Columbia University in New York City has been the site of instances of antisemitism—or hostility to, prejudice towards, or discrimination against Jews—from the early 20th century to the present. In the 1920s and 1930s, Columbia imposed quotas that restricted Jewish enrollment, facing criticism for rejecting prominent applicants such as Richard Feynman and Jonas Salk. University president Nicholas Murray Butler also drew controversy for hosting Nazi Germany’s ambassador Hans Luther in 1933, describing him as a representative of “the government of a friendly people.” In the 1940s, the American Jewish Congress filed complaints alleging that Columbia’s admissions and employment practices violated New York’s anti‑discrimination laws, and its president Stephen S. Wise sought to revoke the university’s tax‑exempt status on similar grounds.
In the early 21st century, discourse surrounding the Israeli–Palestinian conflict has led to renewed reports of antisemitism. Following the October 7 attacks on Israel and outbreak of the Gaza war, alleged incidents of antisemitism increased on campus, with many alleged to have been perpetrated by participants in the pro-Palestinian campus protests and the Gaza Solidarity Encampment. In response, on November 1, 2023 the presidents of Columbia University, Barnard College, and Teachers College announced a Task Force on Antisemitism co-chaired by Esther Fuchs, Nicholas Lemann, and David Schizer. It did not initially define antisemitism, but later published a working definition of antisemitism in August 2024: "prejudice, discrimination, hate, or violence directed at Jews, including Jewish Israelis. Antisemitism can manifest in a range of ways, including as ethnic slurs, epithets, and caricatures; stereotypes; antisemitic tropes and symbols; Holocaust denial; targeting Jews or Israelis for violence or celebrating violence against them; exclusion or discrimination based on Jewish identity or ancestry or real or perceived ties to Israel; and certain double standards applied to Israel."(August 2024). Report #2: Task Force on Antisemitism Columbia University. Retrieved on 13 December 2025
Between March 2024 and December 2025, Columbia University’s Task Force on Antisemitism issued four reports assessing campus climate and policy. The first criticized enforcement of demonstration rules, and noted that certain protest chants such as "globalize the intifada" were perceived as threatening by Jewish students. The second, drawing on interviews with 500 students, described pervasive antisemitism across clubs, classrooms, and dormitories, including harassment, hostile faculty remarks, and targeting of religious practices, and urged urgent action. The third presented survey findings that Jewish students felt markedly less accepted than peers and were wary of expressing views on the Israel–Hamas conflict, highlighting widespread discomfort in 2023–24. The fourth focused on classroom experiences, concluding that Jewish and Israeli students were often singled out or blamed for political issues, and identifying a lack of ideological diversity in Middle East studies, where faculty were described as having predominantly anti-Zionist viewpoints.Report #1: Columbia University’s Rules on Demonstrations - Task Force on Antisemitism Columbia University. Retrieved on 13 December 2025
Critics of characterizations of the protest movement on campus as antisemitic—including scholars, journalists, and activists—have described them as exploiting the accusation of antisemitism to silence criticism of Israel. Others have countered that Jewish students reported experiencing ostracism and harassment that, if directed at other groups on campus, would generally be considered unacceptable.Foer, Franklin (17 March 2025). Columbia University’s Anti-Semitism Problem The Atlantic. Retrieved on 13 December 2025
In the spring of 2025, citing widespread antisemitism at Columbia, the Trump administration cut US$400 million in federal funding to the university and detained and attempted to deport Palestinian student activists, while the US House Committee on Education and Workforce ran a Title VI investigation into the allegations of antisemitism at the university. In July 2025, the board of trustees of the university settled with the Trump administration, agreeing to pay $200 million, adopt the IHRA definition of antisemitism, and accept other demands made by the Trump administration. As part of the settlement, Columbia also established a claims fund worth $21 million for Jewish employees reporting that they experienced antisemitism at the university and announced a partnership with the Anti Defamation League.
20th century 1900s
In 1907, The New York Times reported on a mass meeting of Jewish students at the university. The newspaper reported that, among Jewish students, there was a widespread belief that the meeting's underlying purpose was to organize a response to what some regarded as discriminatory practices against Jewish students within Columbia’s social and literary societies. At the meeting, a student raised discrimination against Jews by the university Greek letter fraternities. The newspaper reported on expressed concerns of Jewish students about perceived discrimination in campus publications, noting that none of the editors of the student newspaper, the Columbia Daily Spectator, were Jewish, and that only one Jewish editor served on the staff of the university’s literary magazine, the Columbia Monthly.(10 February 1907). JEWS AT COLUMBIA DENY DISCRIMINATION; Then Hold a Secret Mass Meeting to Foster Jewish Spirit. FALSE REPORTS CIRCULATED Comment on the Fact That Student Publications Have Only One Jew on Editorial Staffs. The New York Times. Retrieved on 13 December 2025
1920s In 1920, Columbia University had a 40% Jewish enrollment rate according to Oliver Pollak. Around this time, Columbia imposed quotas on Jewish students to restrict the number of Jews, a practice that quickly expanded to many other prominent American universities.
