RALEIGH — A Title VI complaint over antisemitism on the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill campus has been filed with the U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Civil Rights.
The complaint, filed by David Weisberg, a Jewish American attorney, alleges UNC Chapel Hill has “unlawfully discriminated against Jewish students based on actual or perceived shared ancestry or ethnic characteristics in violation of Title VI,” and that the school has breached a prior resolution reached in 2019 with the Office of Civil Rights (OCR).
Allegations contained in the complaint point to recent incidents at UNC involving both in-classroom and outside-the-classroom violations of Title VI and the 2019 resolution agreement.
Specific examples include Assistant Professor E. Chebrolu, from the UNC Communications Department, who made alleged antisemitic comments about Israel during a class on Oct. 17, 2023, and made similar statements on Oct. 31. The complaint contends Chebrolu’s statements were unrelated to any valid educational goals.
Additionally, an event on social justice in Palestine, hosted by the UNC Center for Middle East and Islamic Studies and other departments on Nov. 28, 2023, featured Dr. Rania Masri, who referred to Zionism as a “cancer” and called for its eradication. None of the speakers expressed support for Israel.
“Oct. 7 for many of us from the region was a beautiful day,” Masri is also quoted as stating “It was the day in which we saw that, we saw our brothers, we saw our fathers, we saw men break out of a concentration camp.”
Weisberg’s complaint also references petitions and letters regarding the Nov. 28 event.
Signed onto by over 200 colleagues, Goodwin Distinguished Professor at UNC Family Medicine Dr. Adam Goldstein, published a letter standing against the antisemitism on display in a Nov. 28 event on campus that glorified the Oct. 7 Hamas terrorists.
The letter urges UNC to provide “a safe environment for all members of the UNC community.”
Over 6,500 have signed a petition titled, ”Protect Jewish Students: Demand UNC Stop Antisemitism Now,” which is addressed to UNC Chapel Hill’s outgoing Chancellor Guskiewicz. The petition stresses that UNC Chapel Hill UNC “must act to fulfill its obligations under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to protect students, faculty, and staff from discrimination based on ethnicity or nationality.”
The petition also called out the inaction of school officials.
“Numerous students, parents, and faculty have approached UNC expressing their concerns about the hostile campus environment for Jews,” the petition reads in part. “Yet, by taking effectively no action while citing “free speech” and “institutional neutrality,” UNC is sending a clear message that eliminationist rhetoric and antisemitic statements are, regrettably, tolerated on campus. SJP has put UNC on notice regarding their affiliation and endorsement of violence.”
As of a letter dated Dec.22, OCR has agreed to open an investigation into the claims of “Whether the University [UNC Chapel-Hill] responded to alleged harassment of students based on national origin (shared Jewish ancestry) in a manner consistent with the requirements of Title VI.”
