Brandeis study reveals growing ‘antisemitism’ among college students

Pro-Palestine protesters outside the Columbia University campus (Reuters)

A recent study conducted by the Cohen Center for Modern Jewish Studies at Brandeis University found that a third of students surveyed harbor opinions critical of Israel and/ or Jews.

4,123 undergraduate students from 60 schools with large Jewish populations were surveyed. 313 were Jewish, while 3,810 were non-Jewish students.

The study examined the responses of non-Jewish students to nine critical opinions about Jews and Israel, identifying four distinct groups based on their reactions.

2% of students held opinions critical of both Jews and Israel, agreeing with almost all statements presented in the study.

15% of students expressed extreme criticism toward Israel, though they did not hold explicitly critical views about Jews. These students were more left wing compared to the normal student body.

16% of students endorsed at least one critical opinion about Jews, but did not express intense criticism of Israel. The political leanings of these students reflected the general student body

66% of students did not display any hostility toward Jews or Israel.

Table of four distinct groups and the agreement with different critical opinions on Israel and Jews.

Zooming In: Taking a closer look at the data shows widespread popularity for some key anti-Israel positions—deemed ‘antisemitic’ by the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s working definition of antisemitism.

42.89% of all non-Jewish college students agree that “supporters of Israel control the media.”

24.11% of all non-Jewish college students do not want to be friends with someone that supports the existence of Israel as a Jewish state.

19.22% of all non-Jewish college students think that “Israel does not have the right to exist.”

Big Picture: This study corresponds to the one conducted by the Anti Defamation League earlier this year which found that opinions critical towards Israel have become popular among young people in the wake of Israel’s war in Gaza.

In response, the Jewish community lobbied the federal government to ban TikTok for allowing the proliferation of Israel critical content among it’s young userbase.

The Jewish community has since pivoted to pressuring universities into crushing pro-Palestine activism on campus.

New rules have since been implemented to make pro-Palestine activism more difficult as the fall semester starts on college campuses across America.