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DEI, Title VI, Post-Colonialism: How to Fight Back Against Hate on College Campuses
One of the campus buildings at the University of California, Berkeley. Photo: Max Pixel/Creative Commons.
“Jews are the new Nazis,” someone yelled at a student government meeting. A swastika was found on a Jewish student’s dorm room door. A sign in a plaza claimed that Jews are the masterminds behind an international illegal organ trafficking ring. Posters of Jewish events were ripped down and thrown in the garbage.
You might think these events took place recently, but they are actually my recollections from UC Berkeley when I was an undergraduate student from 2009 to 2013.
At the time, I took solace in the belief that UC Berkeley was on the anti-Jewish fringes, relative to other universities around the country. “The rest of America isn’t like this,” I told myself.
But incidents on American campuses since October 7 make it clear that this hatred has spread well beyond places like UC Berkeley. Fortunately, there are several concrete actions leaders can advocate for to combat antisemitism on campus.
First, the Federal government should aggressively investigate exclusionary practices that limit the ability of Jewish students to participate in campus life. These practices have resulted in student government leaders being pushed out of their positions for identifying as Jewish, or Jewish student clubs receiving unequal treatment relative to other groups.
Under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act, the Federal government is already granted authority to investigate these exclusionary practices, and to withhold Federal funds if institutions are found at fault. However, enforcement generally occurs on a case-by-case basis, such as through individual complaints. To tackle the problem quickly and comprehensively, the Federal government should launch a large-scale investigation of several universities who reportedly engage in this exclusionary behavior in place of the current piecemeal approach.
Second, ethnic studies courses should be reworked by school districts, university boards, and state legislatures to teach history, culture, and religion instead of the heavy emphasis on Marxist and Postcolonial ideology.
When I enrolled in Native American Studies at Berkeley, I was excited to learn about the history, culture, and religion of Native American tribes. However, the class itself was mostly dedicated to reading theorists, like Frantz Fanon, who simplifies the world into “colonizer” and “colonized,” while also literally calling for violent revolution against the so-called colonizers.
When conflict between Israel and its neighbors arises, many ethnic studies students see Jews as the white colonizers (even though Jews are not colonizers, and more than 50% of Israeli Jews would be considered BIPOC in America) versus the “colonized” people of color. This stunningly superficial interpretation is then used as rationale to engage in violent actions against Jews.
Going forward, if Post-colonialism and Marxism must be included in courses, these theorists must be balanced with their ideological rivals.
Martin Luther King, Jr., and Mahatma Gandhi, who advocated for social cohesion, peaceful coexistence, and nonviolent resistance, would be a good start.
Third, state legislatures and/or governing boards that oversee universities should mandate regular performance audits of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) teams on campus.
The rise in DEI presence on campus has coincided with an increase in antisemitism. One analysis found that DEI staffing at the University of Michigan more than quadrupled from about 40 in 2002 to 167 in 2021. At worst, these DEI efforts are contributing to antisemitism. At best, they are ineffective at curbing it.
Here is a video of a former DEI official being told that protecting Jewish students did not fall under her mandate because they were “white oppressors,” and her job was to “de-center whiteness.”
Requiring DEI offices to use data, such as campus climate surveys and discrimination complaint trends, to publicly report on the degree to which DEI efforts are reducing antisemitism — and all forms of bigotry for that matter — will hold DEI officials accountable to the values they profess to uphold.
Fourth, university administrators must better coordinate with local law enforcement partners to ensure the enforcement of laws to protect students from physical harm at protests. While the First Amendment includes the right of free speech and the right to peaceably assemble, some universities forget to prioritize other applicable regulations on gatherings, such as laws against physical harassment and blocking buildings/sidewalk access.
While I was a student at Berkeley, protesters from Students for Justice in Palestine blocked an entrance to campus during a protest. When one student in a wheelchair attempted to pass, protestors began to kick him until he retreated. Police officers observed in the distance and did nothing.
