S. labels as a terrorist group. His lawyer said that he was legally protesting U.S. foreign policy and that his client is being used to make a political point against free speech.
A federal judge in New York City ordered Monday that Khalil not be deported while the court considered a legal challenge brought by his lawyers. A hearing is scheduled for Wednesday.
The detention has alarmed college administrators across the country, who faced criticism for calling riot police on student protesters last year and generally avoided pressing for criminal charges against pro-Palestinian activists. Demonstrators had called for campuses to divest from weapons companies or connections to Israel, including study abroad programs. Many foreign students, including those at UCLA and USC, took part in protests — although the numbers are not known.
At UCLA, the Dashew Center, a hub for international students, issued a warning this year during a webinar to avoid protest activities that could be deemed illegal. Similar warnings have been issued at USC.
On Tuesday, Students for Justice in Palestine and Graduate Students for Justice in Palestine — groups that were suspended last month at UCLA for protesting and vandalism at a regent’s home — plan to demonstrate on Royce Quad in Westwood.
“Hands off our students. No ICE [Immigration and Customs Enforcement] at UCLA,” social media ads for the demonstration said.
The UC system has a policy of complying with federal immigration regulations but not using its police to “undertake other joint efforts with federal, state or local law enforcement agencies, to investigate, detain or arrest individuals for violation of federal immigration law.”
California campuses respond to warning letter
The Department of Education letter on Monday singled out several California campuses for financial actions similar to those against Columbia. They included four UCs — San Diego, Santa Barbara, Berkeley and Davis — as well as USC, Pomona College, Stanford, Chapman University, Santa Monica College and Sacramento State.
A UC spokeswoman said the university system was “aware” of the letters from the Education Department’s Office of Civil Rights about antisemitism.
“We want to be clear: the University of California is unwavering in its commitment to combating antisemitism and protecting the civil rights of all our students, faculty, staff, and visitors,” said Senior Director of Strategic and Critical Communications Rachel Zaentz. “We continue to take specific steps to foster an environment free of antisemitism and other forms of discrimination and harassment for everyone in the university community.”
In a statement, USC said that it has “publicly and unequivocally denounced antisemitism in all its forms, and has taken strong actions to protect all of our students — including members of our Jewish community — from illegal discrimination of any kind. USC is proud to enroll one of the largest Jewish student bodies in the country. We look forward to responding to [the] Office for Civil Rights’ letter and sharing with them everything we have done to create a welcoming and non-discriminatory campus environment for all members of our community.”
Patricia Vest, a Pomona College spokeswoman, said it “will cooperate” with the federal investigation of its campus. “The college is firmly committed to assuring the right of all our students to a Pomona education, including taking every appropriate step to prevent antisemitism and all forms of shared ancestry discrimination and harassment,” Vest said.
A spokeswoman for Chapman University said in a statement that it was “fully committed to fostering an inclusive and supportive environment for all members of our campus community” and that “we stand by our record.”
Santa Monica College said that it had three open cases with the Education Department regarding antisemitism complaints since last year.
“We outlined in great detail the college’s full compliance with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act. We have not as yet received any determination from the Office of Civil Rights on any of these investigations,” the statement said.
Lanaya Lewis, a spokeswoman for Sacramento State, said it “stands in support of our Jewish community, and we reject antisemitism in all forms.”
Stanford did not respond to requests from The Times.
What UCLA is doing
At UCLA — where a vigilante group attacked encampment demonstrators last spring amid the failure of police to quickly stop the violence — the new initiative will build upon recommendations made in October by a task force on antisemitism and anti-Israel bias.
They include “enhancing relevant training and education, improving the complaint system, assuring enforcement of current and new laws and policies, and cooperating with stakeholders,” Frenk said in his announcement.
The effort is led by Stuart Gabriel, a distinguished professor of finance and Arden Realty chair at UCLA Anderson School of Management who chairs the Task Force to Combat Antisemitism and Anti-Israeli Bias.
Gabriel did not respond to a request for an interview.
Some of the newly announced UCLA efforts are similar to University of California agreements made in December to settle several civil rights complaints with the Department of Education. Those complaints centered on campuses in L.A., Santa Barbara, San Diego, Davis and Santa Cruz.
The allegations said UC campuses failed to respond promptly or effectively to the harassment of their students based on their actual or perceived national origin and that some of the UC campuses subjected these students to different treatment in regard to access to university programs, although the Education Department did not find every complaint to have enough evidence.
Frenk’s announcement Monday elicited praise from some members of UCLA’s Jewish community.
“Chancellor Frenk’s strong leadership inspires, in our community, a feeling of deep appreciation and hope for the future. We share his vision that UCLA will become a place where all students, faculty and staff can learn and express themselves without fear or discrimination,” said Dan Gold, who leads UCLA Hillel. “As we approach the Jewish holiday of Purim, our community remembers and celebrates the lessons of the holiday: that we are stronger united than when we are divided.”
But members of UCLA’s Task Force on Anti-Palestinian, Anti-Muslim, and Anti-Arab Racism, formed around the same time as the university’s antisemitism task force, said UCLA was not doing enough to address hatred against those communities.
“We all know why this is being announced today. We know UCLA is looking at Columbia. We know UCLA has already been scrutinized for something we all find ridiculous … not having a strong enough response [to protests] even though our students were among the most brutalized of all the peaceful protesters across the country,” said Gaye Johnson, an associate professor in the Department of Chicana/o and Central American Studies who is co-chair of the Task Force on Anti-Palestinian, Anti-Muslim, and Anti-Arab Racism.
Co-chair Sherene Razack, a distinguished professor and Penny Kanner endowed chair in women’s studies, pointed out that her group has published three reports on alleged racist and bias incidents against Arab American, Palestinian American and Muslim American students, staff and faculty at UCLA, including one in February, but has yet to meet with Frenk on the matters.
“Is there going to be a statement about our task force report? As there was today about this other task force report?” Razack asked.
The group is scheduled to have its first sit-down with the chancellor, via Zoom for 30 minutes, on Wednesday.
A UCLA representative said that Frenk planned future actions to address campus climate issues beyond antisemitism concerns, including anti-Palestinian, anti-Muslim and anti-Arab bias, later this year.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
