U.S. Senator Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va., joined 26 of her Senate Republican colleagues Tuesday in sending a letter — led by U.S. Senator Tom Cotton, R-Ark. —to Attorney General Merrick Garland and U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona, urging them to restore order to campuses that have been effectively shut down by anti-Semitic mobs that are targeting Jewish students.
The senators requested Garland and Cardona provide an update on efforts to protect Jewish students by Wednesday, April 24.
In part, the senators wrote: “You need to take action to restore order and protect Jewish students on our college campuses. President Biden issued a statement on Sunday, purporting to condemn the outbreak of anti-Semitism. If that statement was serious, it must be accompanied by immediate action from your departments.”
Since the Hamas-led attack against Israel on October 7, 2023, there has been a disturbing rise in anti-Semitic incidents, including targeted harassment, directed at Jewish children in K-12 schools, according to Capito.
Capito has joined a number of efforts condemning these anti-Semitic acts and called on the administration to address the rising rates of antisemitism, her office said Tuesday in a press release.