Commission on Civil Rights to study campus antisemitism after Auchincloss-led effort

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Commission on Civil Rights will study rising reports of antisemitism on college campuses.

Massachusetts Rep. Jake Auchincloss, who represents much of Bristol County, helped lead a letter asking the commission to investigate the matter.

“I’m driving this policy forward, even after its left the public consciousness, because every student on campus at American universities deserves a suitable learning environment, and to be free from targeted harassment and discrimination,” Auchincloss said.

The commission is a bipartisan federal agency that issues advisory reports to Congress.

The report is expected to include findings on how the Department of Education’s Office of Civil Rights and the U.S. Department of Justice responded to the reported increase of antisemitism on college campuses.

Data from the Anti-Defamation League showed 922 reports of anti-Semitic incidents on college campuses in 2023, up by more than 800 reports over a 20-year period.

The increase coincided with the start of the Israel-Hamas War, which followed a Hamas terrorist attack on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023.

“University administrators were responding to antisemitism with either a shoulder shrug or by rolling their eyes,” Auchincloss said. “That’s an unacceptable response.”

Student protests of the war, including at campuses in Rhode Island and Massachusetts, drew national attention.

The U.S. Commission on Civil Rights report is expected to include findings and recommendations to Congress on how to handle rising reports of antisemitism on college campuses.

The group expects to study the matter for a year before releasing that report in 2026.