Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall, along with attorneys general from 25 states, has sent a letter to Columbia University expressing serious concerns about antisemitism on campus. The letter also advises the university against yielding to demands for divestment from Israel.
"Some of the groups causing unrest on campus have been tied to international terrorists who have used their propaganda and funds to incite antisemitism, encourage violence, and demand divestment from Israel. We are calling on Columbia’s administration to hold the line against these radical demands including to divest from Israel," stated Attorney General Marshall.
Addressed to Columbia University Interim President Katrina Armstrong, MD, the letter highlights that "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 correspondence details actions and rhetoric by pro-Palestinian protesters advocating for further violence. One member of Columbia University Apartheid Divest remarked that the school was fortunate he wasn’t "going out and murdering Zionists."
The coalition's letter commends Columbia University for its stance against divesting from Israel and urges it to maintain this position despite pressure described as blatantly antisemitic from certain student groups.
South Carolina and Arkansas co-led this initiative alongside Alabama. The attorneys general of Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma South Dakota Tennessee Texas Utah Virginia West Virginia joined in signing the letter.