Rutgers University, which has had students blocked from entering buildings and Jewish students targeted with hateful speech by pro-Palestinian demonstrators, announced it is suspending Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP).

Rutgers became one of only a handful of universities to suspend SJP and only the second public university in the nation to take such action.

The suspension for its disruptive actions on the main campus in New Brunswick came on the same day, December 11, that the federal Department of Education announced it was investigating Rutgers for a Title VI violation of the Civil Rights Act for alleged failure to protect Jewish students from harassment.

“We have received notice that an investigation of a complaint has been opened related to alleged incidents of harassment in October and November 2023 of students on the basis of their national origin (shared Jewish ancestry and/or Israel),” said university spokesperson Dory Devlin in a statement to The Jewish Link. “The notice provides no further details, but we will certainly fully cooperate.”

On December 18, Rutgers-New Brunswick Chancellor Dr. Francine Conway announced the creation of an advisory group to combat antisemitism and Islamophobia. The group will be composed of Jewish and Muslim students, faculty and staff, and report to her. Conway said the nominations for membership are underway and will be announced within days.

In a statement the previous week the chancellor had announced a number of other strategies to also be implemented, including establishing a task force on faculty, student and staff codes of conduct, reviewing and updating current policies and procedures and defining Islamophobia and antisemitism for the university community given its “unique demographic make-up.” Rutgers has both one of the largest Jewish and Muslim student bodies in the nation.

Conway noted that the Israel-Hamas war had resulted in a wide range of gatherings and events, some of which “have been characterized by moments of unrest that have caused members of our community to fear for their safety.”

She said while Rutgers valued free speech and an open exchange of ideas, they “cannot come at the expense of individuals and campus safety.” She specifically cited a demonstration by SJP at the business school on the university’s Livingston Campus in Piscataway that raised questions about the use of academic buildings and the disruption of activities. Conway did not elaborate further but said she has instructed Rutgers University Police to conduct a complete investigation and report on the incident.

Devlin said among the complaints received about SJP that triggered the suspension were disruptions of classes, a program, meals, and students studying. There are also allegations of vandalism occurring at the Rutgers Business School while an organization event was taking place. “All the alleged behavior violates the University Code of Student Conduct,” she added.

She said university policy allows for the suspension of a student organization’s activities if there is a “reasonable basis” to conclude its activities pose “substantial and immediate threat to the safety and well-being of others, or the suspension of organizational activities is needed to maintain preservation of the university.”

Devlin said the school could not comment on code violation matters, but that it was typical for organizations such as SJP, with multiple complaints against it, to be issued an interim suspension of organizational activity while the conduct process is underway.

Rutgers Hillel CEO Lisa Harris Glass said pro-Palestinian demonstrators were allowed to hold a press conference near the business school in a designated area but continued into an academic building. Students had told her they “perceived” they were unable to access the building as a result.

She said a program being given by Bruce Hoffman, a Georgetown University professor and director of its Center for Jewish Civilization, was interrupted by SJP protestors who were escorted out of the building by Rutgers Police.

The same day as the suspension was announced a demonstration was held next to Alexander Library; the stated aim was “to shut it down and render the space unusable for the rest of the students,” according to Harris Glass.

That, in fact, appeared to have happened. Rabbi Mendy Carlebach, administrator at Rutgers Chabad, which is located across the street from the library on College Avenue, said students unable to do their work at the library came to Chabad to study. Harris Glass said she also had reports from students who found the library “unusable.”

Another demonstration at Brower Commons, further down College Avenue, took place days later. “It is troubling that days after they suspend Students for Justice in Palestine they’re still having protests,” said Rabbi Carlebach..

The December 14 protest was apparently organized by the Rutgers Endowment Justice Collective, which posted on its Instagram account that it is “a coalition of Rutgers organizations and community members advocating for an endowment fund divested from Israeli apartheid.” It said it “wholeheartedly” supports SJP and demanded the suspension be rescinded. The group’s position, said Harris Glass, is basically that Jewish donors control the narrative at the university.

“There have been so many reports of bias and threats and so many stories that don’t even get reported,” she said. “They are showing up in unexpected places with someone in a living situation where it never came up before and now there is tension caused by being on opposite sides of the issue. It shows up in extracurricular activities.”

In a statement SJP alleged the university failed to act upon charges of harassment and doxing of Palestinian and Muslim students and accused Rutgers of a “racist double standard” by only suspending its activities.

However, Devlin on behalf of the university said: “Rutgers stands against antisemitism and against hate in all its pernicious forms. The university strives to be a safe and supportive environment for all our students, faculty, and staff. We reject absolutely intolerance based on religion, national origin, race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, ability, or political views.”

Debra Rubin has had a long career in journalism writing for secular weekly and daily newspapers and Jewish publications. She most recently served as Middlesex/Monmouth bureau chief for the New Jersey Jewish News. She also worked with the media at several nonprofits, including serving as assistant public relations director of HIAS and assistant director of media relations at Yeshiva University.