In the lawsuit filed by the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) on behalf of Graduate Workers for Palestine, a federal judge recently ruled that the university may continue sanctioning students who refuse to complete its mandatory "anti-bias" training.
Northwestern's program instructs students on topics like university policies, antisemitism, and bias against Muslim, Arab, and Palestinian communities. Students were required to complete the training by Oct. 20.
CAIR claims the training is politically biased and instills fear in students, but Judge Georgia Alexakis ruled in the university's favor, denying the plaintiffs' request for a temporary restraining order that would have prevented the school from taking away the financial aid and housing of students who refused to take the training.
"There were some students who didn't want to take part in the training, and the school said, 'Well, if you're not going to take part, then you can't register for classes,'" relays Aaron Bandler, U.S. correspondent for the Jewish News Syndicate.
The College Fix reports the training requirement has drawn mixed reactions from members of the Northwestern community, even the university's Jewish Voice for Peace chapter.
"What was apparently offensive to these students was that there was a video as part of the training that portrays Zionists 'inaccurately,'" Bandler explains.
Asserting that it opposes antisemitism, not supports it, he believes Judge Alexakis' ruling is a win for "common sense."
Since the October 7, 2023, Hamas attack on Israel, U.S. college campuses have seen an unprecedented surge in antisemitic incidents ranging from 300% to more than 800% compared with pre-2023 levels. The anti-Israel protests have included harassment and threats, contributing to a climate in which Jewish students report feeling unsafe or targeted.
Federal agencies, Congress, and universities have responded with investigations and policy reviews that balance free speech with protections against antisemitic discrimination.
"I think this overall is a victory in the battle against antisemitism," Bandler tells AFN. "These mandatory training programs are important, and it's definitely good to see that CAIR's legal warfare here is not going to be successful."
Northwestern is clear that students are not required to agree with the training content, but they must acknowledge adherence to university policies.
