Republicans expand UC anti-Semitism investigation to combat UCLA, UC San Francisco University of California San Francisco School of Medicine
UCLA and UCLA San Francisco Medical School have been awarded two weeks to submit years of internal documents to the Republican-led congressional committee on so-called anti-Semitism and how to respond, expanding the federal government’s far-reaching investigation into the University of California.
Rep. Tim Walberg, chairman of the House Education and Workforce Committee, cited reports that Jews “experienced hostility and fear” on every campus, and the university did not prove that they “responded meaningfully.”
Wahlberg’s letter said the committee would investigate whether schools violated Chapter 6 of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits discrimination based on race, color and nationality in programs and activities to obtain federal financial aid.
The additional investigation was as senior UC officials and the Justice Department began negotiating allegations of the allegations, namely the hostility of the UCLA campus to Jewish students, faculty and staff. The federal government has suspended more than $500 million in health, medical and energy research grants from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) and is seeking $1 billion and major campus changes before funding is restored.
The Trump administration invoked the alleged VI violation of title violations while pulling money.
The House Committee said Monday that since September 1, 2021, it hopes “all documents and communications” are related to complaints about anti-Semitic events between UCLA and UC San Fransisco. A similar letter was sent, and it was also sent to the University of Illinois School of Medicine.
Some of the UCLA Medical School’s faculty members are members of a broader campus organization, the Resilience Group of Jewish Teachers, which has publicly announced complaints for months at the UC Regent meeting, about anti-Semitism.
Kira Stein, the group’s chairman and assistant clinical professor at the School of Medicine, mentioned in a letter to unanimous UCLA on the week, was a faculty member reporting anti-Semitic events.
“In a letter released today, federal lawmakers responded to what many of us have experienced firsthand: UCLA anti-Semitism is widespread, corrosive, and continues to be silent and inaction by university executive and local leaders,” Stein said in a statement Monday.
The committee requests UCLA’s Dean of the School of Medicine, administrators of programs engaged in diversity or restorative justice, as well as several other positions, and data on specific events and courses, including “structural racism and health equity.”
It also requires the administrator to send an email “refers to or is related to anti-Semitism or Jewish, Israel, Israel, Palestinian or Palestinian”. It requests information on the January report, which focuses on UCLA medical schools targeting anti-Palestine, anti-Muslim and anti-Arab racism.
The 35-page report says: “David Geffen Medical School students, residents and faculty members express support for Palestinian human rights and faces harassment both inside and outside the medical school.”
The House Committee requires that “the office of the Executive Vice President has all documents and communications since October 7, 2023” – Darnell Hunt, Academician at UCLA – be linked to the task force. Members of the task force accused UCLA of not taking prejudicial incidents against Muslims, Arab Americans and Palestinian Americans because it had anti-Semitism reports.
In addition to the Sixth Champion Enforcement, Wahlberg said he will use the documents to “help the committee consider whether potential legislative changes are needed, including the need for legislation specifically addressing anti-Semitism.”
The UCLA Medical School is also under charges under investigation by the Department of Health and Human Services for discrimination “based on race, color or national discrimination in admissions.” The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) has denied the allegation, and the department has not officially announced the results of its investigation that began in late March. But when it canceled the cancellation of grants to the UCLA last month, the Trump administration said the lawsuit was partly due to the company’s belief that the university uses racial admissions illegally.
In a statement Monday, a UCLA Medical School spokesman expressed opposition to anti-Semitism.
“Anti-Semitism has no status in UCLA’s medical school. Protecting the civil rights of members of our Jewish community remains a top priority,” the statement said. “We are committed to fair processes in all educational programs and activities consistent with federal and state anti-discrimination laws and continue to take concrete steps to promote an environment free of anti-Semitism and other forms of discrimination and harassment.”
A UC San Francisco spokesman did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Since the subsequent Gaza war attacks on Hamas and Israel on October 7, 2023, tensions between UCLA Medical School and pro-Palestine students, faculty and staff broke out. Everyone accuses another of discrimination, doxxing and harassment. Two UCLA task forces cited incidents from the school, one of which examined anti-Semitism and anti-Israel biases, and the other examined anti-Plastine, anti-Muslim and anti-Arab racist biases.
