Alan Dershowitz, Harvard Law professor emeritus, told Newsmax on Wednesday he favors President Donald Trump's executive order to address antisemitism on college campuses, but more needs to be done.
Trump signed the executive order, "Additional Measures to Combat Anti-Semitism," earlier Wednesday, one of three he signed to build upon his campaign promises of fundamental changes to the U.S. education system.
The order directs the Department of Justice and attorney general to take "immediate action" to prosecute antisemitic crimes such as vandalism and intimidation, as well as investigate "anti-Jewish racism in leftist, anti-American colleges and universities." The order also focuses on revoking student visas and deporting international students who are deemed sympathetic to Hamas.
It is similar to an executive order on combating antisemitism that Trump signed in his first administration.
"I helped draft his original antisemitism order back during his first term when he talked about universities having an obligation to treat antisemitism the way they treat other forms of racism and bigotry," Dershowitz told "The Record With Greta Van Susteren."
"And that had a big impact on college campuses. So I'm hoping this will have an equally big impact."
Campuses at colleges and universities across the U.S. were rocked by anti-Israel protests sparked by Iranian-backed Hamas' terrorist attack on Oct. 7, 2023, and Israel's military response. Many institutions also faced accusations of turning a blind eye to antisemitism.
"This is not going to be a short-term problem," Dershowitz said. "There's an enormous amount of antisemitism on campus.
"And ironically, it's particularly among left-wing woke groups, among some gay groups, transgender groups, feminist groups — people who would if they tried to go to Gaza, they would be killed the moment they got there. And yet they're speaking up for Hamas."
"I'm glad that the president and the administration is taking action against non-American citizens who are not entitled to be in this country. They're here as our guests, essentially with student visas, and they're abusing it because so many of these anti-Israel demonstrations are, at their core, anti-American demonstrations," he said.
"They hate Western values. They hate what America stands for. They hate what Israel stands for."
Dershowitz said he is hoping colleges and universities will apply a single-use standard for judging speech, where the penalty for saying something derogatory, for example, about Black people would apply to those against Jews and Zionists.
"Harvard has said it would do that, but let's wait and see if that actually happens in practice," he said. "It's a good step forward.
"I think we're in a better position today than we were a year ago. But there is a lot to go, because students — Jewish students, Zionist students, Christian students, Christian Zionists — feel very intimidated today on university campuses, in classrooms by teachers."
About NEWSMAX TV:
NEWSMAX is the fastest-growing cable news channel in America!
- Find Newsmax channel in your home via cable and satellite systems – More Info Here
- Watch Newsmax+ on your home TV app or smartphone and watch it anywhere! Try it for FREE -- See More Here: NewsmaxPlus.com
Michael Katz ✉
Michael Katz is a Newsmax reporter with more than 30 years of experience reporting and editing on news, culture, and politics.
© 2025 Newsmax. All rights reserved.