The headquarters of the Department of Education on March 12, 2025, in Washington, D.C. Credit: Win McNamee/Getty Images via TNS
Ohio State is under investigation by the federal government for antisemitism and harassment on campus, along with 59 other universities nationwide.
The U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Civil Rights sent letters to 60 universities March 10, warning them of potential “enforcement action” if they do not fulfill their obligation to protect Jewish students, according to a press release from the same day.
The press release states letters were sent to universities under investigation for Title VI violations relating to antisemitic harassment and discrimination. Title VI of the Civil Rights Act “prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, and national origin in programs and activities receiving federal financial assistance,” according to the U.S. Department of Justice.
Chris Booker, a university spokesperson, said in an email the university would take “all action possible” against antisemitic harassment on university grounds.
“Ohio State strongly condemns antisemitism and has no tolerance for acts of hatred or violence,” Booker said. “We will pursue all action possible against anyone committing hate crimes on or near our campus.”
Gabby Sloane, a fourth-year in neuroscience and president of OSU Chabad, an on-campus Jewish student center, said she felt surprised but pleased when she learned about the letter.
“I think that so many people in the Jewish community, especially at Ohio State, have been fighting and waiting for somebody to do something about the antisemitism on campus,” Sloane said. “The fact that there’s actually kind of something that came from a higher level was surprising, but also pleasing at the same time.”
Tal Shutkin, a Ph.D. student in geography and member of Jews for Justice in Palestine, said he felt suspicious of the investigation.
“This kind of investigation, for myself and to many of us, we often feel the Trump administration is weaponizing anxieties about antisemitism in order to push a certain agenda, which, in the long run, hurts Jews as well as all minorities in the United States,” Shutkin said.
Nathaniel Grossman, director of external communications for OSU Hillel, said in an email the organization works closely with the university and plans to continue partnering with Ohio State to help Jewish students feel safer on campus.
“We believe that everyone has a critical role to play in countering antisemitism and ensuring Jewish life on OSU’s campus is strong and vibrant,” Grossman said.
Sloane said Chabad has also worked with Ohio State to address issues faced by the Jewish Buckeye community, but said the university’s “hands are tied.”
“Myself and others have been working with the school administration over the past year, and we’ve been trying to get certain issues addressed with the school that we have felt are antisemitic,” Sloane said. “The school kind of has said that their hands are tied and that there’s not anything they can do, as it doesn’t violate any of their rules that they have in place.”
Sloane said she and others have attempted to create a policy that removes chalk messages on the sidewalk if they are perceived as invoking violence against Jewish students. However, because the messages usually do not target a specific person, Sloane said Ohio State can’t take action.
One message Sloane saw had arrows pointing to two statements: “Free Palestine” and “End Zionism.” In between the arrows read, “I love Hamas,” with a heart symbol replacing the word “love.”
“If someone sees chalking that they believe is discriminatory, harassing or is otherwise concerning to them, they can and should provide a report to the Civil Rights Compliance Office (CRCO),” Booker said. “Reports can be anonymous. As part of its established process, every report is evaluated by CRCO and the university removes chalking where appropriate.”
The chalk message described by Sloane was confirmed in a photo obtained by The Lantern.
“When it’s a lot warmer, there’s a lot of talking that goes around on campus, and a lot of messages are directed at certain school administration, or the messages invoke violence against Jewish students,” Sloane said.
Sloane also said she consistently feels unsafe walking around campus, causing her to feel more vulnerable about outwardly expressing her Jewish identity.
“Am I going to be accepted walking around campus with my Star of David necklace out of my shirt?” Sloane said.
Shutkin said he has also felt fearful as a Jewish student, referencing the unease he experienced when white supremacist organizations marched around Columbus in April 2024. He said he specifically remembers “Blood Oath,” a white supremacist and neo-Nazi group, marching outside a drag brunch fundraiser.
“If you’re waving a swastika flag, even without waving it at Jews, it’s an antisemetic act,” Shutkin said.
Sloane said one instance in which she has felt threatened was during the Jan. 28 protests outside of Schottenstein Chabad House and the OSU Hillel building.
The protest saw roughly 60 attendees gather outside of the Schottenstein Chabad House — located at 1196 Iuka Ave. — during an event that hosted two former Israeli Defense Force soldiers. Outside, protesters chanted, “We demand liberation from the zionist occupation” and “There are war criminals in this building,” per prior Lantern reporting.
“Being a Jewish student who attends both those places, especially being a leader and representative of Chabad, and seeing people not feel safe leaving events because of what people are screaming at us for being Jewish, that doesn’t sit well — having the school not have an adequate response to that,” Sloane said. “That should be a reason for a federal investigation.”
Shutkin said he believes there is “a lot of cognitive dissonance going on inside the Jewish community.”
“There is a difference between feeling uncomfortable and being victims of a hate crime,” Shutkin said. “I really think that those feelings of discomfort are being exploited to basically make Jews the face of some really dangerous politics, and that’s really dangerous for Jews.”
As the investigation into antisemitism and harassment is ongoing, Sloane said she believes the university hosting more Jewish-centered events would help create a safer environment for the community.
“Overall, bringing more Jewish events onto campus, hosting them on campus and showing that OSU and its organizations through OSU, that there is a safe space for the Jewish community,” Sloane said. “I think that would even just bring a better environment for the Jewish students.”
Shutkin said he would feel safer if Ohio State adopted the Jerusalem Declaration of Antisemitism’s definition of antisemitism. The declaration was created by a group of scholars who aimed to clearly define what constitutes antisemitism, according to its website.
These scholars ultimately identified antisemitism as “discrimination, prejudice, hostility or violence against Jews as Jews,” according to the declaration’s website.
“I think Ohio State could adopt that, and that would actually go a really, really long way because when people hear ‘antisemitism’ now, they don’t take it seriously,” Shutkin said. “Everybody knows that word doesn’t actually mean hate towards Jews; it means cracking down on the free speech of Palestinians. That’s really bad because there is a lot of hate towards Jews, and so we need to have a clear definition that’s honest and that can actually be respected by the broader population.”
Booker said the university has adopted the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance definition of antisemitism, which defines antisemitism as a “certain perception of Jews, which may be expressed as hatred toward Jews. Rhetorical and physical manifestations of antisemitism are directed toward Jewish or non-Jewish individuals and/or their property, toward Jewish community institutions and religious facilities.”
This article was updated March 21 at 11:04 a.m. to add comments from Booker on Ohio State’s chalking policy and the university’s adopted definition of antisemitism. The location of the Chabad House was also corrected.
