1. United States
2. Letter

College students have a long and proud history of activism, and their right to protest must be protected. Yet this week, students protesting against the Israeli government’s genocide of Palestinians and for equality, justice and a thriving future for all were brutally attacked by police and counterprotesters. Instead of protecting these students, Congress is voting on legislation to criminalize their activism under the guise of fighting antisemitism. Congress is about to vote on forcing the Department of Education to adopt a widely discredited definition of antisemitism that defines criticism of Israel as anti-Jewish hate. Unsurprisingly, those leading this effort are Republicans. This is a typically cynical move, Christofascist white supremacy masquerading as support for Jewish people: they want unconditional U.S. political support for the Israeli government only to fulfill their asinine prerequisites for the Rapture or some such. Far from supporting Jewish safety, this campus crackdown is part of a MAGA-led, anti-DEI crusade upholding white supremacy. Mr. President, I urge you to support these students' (many of them Jewish themselves!) right to express themselves, to call for an end to the slaughter in Gaza, and to do it without an implied blanket death threat from militarized police forces. The Hamas attack was, unequivocally, a horrible crime. But the continued attacks against Palestinians are horrible too. Please help protect students' rights to say so.