I'm leading Trump's antisemitism task force. We must protect Jewish people now and forever
Why such gratitude? This mission is deeply personal. I have been a civil rights attorney for 35 years. Jewish friends gave me my start as a civil rights attorney by allowing me to use office space free-of-charge when I was just getting off my feet. I am a child of the 1960s who understands the historic bond between Black and Jewish Americans. I remember the Jewish activists who stood shoulder to shoulder with Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., and I honor the memory of Andrew Goodman and Michael Schwerner, two young Jewish men murdered in Mississippi in 1964 for defending the rights of African Americans.
That history shows how deeply connected the Black and Jewish struggles for equality have been. Standing up against hate in one form means standing up against hate in all forms. The fight against antisemitism is not just a Jewish issue but also an American issue. I am proud to be a Black man leading this Task Force.
For four years, the previous administration largely ignored the rise of antisemitism across the country, leaving Jewish Americans exposed to growing danger. Trump, in contrast, has made combating antisemitism a top national priority.
His administration is confronting its most visible breeding grounds: American universities. At too many universities, antisemitism is not only tolerated but, in some cases, encouraged and protected.
The task force has identified institutions, including Harvard, Columbia, UCLA, and Northwestern, that enable antisemitic conduct. Federal funding freezes worth billions of dollars have forced these schools to acknowledge wrongdoing and adopt reforms immediately. Federal funding is a privilege, not a right. No one would object if the federal government withheld funds from universities that enable discrimination against Black students. The same principle must apply when Jewish students are targeted. Jewish students deserve to attend school without fear of harassment, intimidation or violence.
The fight does not stop at the classroom door. Antisemitism is spilling into America's streets. An anti-Israel extremist murdered two young staffers of the Israeli Embassy near the Capital Jewish Museum in Washington, D.C. They were an engaged couple preparing to build a life together. Instead of pursuing their dreams, they were gunned down together, and I watched their blood being cleaned from the sidewalk.
In Colorado, a Holocaust survivor was set on fire and killed, while others suffered horrific injuries. In St. Louis, antisemitic arsonists set fire to vehicles belonging to the family and friends of an American citizen who served in the IDF, leaving them destroyed, and defaced the area with hateful graffiti accusing him of murder and calling for the death of the IDF.
The task force and the entire Department of Justice are ensuring that those responsible for such acts of antisemitic violence face swift and uncompromising justice to the fullest extent allowed by law.
There is also economic antisemitism. Jewish institutions and communities across the country pay extra for security like no other community is required to. Recently, I was honored to deliver the keynote address at the Israel on Campus Coalition's National Leadership Summit in D.C.
The students were charged $228,169.53 for security, an amount they had no choice but to pay to stay safe as Jews because the city wouldn't provide it. This so-called "Jewish tax" is an insult to the principle of equal rights. My task force will continue pressing D.C. Democrat Mayor Muriel Bowser and other elected officials across the country to start taking this issue seriously.
At too many universities, antisemitism is not only tolerated but, in some cases, encouraged and protected.
The time to act is now. Permanent safeguards must be established before the end of Trump's term to guarantee that Jewish Americans remain protected no matter who holds the White House in the future.
For me, this is more than a job. This is a 24/7 mission to honor the civil rights heroes of the past, defend the victims of today's hate, and secure a future where Jewish Americans live free from fear in their own country.
The forces driving antisemitism, including Hamas and other terrorist groups, have made clear that their hatred will not stop with the Jewish people. Their ultimate target is the United States itself and the freedoms we all cherish. Defeating them is not just a moral imperative. The fight is for the safety and survival of every American.
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