Response to the recent settlement agreements in Harvard’s Title VI lawsuits

While The Nexus Project is pleased that Harvard University is taking new, practical steps to ensure that its policies and practices effectively address antisemitism, we hope the university will also steer clear of inadvertently turning educational resources like the IHRA definition, into a speech code that risks conflating legitimate political speech with antisemitism.

The IHRA definition was never meant to be applied as an enforcement tool in academic settings, where it risks stifling open debate. Moreover, a federal court in Texas recently found that codifying the IHRA definition on campuses improperly restricts First Amendment-protected speech.

We believe that all students have a right to study and flourish at colleges and universities free of harassment and discrimination, including antisemitism. Rather than codifying a single definition, institutions should focus on the types of tangible action Harvard is undertaking to ensure that Jewish students and all students are protected without losing the freedom to interrogate challenging ideas. That is the approach taken by Nexus' Campus Guide to Identifying Antisemitism.

The Nexus Project remains committed to helping universities develop nuanced approaches that bring communities together while maintaining open dialogue on challenging issues.