Students testify at House Committee hearing, describe antisemitism on Ivy League campuses

WASHINGTON (TND) — College students from the University of Pennsylvania and Harvard University spent Wednesday testifying in front of the House Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution and Limited Government. The hearing, called "Antisemitism on College Campuses," examined anti-Semitic activity on college campuses across the country and responses by both federal and university leaders.

When we applied to Penn, we expected to be nervous about our final exams, what we didn't expect, was to have counterterrorism units roaming on our campus," said Eyal Yakoby, a student at the University of Pennsylvania.

The hearing lasted more than two hours, with both committee members and students sharing their thoughts on the school protests happening across the country.

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These safety marshals followed Jews like me on our way to class, monitoring our every move," said Shabbos Kestenbaum, a graduate student at Harvard University.

One of the many people watching the hearing was Karen Barall, vice president of government relations at The Jewish Federations of North America. She said hearings like this one are crucial in order to impact change.

(These hearings) are helping to formulate what legislation could look like or what legislation should look like and where there are gaps and where there are problems," Barall said.

The director of the StandWithUs Center for Combating Antisemitism, Carly Gammill, agreed. She said the hearings will also help hold people accountable.

Some of the worst actors or enactors are being called in front of Congress in terms of the administrators to answer for their actions and inactions," said Gammill.

Plus, Gammill said the hearings help bring exposure to the antisemitism happening across the country, putting pressure on Congress.

Ultimately, the goal is action that ensures that this does not continue on our nations campuses," said Gammill.