The Trump White House is using the immigration system to punish a leader of the pro-Palestinian movement that rocked the Columbia University campus after Oct. 7. Immigration officials have detained and are seeking to support Syrian-born Mahmoud Kahlil, a green card holder who led demonstrations at the Ivy League university, saying he sided with Hamas terrorists and spread antisemitism.
Civil libertarians say that campus protests are protected by the First Amendment, and in the absence of charging him with a crime, efforts to deport Khalil are a violation of the Constitution. His arrest led to widespread demonstrations, giving oxygen to the very movement the administration says it is trying to suppress.
Khalil’s arrest — and Trump’s threat to pull funding from campuses that allow “illegal protests” — have divided Jews, including those who have been frustrated with campus anti-Israel protests that have shaded into antisemitism. For many, the aggressive moves by the administration are long overdue, and will send the message that antisemitism and support for terrorism will not be tolerated. Other say Jews depend on the First Amendment for their own security, and that challenging the tenets of free speech in the name of fighting antisemitism recruits a largely liberal community into a White House agenda they don’t support.
As we put it in an article about the administration’s critics, “As ICE targets a Palestinian activist, some Jews are asking if this is the fight against antisemitism they signed up for.”
In our weekly Ideas newsletter, we put the question to our readers: Do they approve of the administration’s response to antisemitism, or are they worried that Trump’s polarizing motivations taint Jewish advocacy and leave Jews even more vulnerable? Maybe both?
Below is a sampling of the more than 70 responses that we received; supporters of the administration held a slight advantage in our extremely unscientific poll.
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Having read the article asking “Is this the fight against antisemitism Jews signed up for?” — a resounding no: I did not sign up for this. I believe in free, nonviolent speech for everyone. I am scared of the president.
Cynthia Passaretti
Fredericksburg, Virginia
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Yes, this is the antisemitism fight we have signed up for. We should not shy away from any fight against this growing danger. We should respond to every situation. The fact that we haven’t has probably contributed to where we are today. As for those who question this action, they seem to be the same kinds of thinkers who have been unable for years to push back in a meaningful way, such as the legacy organizations that have not fought back for years.
Lois Weiner
Syracuse, New York
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Trump is a toxic figure. Even though he’s a big supporter of Israel, he can wind up making Israel a partisan issue, which would be bad.
Ben Z. Katz
Skokie, Illinois
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I do not believe for one second that Trump’s motivation is fighting antisemitism. I do not support any of Mahmoud Khalil’s ideas or anti-Israel demonstrations in general. However, I do support freedom of speech and assembly, and the rule of law. The president can’t claim to be fighting antisemitism while allowing expressions of Nazism by administration officials to go unchecked. Until he speaks out against right-wing conspiracy theories, open expressions of Nazi ideology and Nazi salutes, he has no credibility as a fighter against antisemitism.
Ilisia Kissner
South Orange, New Jersey
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Arresting people without evidence and denying them due process, curtailing freedom of speech, controlling universities and other institutions by withholding money and whatever dysfunctional act they think up next will not benefit American Jews or curb antisemitism. And if tolerated, it will eventually be used against us.
Eileen S. Sklaroff
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
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Had this been done by the last administration, which it should have been, Jews everywhere would be applauding the stand he made against antisemitism. Even as a Democrat myself, I was appalled at the lack of any response to the constant harassment and abuse that Jewish students had to endure. The problem in the eyes of anyone decrying this now is who the punisher is. And as usual, when it comes to Jews, people are far more concerned with the “rights” of the abusers instead of their victims.
Jonathan Rosen
Cold Springs, Florida
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This is a time when Jews should just shut up. Of course many are conflicted about this — and the best thing we can do about this issue is to stay out of it.
Mark Lavie
Rehovot, Israel
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Trump will fabricate any rationale to support his authoritarian programs.
Michael Leffak
Dayton, Ohio
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I want to see the mainstream and conservative media report on just what crimes [Khalil] may have committed. For better or worse, speaking out for Hamas is not a crime in the U.S., but obstructing free access to campus buildings in support of Hamas, as many “activist” “protesters” have done, [can be] a crime. If the government has a legal case against him or any other foreigner, including the mere fact of illegal presence in the U.S., out they should go.