Ignoring illegal actions of some students during protests unnecessarily endangers other students and has the effect of chilling speech among those who are understandably afraid of physical altercation.
In addition to the ideas set forth here, combating antisemitism on campus requires leaders who are willing to first call out the problem. While it can be intimidating to call out evil due to fear of appearing biased or becoming a target of vitriol, it is in times of great turmoil where taking a stand is needed most.
To those leaders reluctant to speak out and act, consider Hillel’s famous question: “If not you, then who? If not now, when?”
Ben Goldblatt is a Certified Fraud Examiner and a government oversight expert.
The post DEI, Title VI, Post-Colonialism: How to Fight Back Against Hate on College Campuses first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Trump Eyes Bringing Azerbaijan, Central Asian Nations into Abraham Accords, Sources Say
US President Donald Trump points a finger as he delivers remarks in the Roosevelt Room at the White House in Washington, DC, US, July 31, 2025. Photo: Kent Nishimura via Reuters Connect
President Donald Trump’s administration is actively discussing with Azerbaijan the possibility of bringing that nation and some Central Asian allies into the Abraham Accords, hoping to deepen their existing ties with Israel, according to five sources with knowledge of the matter.
As part of the Abraham Accords, inked in 2020 and 2021 during Trump’s first term in office, four Muslim-majority countries agreed to normalize diplomatic relations with Israel after US mediation.
Azerbaijan and every country in Central Asia, by contrast, already have longstanding relations with Israel, meaning that an expansion of the accords to include them would largely be symbolic, focusing on strengthening ties in areas like trade and military cooperation, said the sources, who requested anonymity to discuss private conversations.
Such an expansion would reflect Trump’s openness to pacts that are less ambitious than his administration’s goal to convince regional heavyweight Saudi Arabia to restore ties with Israel while war rages in Gaza.
The kingdom has repeatedly said it would not recognize Israel without steps towards Israeli recognition of a Palestinian state.
Another key sticking point is Azerbaijan’s conflict with its neighbor Armenia, since the Trump administration considers a peace deal between the two Caucasus nations as a precondition to join the Abraham Accords, three sources said.
While Trump officials have publicly floated several potential entrants into the accords, the talks centered on Azerbaijan are among the most structured and serious, the sources said. Two of the sources argued a deal could be reached within months or even weeks.
Trump’s special envoy for peace missions, Steve Witkoff, traveled to Azerbaijan’s capital, Baku, in March to meet with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev. Aryeh Lightstone, a key Witkoff aide, met Aliyev later in the spring in part to discuss the Abraham Accords, three of the sources said.
As part of the discussions, Azerbaijani officials have contacted officials in Central Asian nations, including in nearby Kazakhstan, to gauge their interest in a broader Abraham Accords expansion, those sources said. It was not clear which other countries in Central Asia – which includes Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan – were contacted.
The State Department, asked for comment, did not discuss specific countries, but said expanding the accords has been one of the key objectives of Trump. “We are working to get more countries to join,” said a US official.
The Azerbaijani government declined to comment.
The White House, the Israeli foreign ministry and the Kazakhstani embassy in Washington did not respond to requests for comment.
Any new accords would not modify the previous Abraham Accords deals signed by Israel.
OBSTACLES REMAIN
The original Abraham Accords – inked between Israel and the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Morocco and Sudan – were centered on restoration of ties. The second round of expansion appears to be morphing into a broader mechanism designed to expand US and Israeli soft power.
Wedged between Russia to the north and Iran to the south, Azerbaijan occupies a critical link in trade flows between Central Asia and the West. The Caucasus and Central Asia are also rich in natural resources, including oil and gas, prompting various major powers to compete for influence in the region.
Expanding the accords to nations that already have diplomatic relations with Israel may also be a means of delivering symbolic wins to a president who is known to talk up even relatively small victories.
Two sources described the discussions involving Central Asia as embryonic – but the discussions with Azerbaijan as relatively advanced.
But challenges remain and there is no guarantee a deal will be reached, particularly with slow progress in talks between Armenia and Azerbaijan.
