Laws protect Jewish individuals from antisemitic harassment on campuses, Attorney General Todd Rokita states in advisory opinion

At a time of unprecedented antisemitism across the United States, Attorney General Todd Rokita makes clear in an advisory opinion that laws protect Jewish individuals from many forms of antisemitic harassment in educational settings. 

In the three months following the Oct. 7, 2023, massacre in Israel, the Anti-Defamation League recorded 3,291 antisemitic incidents across the United States — a level unprecedented during any previous three-month period over the last decade and a 361 percent increase compared to the same period the previous year. On university campuses in particular, antisemitic incidents have recently increased again as colleges resume classes for the fall semester. 

“Antisemitism is an evil that spreads beyond the confines of college campuses into the fabric of general society,” Attorney General Rokita said. “We must deal with this ugliness wherever it arises.” 

Attorney General Rokita issued the advisory opinion in response to inquiries from Rep. Craig Haggard, R-Mooresville. 

“Before we can take additional steps to protect our Jewish students and all Hoosiers,” Rep. Haggard said, “it is vitally important to start with the facts. I want to thank the Attorney General for his opinion and support of the Jewish community.” 

Although often veiled in the guise of support for Palestinian innocents, the words and actions directed against Jewish people have all too often crossed the line from legitimate expressions of opinion into something far more sinister — harassment, threats and intimidation that endanger Jewish people’s safety and in fact violate the law.  

“The Indiana Code and various federal civil rights laws prohibit discriminatory conduct based on one’s religion, shared ancestry, or ethnic characteristics in, among other places, educational settings,” the advisory opinion states. “Those laws apply to Jewish individuals as much as they do other protected classes.” 

In particular, the advisory opinion cites Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Indiana Civil Rights Act (Ind. Code art. 22-9). 

“Many of these laws impose affirmative obligations on educators at the university and K-12 levels to combat antisemitism when it arises,” the opinion further states. “In particular, educators may in many cases be required to take affirmative steps to end harassment, intimidation, and violence against Jewish individuals in the educators’ schools and on their campuses.” 

Read the advisory opinion in its entirety here.