Brigid Harrington Quoted in “Education Department Finds Michigan, CUNY Failed to Follow Title VI” in Inside Higher Ed
Title VI requires federally funded institutions to prevent harassment and discrimination based on shared ancestry, which includes both antisemitism and Islamophobia. The Education Department’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) has made it clear in multiple announcements that when a college or university receives a report of prohibited harassment or discrimination, they are obligated to respond, investigate and remedy the situation to prevent a hostile environment from persisting.
OCR has been investigating dozens of allegations of shared ancestry violations of Title VI since the start of the Israel-Hamas war and, this week, announced the first resolution agreements, which involve complaints against the University of Michigan and the City University of New York. Brigid Harrington discussed the findings with Inside Higher Ed.
“The number-one thing I learned is that if something appears to be free speech, you can’t just dismiss it as free speech,” said Brigid. “If people are saying they’re experiencing a harmful environment, OCR is going to really scrutinize your decision of what is the antisemitic speech versus what is political speech … That’s something you really have to look into.”
Continue reading “Education Department Finds Michigan, CUNY Failed to Follow Title VI” on the Inside Higher Ed website.
Categorized: News
Tagged In: free speech, shared ancestry violations, hostile environment, Islamophobia, antisemitic speech