The process of implementing these quotas began with new requirements to live in on-campus dormitories and new limitations on scholarships. Since a majority of Jewish students in the early 20th century came from impoverished families, many lived at home in order to save money, meaning that this new policy made attending Columbia much more difficult. According to Mark Oppenheimer, Columbia also began to conduct admissions interviews, during which university representatives would detect accents or other signs of Jewish origin for candidates whose surnames were not obviously Jewish. In the years 1920 to 1922, elite Protestant students began to abandon Columbia because of how the campus culture shifted after the number of Jewish students had been halved.
1930s During the 1930s, Columbia rejected both Richard Feynman and Jonas Salk due to their unofficial quotas on Jewish students. Feynman and Salk would instead attend MIT and CCNY respectively.
In November 1933, six months after the beginning of Nazi book burnings, President of Columbia Nicholas Murray Butler invited German Ambassador to the United States Hans Luther to speak at the university. Butler rebuked calls from the student body to cancel the speech by claiming that the request to do so would be a surrender to "illiberal theories" and was contrary to academic freedom. Butler also claimed that Luther was entitled to respect from the students of Columbia because he was a representative of "the government of a friendly people".
In March 1934, Jewish students at Columbia held a dance for Purim in John Jay Hall, at which eggs were thrown and a large swastika banner was unfurled by unknown student vandals who chanted "Down with the Jews."
In June 1936, Butler expelled Robert Burke, President-elect of his class, for his participation in a protest against Columbia's involvement in celebrating the 550th anniversary of Heidelberg University. Burke and other students had been critical of the ceremony because of its close involvement with the Nazi regime and the attendance of Nazi propaganda minister Joseph Goebbels.
Quotas on Jewish students led to a major decline in the percentage of Jewish students between 1920 and 1940 in a number of schools. Jewish students had made up 46.94% of all students at Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, falling to 6.45% after quotas.Jacobs, J. (2015) The Frankfurt School, Jewish Lives, and Antisemitism. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Available at: <https://www.google.com.au/books/edition/The_Frankfurt_School_Jewish_Lives_and_An/d3hxBAAAQBAJ> [Accessed 12 December 2025].
1940s In March 1946, Stephen S. Wise, president of the American Jewish Congress, petitioned the New York City Tax Commissioner to revoke Columbia University’s tax‑exempt status, alleging that the institution violated state law by admitting students on the basis of racial and religious criteria rather than academic merit. Wise argued that such practices meant Columbia could not be considered a nonsectarian educational institution under the law. Columbia’s acting president, Frank D. Fackenthal, denied the charges, stating that no discriminatory policies were in place.(17 March 1946). Wise Charges Columbia University with Bias; Challenges School’s Tax Exemption Jewish Telegraphic Agency. Retrieved on 11 December 2025 Wise argued that the university discriminated against Jewish, black and Italian students.(26 April 1946). Wise Urges End of Columbia Tax Exemption Because It Discriminates Against Jews Jewish Telegraphic Agency. Retrieved on 11 December 2025
In June 1946, the American Jewish Congress filed a complaint with the New York State Fair Employment Practices Commission alleging that the University’s placement bureau used application forms that contravened state anti‑discrimination laws. The forms reportedly required candidates to disclose details such as nationality, race, place of birth, and religion, categories which were prohibited under New York law. The Congress argued that these practices amounted to unlawful discrimination in the university’s hiring process.(11 June 1946). American Jewish Congress Charges Columbia University Discriminates in Placement Policy Jewish Telegraphic Agency. Retrieved on 11 December 2025 In February 1947, University was compelled to comply with New York’s Ives‑Quinn anti‑discrimination law following the complaint. The State Commission Against Discrimination rejected Columbia’s claim that its placement bureau was exempt, establishing a precedent that employment offices operated by educational and charitable institutions must adhere to anti‑bias regulations. Columbia subsequently agreed to remove the contested questions from its application materials.(25 February 1947). Columbia University Employment Office Forced to Abide by N.Y. Anti-bias Law Jewish Telegraphic Agency. Retrieved on 11 December 2025(25 February 1947). JOB BLANK CHANGE AT COLUMBIA SEEN; Jewish Congress Reports the University Is Eliminating Race, Religion Questions The New York Times. Retrieved on 11 December 2024. (13 September 1947). COLUMBIA ALTERS JOB APPLICATIONS; AN References to Race, Creed and Color Deleted as State Board Backs Complaint The New York Times. Retrieved on 11 December 2025
1950s