UC Davis Makes Top 25 List of Most Antisemitic Colleges in 2024

It is quite a dubious distinction.

The  non-profit advocacy group Stop Anti-Semitism has named the University of California at Davis as one of the most anti-Semitic schools in the country in a report card it issued on 25 schools nationwide based on how they treat Jewish students.

UC Davis beat out such stalwarts as Columbia University, the lodestar of pro-Hamas protests, and UCLA, where this Spring Hamasniks  blocked Jewish student access to parts of campus.

In fact, UC Davis is the only California school on the Stop Anti-Semitism report card.

UC Davis got a big fat “F.”

The report card pointed to a number of viciously anti-Semitic professors at the school and a federal investigation over anti-Semitism there, as well as an overwhelming majority of its Jewish students feeling unsafe.

The group’s report, issued this week and titled “Anti-Semitism and College Campuses,”  says that its “updated assessments and grades for 25 higher education institutions across the nation—evaluated in the wake of the 10/7 massacre—highlight the rapidly evolving crisis of antisemitism on U.S. campuses. We hope this report will serve as an indispensable resource for parents who are concerned about the safety and well-being of their children as they consider higher education.”

The report found entrenched anti-Semitism at schools nationwide and said administrators allow it to flourish. The survey ranked schools according to four categories: protection, allyship identity and policy.

Protection was defined as “How do the schools report antisemitic incidents? Is there willingness to work with Jewish advocacy groups? How do college administrators react after an incident occurs?”

The metric for allyship was ”Does the college speak out against antisemitism? Are Jews included in the schoolʼs DEI policies? Is there a DEI-sanctioned Jewish affinity group on campus?”

Identity was whether “Jewish students feel safe at their school? Do Jewish students feel the need to hide their identity on campus? Do Jewish students feel that they are being held responsible for Israelʼs actions?”

The policy questions were whether there is a chapter of the notoriously pro-Hamas Students for Justice in Palestine on campus and whether the school has adopted boycott divestment and sanctions policies (BDS) against Israel.

Nationwide answers to those questions found that “55% of Jewish students have personally been victims of antisemitism at their schools” and “ 72% feel unwelcome in certain spaces on campus simply for being Jewish.”

Also, 43% of students “would not recommend their school to fellow Jews.”

“These numbers lay bare the rampant failure of institutions to protect their Jewish students from hate, exclusion, and fear,” the report says.

At UC Davis, the numbers on the anti-Semitism scale were even higher.

–81% of students said they have experienced anti-Semitism.

–93% of students felt unsafe expressing their Jewish identity

–100% of students get blamed for the actions of Israel

–87% of students feel the school is not protecting them

–only 12% of students would recommend their school to other Jews.

Also, the school’s DEI programs leave Jews out of the picture. Not surprisingly since in left-wing lore Jews are considered white oppressors unworthy of any protections.”

The report card also lists a litany of “notable incidents”  at UC Davis that make the school sound like a swamp of anti-Semitism and led to the F grade. It says the student government enacted BDS legislation and points to an incident first reported exclusively last year by the California Globe.

UC Davis Professor Jemma DeCristo said in a tweet that people should hunt down Jewish journalists and their families with a cleaver and ax.

After an initial mealy-mouthed statement followed by a spate of bad publicity the University of California at Davis  condemned DeCristo. School Chancellor Gary May said she would be investigated but her comments may have been protected by the First Amendment.

The investigation is ongoing.

Also, at UC Davis, the report says, during an ʻemergency teach-in, UC Davis faculty labeled Israel as “racist,” “genocidal,” “oppressive,” and even “antisemitic.”

And Professor Jose Blanco “celebrated the 10/7 massacre.”

Blanco, who describes himself as  a “Queer Xicanx Feminist activist, scholar and storyteller,” did not respond to a request for comment. (Xicanx is a gender neutral term for people of Mexican descent.)

The report also noted that UC Davis is also being investigated by the United States Department of Education for anti-Semitism on campus.  Incidents in a complaint filed with the Department this April include a professor saying at a campus speech that “all Israeli residents are legitimate targets” for attack and a Jewish student not  being allowed to  DJ a party  because of her support for Israel. As well as Jewish students being heckled while they walked on the campus quad.

The report concludes by saying that, “Colleges should be places where everyone can coexist peacefully, without fear of prejudice against their identity, but too often Jews have been excluded from that coexistence. Fighting campus antisemitism not only helps Jewish students today, it lays the foundation for a future in which Jews are welcome at every campus.”

That is not likely to happen anytime soon. Glenn Ricketts, spokesman for the traditional National Association of Scholars, told the California Globe that anti-Semitism is rampant on campus because of left-wing dogma.

“The only thing that occurs to me is that Palestinians have become the left’s latest victim fetish, and the Jews are their oppressors, “ he emailed. “And since Jews worldwide identify with Israel, they are the accomplices and enablers of the evil Jewish state.  When our leftist friends fixate on a specified victim group, the fate of the universe hangs in the balance, and all things are measured  through that single victim group.”

Stop Anti-Semitism also  posted on Twitter this week a shockingly detailed report on anti-Semitism at UC Davis that they received from a recent graduate.

“As a recent graduate of UC Davis, I have witnessed my fair share of campus antisemitism disguised as anti-Zionism,” the person testified. I saw members of known hate group, SJP, oink at openly Jewish students walking through the quad. I received antisemitic threats and slurs that filled my inbox when it was revealed that I was one of the main opposers of the BDS bill that eventually ended up being passed after I had graduated.”

UC Davis spokesman James Nash responded to a request for comment with a media statement that did not really specifically address anything in the report.

“UC Davis is committed to fostering a climate of equity and justice where all can feel welcome and thrive, free of harassment or discrimination. Chancellor Gary S. May has spoken out forcefully against antisemitism, and has joined with UC President Michael V. Drake and chancellors across the University of California in condemning bigotry and intolerance. UC Davis’ Addressing Antisemitism page outlines steps we’ve taken and are continuing to take to address antisemitism. UC Davis is also a participant in the Hillel Campus Climate Initiative, and Chancellor May has been working closely with campus partners on a Hate-Free UC Davis campaign to address campus safety.”

Additionally, “When the university receives a complaint of antisemitism or other offensive behavior, it immediately reaches out to the affected parties to provide support and resources, and reviews the allegations under the university’s anti-discrimination policy.”

“Our top priority is to provide support and guidance to any member of our community who may be impacted by harmful speech or offensive behavior, to ensure that they are not restricted in their participation in UC Davis programs or activities.”