Student urged Jews to reject Harvard offers and avoid campus over fears of harassment and violence
Harvard student says anti-Israel agitators have been ‘given the keys’ to the university
Jewish Harvard University student Shabbos Kestenbaum said the school president should resign if he is unwilling to call in the National Guard.
A Harvard University student is urging Jews to stay away from campus amid an influx of anti-Israel agitators and is calling for President Alan M. Garber to resign if the situation is not handled.
"Let me be absolutely and abundantly clear: Harvard University is a free-for-all. There is no police presence. There is no administrator who is taking responsibility. The inmates are running the asylum," Harvard Divinity School student Shabbos Kestenbaum told Fox News Digital.
Kestenbaum, who comes from an Orthodox American family, claimed Harvard has "capitulated" and "acquiesced" to a "woke mob" that has expressed anti-democratic, anti-American, anti-capitalist and antisemitic views.
"They have given them the keys to Harvard University and have allowed them free rein to shout their antisemitic slogans, to physically accost Jews on campus, to call for the ethnic genocide of Jewish people, to call for the murder of Jewish people on Passover," he said.
Harvard University student Shabbos Kestenbaum is urging Jews to avoid campus and reject offers from the school. (Nik Lanum/Fox News/Anibal Martel/Anadolu via Getty Images)
In his personal capacity, Kestenbaum has spoken to dozens of Jewish students in recent days with a clear message about Harvard: "Avoid the campus for your own physical safety."
Kestenbaum has also told many Jewish students who have been admitted to Harvard to reject the offer because "they fundamentally treat Jews differently."
"We are taking a firm line in the sand that if Harvard does not discipline these antisemitic students, if they do not take immediate action, then we as Jewish people do not need Harvard. Harvard needs us," Kestenbaum added.
He said that former Harvard President Claudine Gay and current President Alan Garber have failed to meaningfully enforce any policy or hold people accountable for antisemitism. Kestenbaum said this inaction has led hundreds of students to violate an unprecedented number of school policies in the last several days.
Students and outside agitators have established encampments across school grounds and shouted anti-Israel slogans while Jews were celebrating Passover, including phrases like "Globalize the intifada," according to Kestenbaum.
As a response to these disruptions, the school closed Harvard Yard until Friday, restricting access to the outside area, according to the Harvard Crimson.
Only students and authorized staff with a Harvard ID have access to Harvard University due to the protests of recent days and thus prevent the growth of the protest zone at Harvard University, Cambridge, United States on April 25, 2024. (by Anibal Martel/Anadolu via Getty Images)
Blocking pedestrian pathways and access to building entrances was also prohibited, according to the Crimson. The university said that students who violate these policies are subject to disciplinary action.
The announcement comes after more than 200 anti-Israel protesters gathered in Harvard Yard on April 19 and demanded that the university divest from Israeli companies and investments in the West Bank.
"We have spineless leaders like Alan Garber who have refused to take any responsibility and discipline these students. So, we have a message for the president of Harvard University: Either send the National Guard or send your letter of resignation. But at this point, there's no in-betweens," he said.
Kestenbaum also claimed that school administrators have not responded to a single one of his several dozen emails and have refused to meet with Jewish students.
He added that many students have switched majors and no longer take classes at the Center for Middle Eastern Cities, calling it an "academically and intellectually hostile environment."
"The professors and the faculty are a core part and a core reason for the horrific antisemitism at Harvard. Where do these students get these ideas from? They get it from the classroom, where they're taught to demonize and de-legitimize both the Jewish state and the Jewish people," Kestenbaum said.
"These are failed leaders who do not care about the pandemic of antisemitism on their campus," he continued.
Harvard did not return Fox News Digital's request for comment.
Fox News' Stephen Sorace contributed to this report.
Nikolas Lanum is an associate editor for Fox News Digital.
