Attorney General Miyares Joins 25-State Letter to Columbia University Concerning Antisemitism on Campus 

RICHMOND, VA – Virginia Attorney General Jason Miyares has joined a 25-state coalition in sending a letter to Columbia University, urging the institution to stand firm against calls for boycott, divestment, and sanctions (BDS) from Israel and addressing antisemitism on campus.

“Columbia University was right not to cave to demands for divestment from Israel, just as the University of Virginia rejected a similar BDS push,” said Attorney General Jason Miyares. “Antisemitism has no place on our campuses, and we must stand firm against efforts to delegitimize Israel through coercive and hateful means.” 

The attorneys general write, “In April of this year, several pro-Palestinian groups staged occupation protests on Columbia University’s campus in New York City, established encampments, and demanded the university divest from Israel. Even after some protesters were arrested, occupations continued, and the school entered negotiations with protesters. The school appropriately declined to divest from Israel. But demands for divestment have not abated. And the one-year anniversary of the October 7 attacks heralded an escalation in antisemitic rhetoric by pro-Palestinian campus protest groups.”

The letter goes on to list examples of actions and rhetoric by pro-Palestinian protesters calling for even more violence, including one member of Columbia University Apartheid Divest saying the school was lucky he wasn’t out “killing Zionists.” 

The coalition commends Columbia University for its decision not to divest from Israel and urges the administration to remain steadfast against antisemitic pressure from certain student groups.

In addition to Virginia, the letter was joined by the attorneys general of Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, and West Virginia.

You can read the letter here.

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