The two countries, which both won independence from the Soviet Union in 1991, have been at loggerheads since the late 1980s when Nagorno-Karabakh – an Azerbaijani region that had a mostly ethnic-Armenian population – broke away from Azerbaijan with support from Armenia.
In 2023, Azerbaijan retook Karabakh, prompting about 100,000 ethnic Armenians to flee to Armenia. Both sides have since said they want to sign a treaty on a formal end to the conflict.
Primarily Christian Armenia and the US have close ties, and the Trump administration is wary of taking action that could upset authorities in Yerevan.
Still, US officials, including Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Trump himself, have argued that a peace deal between those two nations is near.
“Armenia and Azerbaijan, we worked magic there,” Trump told reporters earlier in July. “And it’s pretty close.”
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Trump Reaffirms Support for Morocco’s Sovereignty Over Western Sahara
A Polisario fighter sits on a rock at a forward base, on the outskirts of Tifariti, Western Sahara, Sept. 9, 2016. Photo: Reuters / Zohra Bensemra / File.
US President Donald Trump has reaffirmed support for Morocco’s sovereignty over Western Sahara, saying a Moroccan autonomy plan for the territory was the sole solution to the disputed region, state news agency MAP said on Saturday.
The long-frozen conflict pits Morocco, which considers the territory as its own, against the Algeria-backed Polisario Front, which seeks an independent state there.
Trump at the end of his first term in office recognized the Moroccan claims to Western Sahara, which has phosphate reserves and rich fishing grounds, as part of a deal under which Morocco agreed to normalize its relations with Israel.
His secretary of state, Marco Rubio, made clear in April that support for Morocco on the issue remained US policy, but these were Trump’s first quoted remarks on the dispute during his second term.
“I also reiterate that the United States recognizes Moroccan sovereignty over Western Sahara and supports Morocco’s serious, credible and realistic autonomy proposal as the only basis for a just and lasting solution to the dispute,” MAP quoted Trump as saying in a message to Morocco’s King Mohammed VI.
“Together we are advancing shared priorities for peace and security in the region, including by building on the Abraham Accords, combating terrorism and expanding commercial cooperation,” Trump said.
As part of the Abraham Accords signed during Trump’s first term, four Muslim-majority countries agreed to normalize diplomatic relations with Israel after US mediation.
In June this year, Britain became the third permanent member of the U.N. Security Council to back an autonomy plan under Moroccan sovereignty for the territory after the U.S. and France.
Algeria, which has recognized the self-declared Sahrawi Republic, has refused to take part in roundtables convened by the U.N. envoy to Western Sahara and insists on holding a referendum with independence as an option.
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Israel Says Its Missions in UAE Remain Open Despite Reported Security Threats
President Isaac Herzog meets on Dec. 5, 2022, with UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan in Abu Dhabi. Photo: GPO/Amos Ben Gershom
i24 News – Israel’s Foreign Ministry said on Friday that its missions to the United Arab Emirates are open on Friday and representatives continue to operate at the embassy in Abu Dhabi and the consulate in Dubai in cooperation with local authorities.
This includes, the statement underlined, ensuring the protection of Israeli diplomats.
On Thursday, reports appeared in Israeli media that Israel was evacuating most of its diplomatic staff in the UAE after the National Security Council heightened its travel warning for Israelis staying in the Gulf country for fear of an Iranian or Iran-sponsored attacks.
“We are emphasizing this travel warning given our understanding that terrorist organizations (the Iranians, Hamas, Hezbollah and Global Jihad) are increasing their efforts to harm Israel,” the NSC said in a statement.
After signing the Abraham Accords with Israel in 2020, the UAE has been among the closest regional allies of the Jewish state.
Israel is concerned about its citizens and diplomats being targeted in retaliatory attacks following its 12-day war against Iran last month.
Earlier this year, the UAE sentenced three citizens of Uzbekistan to death for last year’s murder of Israeli-Moldovan rabbi Zvi Cohen.