EVANSTON, Ill. – Some Northwestern University students were not allowed to enroll for classes in the fall quarter for refusing or challenging training meant to combat antisemitism that they claimed was “offensive” and “unscholarly.”

In an open letter to university administrators, more than 200 current students and graduate workers, alumni, staff, faculty, and parents, claimed that training videos on antisemitism and “anti-Muslim, anti-Arab and anti-Palestinian biases” would actually reinforce discriminatory bias.

The university’s administration said the students received reminders of the required training for several months before their registration was withheld.

Student claims

What we know:

The letter detailed specific issues the students had with the content of the training videos.

Among the claims the group made, they said:

• The videos gave unequal attention to the histories of Israel and Palestine and the losses of life among Israelis and Palestinians. Specifically, they claimed the videos discuss the Hamas-led attacks on Oct. 7, 2023, in which more than 1,200 people were killed, but “does not mention the ongoing genocide in Gaza.” More than 65,000 people have been killed in Gaza during the ongoing war.
• The students said the videos provide “inaccurate historical information that erases the pain, suffering, and existence of the Palestinian people.” For instance, they claimed the videos use a “contemporary” map of Israel, which includes the Golan Heights, a territory Israel annexed to widespread condemnation, although the previous Trump administration recognized.

• Students also said the “Antisemitism Here/Now” training video is “unscholarly in numerous ways. They claimed it did not cite its sources and it “makes broad generalizations unsupported by evidence.” As an example, they said the video claimed it spoke on behalf of “the vast majority” of Jews, but cited no statistics.

The students wrote in their letter:

“For these many reasons, we believe the training to be biased, unscholarly, discriminatory, and harmful to the Northwestern community overall. As a consequence, we cannot, in good conscience, take this training and accept that this content be imposed on our entire community, as well as on generations of students to come.”

They also made certain requests of the administration, including that the school not prevent students from enrolling or expel them for their “principled stance against this denialist, unscholarly, discriminatory and morally harmful training.” The students also wanted Northwestern to “STOP IMMEDIATELY” the dissemination of the training “in its current form.”

The administration’s statement

In a statement, the university’s administration said students are required to complete annual training about discrimination, harassment, and sexual misconduct. They explained that if they chose not to complete the mandatory training, this will result in “University action, including a registration hold.”

The statement continued, “Students are not required to agree with the training modules but must attest that they will abide by the Student Code of Conduct, as well as the University’s policy on Discrimination, Harassment and Sexual Misconduct.”

The administration said the students were reminded of the mandatory training over the last several months.

For the 2024-2025 school year, Northwestern University reported a total enrollment of more than 23,000 students between undergraduate and graduate students, according to university documents.