NYU faculty to withdraw labor on Labor Day, demand campus reforms

NEW YORK – New York University Faculty and Staff for Justice in Palestine (NYUFJ4P) will begin refusing various forms of labor starting Monday, Labor Day in the US, unless the university meets the group’s demands regarding campus protests and free speech and assembly.

The “We Refuse” campaign is described not as a strike but as a “withdrawal” of some work activities that serve the administration and not students, according to an FAQ page from the group.

NYUFJ4P said it is not asking faculty to refrain from teaching, grading, holding office hours, or conducting research consultations with students. The group said faculty can refuse to participate in departmental committee assignments, service on school- or university-wide committees, appointments to task forces, listening sessions, and other representational work for the university.

Also included can be the refusal of “explicit or implicit participation in surveillance or policing of students or colleagues” and participation in DEI (Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion) initiatives that attempt to “advertise or bolster NYU’s supposed commitment to inclusion or social justice, while failing to acknowledge the university’s complicity in genocide and collaboration with the NYPD.”

NYUFJ4P statement

NYUFJ4P listed three conditions for the administration to adhere to: permanently remove NYPD from campus and reopen campus spaces, including for protest; grant full amnesty for students, staff, and faculty who faced disciplinary action for engaging in protests over Palestine; and publicly and consistently commit to protecting campus speech and protest, including speech and actions critical of any state, including Israel.

The conditions state: “Through these stipulations, put a stop to the weaponization of OEO, Title VI, and IHRA against members of the NYU community.”

NYUFJ4P said it did not receive a response from the administration by August 15, the deadline it requested.

“Instead, administration officials continue to avoid disclosure, issue unwarranted punishments, and misrepresent the facts of what has transpired over the last 10 months. We believe university leadership has forsaken the principles of academic freedom and institutional responsibility,” NYUFJ4P said.

Last Thursday, NYU released new student community standards, according to which “using code words, like ‘Zionist,’ does not eliminate the possibility that your speech violates the NDAH [Nondiscrimination and Anti-Harassment] Policy.”

This week, on Tuesday, NYU released a follow-up statement, clarifying that the community standards do not constitute a policy change; rather, they are a reminder of existing policies designed to “provide helpful examples to guide behavior and to set a more productive tone for the coming year.”

“Title VI of the Civil Rights Act is clear: it is incumbent on universities to provide a climate where teaching and learning can proceed free from discrimination. Upholding individuals’ civil rights is a legal requirement, underpinning our commitment to providing all students with the same educational opportunities, regardless of their race, ethnicity, national origin, or shared ancestry,” the statement said. “It is through our policies – informed by guidance from the Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (“OCR”) – that we comply with the law.”

According to the statement, “conduct that otherwise triggers our non-discrimination and anti-harassment policy cannot be shielded by using ‘Zionist’ as a substitute or codeword for Jew or Israeli,” adding that this is consistent with guidance from OCR and agreements NYU has entered with other schools.

“Excluding Zionists from an open event, calling for the death of Zionists, applying a ‘no Zionist’ litmus test for participation in any NYU activity, is not allowed,” the statement continued. “This is not the ‘weaponization’ of a word – it is providing further guidance to our community about how our policies apply in different circumstances. Our requirement to protect all students from discrimination, harassment, or threats – regardless of their background – is aided by greater clarity.”

NYU said it is not seeking to stifle speech and that it remains fully committed to academic freedom.

“OCR has made clear that criticism and debate about particular countries is permissible, a fact we included in our document. The Guidance and Expectations document focuses on exclusionary or harassing conduct against individuals, not scholarly or public debate and commentary on particular countries or their specific policies or actions,” the statement concluded.

In both a statement and in a post on X, NYUFJ4P said it was “alarmed by NYU’s updated guidance on student conduct, which sets a dangerous precedent by extending Title VI protections to anyone who adheres to Zionism, a nationalist political ideology, and equates criticism of Zionism with discrimination against Jewish people.”

NYUFJ4P said the new guidance implies that any nationalist political ideology that is integrated into some of that group’s understanding of their own racial or ethnic identity should be entitled to civil rights protections.

“This will only legitimize far-Right and ethno-nationalist ideologies,” the post said.

LAST WEEK, at a panel in conjunction with the Democratic National Convention, OCR Assistant Secretary Catherine Lhamon said her office saw a 20% increase in the number of Title VI complaints filed.

“We are seeing a quantum of harm that we couldn’t have conceived before. What we are confirming in the investigations in the office is that these actions happen and that all too often, our schools are not standing for our kids,” Lhamon said, adding that she’s proud to “disabuse any school of the notion that it does not need to act against hate.”

Lhamon said a Title VI violation would include discrimination based on stereotypes or perceptions about people based on their shared ancestry, the region of the world that they come from, or beliefs about countries that are identified by religion, “which obviously includes Israel.”

Since the release of NYU’s updated code of conduct, at least two New York congressmen have called for other universities to include anti-Zionism as discrimination.

“I am calling upon colleges and universities to follow NYU’s example in adopting a Nondiscrimination & Nonharassment policy that recognizes the insidious interrelatedness of Anti-Zionism and Antisemitism,” Rep. Ritchie Torres (D-NY) wrote on X.

In a separate post, he wrote, “If you are harassing, intimidating, and discriminating against Jews for whom Israel is important or essential to their identity (82% of Jews according to Pew Research), then you should be held accountable for creating a hostile environment for Jewish students.”

Rep. Dan Goldman, who introduced legislation to provide the overstretched OCR with double the amount of funding, said on X that he applauds NYU for recognizing that the term “Zionist” has become a code word and bigoted way to target Jews since October 7.

He wrote, “I hope other universities will follow suit.”

The Jerusalem Post reached out to an NYU spokesperson for comment on Monday’s planned labor withdrawal.