Dave Sherman
Needham, Massachusetts
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I revile the violence and repression urged by the so-called “pro-Palestinian” movement and believe that their true colors have been repeatedly demonstrated, I am embarrassed that the sweeping unconstitutional measures taken by the Trump administration claim to be done in my behalf. They are not.
James Bloom
Ashburn, Virginia
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I believe that Pres. Trump is weaponizing the battle against antisemitism to further weaken the Left. Intimidating dissent is very dangerous to democracy. If no actual crimes are documented, Kalhil has to be allowed to remain.
Steven Greenfield
Baldwin, New York
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Trump’s stance against antisemitism and his push to withdraw government funding from colleges that allow antisemitic protest is a strong moral and political position. Holding the universities accountable is long overdue; hate speech and other forms of discrimination especially antisemitic rhetoric should never be allowed to flourish. Trump is upholding American values condemning antisemitism protests. Stopping this extremism of the left from spreading by going unchecked in college campuses should have consequences.
Sunny Busch
Miami, Florida
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How long are we Jews going to play nice to those who are bent on our destruction? How long are we Jews going to protect the perceived rights of those who break the law and want us dead? Jews should stop playing nice. Stop being a part of the cohort of “useful idiots.”
Jack Krepel
Toronto, Ontario
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Free speech doesn’t include threats to Jewish students. Wake up, and stop trying to find liberal reasons to defend those who would love to kill all Jews.
Melvyn Libman
Conroe, Texas
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We Americans fear for our own safety and for other Jews but that alone is not a reason to support draconian measures for showmanship as performed by Trump’s marauders. It is an egregious assault on Constitutional rights to threaten deportation on those who speak for their beliefs. Extrajudicial actions by our government should not be supported by Jews on either side of the debate. I say this as an American Jew who was turned conservative by Oct. 7.
John L. Ghertner
Sodus, New York
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I strongly support President Trump’s policy and actions for countering antisemitism. It is a time for action. The nice words of the Biden administration policy on countering antisemitism accomplished nothing. The IHRA definition of antisemitism should be adopted by all states. Title VI must be enforced by the Department of Justice. Deporting aliens who support terrorists is vital. I feel these actions will support and protect the civil rights of Jewish-Americans.
Rosalind Shorenstein
Watsonville, California
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There is something seriously not kosher about this sort of extreme authoritarian response by the Administration. I agree that Americans and non-citizens alike who openly commit violence against Jewish students or ordinary civilians in this case certainly deserve the fullest extent of our criminal justice system. There is a clear line between protected speech and when people are openly fomenting acts of violence due to their intolerance towards others. I’m troubled by recent events in this country, and wonder whether I should move to Canada where there is still more respect for people’s differences than here in the USA.
Kerry M. Berger
Aurora, Colorado
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Trump doesn’t care about Jews. Don’t tell me about Ivanka and Jared and Bibi. Trump cares about Trump. What’s happening at Columbia and with Mahmoud Khalil is a smokescreen. I am not pro-Hamas or pro-Palestinian, but I do believe in the 1st Amendment. Bye, bye 1st Amendment, along with everything else Jews and all Americans should hold dear.
Linda G. Miller
New York, New York
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I have never ever liked Donald Trump or the MAGA movement. Also I am concerned that some of what Trump is doing with Jews and Israel may backfire against both American Jews and Israel. However, I do believe that foreign nationals who are sent here to get green cards to try to overthrow our institutions, cause chaos and feed antisemitism need to be sent back to where they may be more happy. To live here with a green card or a visa is a privilege, not a right.
Edward S. Beck
Huntingdon Valley, Pennsylvania
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I totally approve of the steps Trump is taking. He is making it very clear that Jew hatred will not be rewarded. The fact that doing nothing during the previous administration allowed the disgusting treatment of Jews to proliferate, proves that. The fact that following the barbarism of Oct. 7 Jew hatred only grew proves that. Sadly most people only understand pressure that affects them. If enough terrorist supporters get deported and enough antisemitic schools get their funding reduced, things will change. It’s a shame that many jews trying to prove that they are so superior in their liberalism actually hurt the fight against Jew hatred.
Dr. Doris Steinberg, 76
Montreal, Canada
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No, I do not agree with Trump’s so-called approach to antisemitism or to anything else whatsoever he is doing to undermine our universities, free speech, the fabric of our democracy and the rights of minorities including ours. Jews support him at our peril.
Dr. Lynda Mandlawitz, 76
New York, New York
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