Harvard adopts new antisemitism definition to settle lawsuits alleging the school didn’t protect Jewish students
The nation’s oldest university has agreed to adopt a new definition of antisemitism as part of settling two federal lawsuits that allege it failed to protect Jewish students following Hamas’…

The nation’s oldest university has agreed to adopt a new definition of antisemitism as part of settling two federal lawsuits that allege it failed to protect Jewish students following Hamas’ Oct. 7 terrorist attacks on Israel. Other schools may follow suit.
Harvard University, near Boston, has agreed to implement the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s working definition of antisemitism, resolving two claims that the Ivy League school failed to protect students from “severe and pervasive” antisemitism, including at least one physical assault, Jewish Insider reports.
The lawsuits were filed by the Louis D. Brandeis Center for Human Rights Under Law and Jewish Americans for Fairness in Education, and by a group of six Harvard students calling themselves Students Against Antisemitism. The university moved to dismiss the suits but a judge denied it in November, leading to the settlement.
Ken Marcus, founder of the Brandeis Center, called the agreement “a major advance” for Harvard students and said it would create a standard for others to follow. “We expect that it will have an extraordinary impact for colleges and universities around the country.”
The prestigious school also pledged more resources to study antisemitism and establish another partnership with a university in Israel, Insider reported, in addition to its current partnerships with universities there.
However, Shabbos Kestenbaum, lead plaintiff in the student lawsuit, refused the settlement and will pursue additional litigation against the school with a new attorney, according to The Harvard Crimson.
Kestenbaum, who recently graduated from Harvard Divinity School and spoke at the Republican National Convention in July, said that students and professors at the school have openly called for Hamas-style attacks against the U.S. and that the school refused to condemn Hamas’ violence on Oct. 7, which left 1,200 Israeli’s dead.
The settlement comes as Donald Trump begins his second term as president. Trump, a Republican, has threatened to remove accreditation and support from universities that fail to deal with rising antisemitism on campus.
In a surprising move, Harvard has hired Ballard Partners, a Trump-friendly lobbying firm, to lead its “government relations and advocacy services,” The New York Sun reported, marking a shift for the left-leaning school.