From the Editor

by Leon G. Fine

June 26, 2025

One of the most worrying aspects of the current political chaos in the USA, is its anticipated effect on young people.

Not only within the US, but internationally, ambitious young people making their way in the modern world, have been streaming in their tens of thousands to take up degree courses in institutions of higher learning in the USA. Graduates of such institutions may stay in the US and go on to obtain higher degrees or choose to enter the worlds of humanities, science, medicine or engineering where post-doctoral training equips them for future careers in business, industry or academia. Some stay on and some return to their home countries, often to revolutionize their cultures.

Interestingly, there is little travel by US students in the opposite direction, to institutions in China, Japan, Germany and even the UK, making language alone not the sole explanation. Clearly the culture of free-speech, enquiry, openness and diversity of viewpoints in US institutions has been the currency of this unidirectional movement.

This has now all come to a halt. The youth of many countries will be affected. Universities which have become increasingly dependent on federal funding to sustain their offerings of higher education and research output, have now found themselves targets of draconian restrictions. Original threats to curtail funding by the Federal administration involving, in some cases, hundreds of millions of dollars, have already moved beyond threats. Rescinding of accreditation and tax-exempt status for the most prestigious of institutions is being considered. International students are no longer welcome. Over 60 Universities have been informed that their practices will be investigated. Some will do their best to comply with demands and some have already begun to challenge these actions in the courts of law.

The motives for all this are not difficult to discern. Accusations by the Administration of universities’ political narrowness, left-leaning faculty, biased course offerings and a culture of restricted viewpoints, is their stated rationale. It started in 2023 when the leaders of some the most prestigious of universities were asked to account for charges of antisemitic behavior on their campuses. Resignations followed. Institutions began to tighten their belts, faculty were laid off, student visas were rescinded and courses were cancelled.

And now, remarkably, the excuse given for this attack by the Administration, is the prevalence of antisemitism on a wide scale in US universities. Failure to comply with the Administration’s attempts to root out antisemitism has been the stated reason for its actions. The excuse is clumsy and not believable. This inversion of history, where, rather than antisemitism being portrayed, as it usually is, as the basis for societal decay, here the opposite is argued; it is the failure to respond to charges of antisemitism that is reason for the decay!

Is there evidence of widespread antisemitic behavior on different levels in various forms on US university campuses? Yes, there is. Are such universities and colleges bastions of Jew-hatred, rampant racist violence or vastly imbalanced faculties which are unable to educate towards viewpoint-diversity? No, they are not. Have their leaderships attempted to address legitimate concerns about suppressing antisemitic behaviors on their campuses?  Yes, they have. Can they improve their local cultures given enough time? Yes, they can.

It is transparently clear that the presumption by some that government demands are being delivered in good faith and that failure to comply with demands for addressing antisemitic behavior, is naïve and wrong. The culture of higher education has been and will be severely compromised and young people around the world will be the victims. Readers of this magazine will be rightfully concerned about the future for their children and grandchildren.

Who is to blame for this unfortunate state of affairs? As always, the Jews of course.