A new executive order from President Donald Trump aims to crack down on campus antisemitism, while also promising to revoke the student visas of international students who participated in “pro-jihadist protests.”

The order, which was issued Wednesday, promises to "aggressively prosecute” antisemitic terroristic threats, arson, vandalism and violence, requiring every federal executive department and agency leader to report actions available to fight antisemitism within the next two months.

And under the order, the federal government plans to deport international students who are “Hamas sympathizers” or joined in the “pro-jihadist protests.”

Reactions to the order were divided, as many campuses have been in the 16 months since the militant group Hamas launched a deadly attack on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023.

School officials at the University of Pittsburgh and Carnegie Mellon University say they are reviewing the order. CMU student Ben Koby, who serves as co-president of the university’s Jewish Graduate Student Association, expressed optimism.

“I think it’s always a good thing when all of a sudden the government starts taking antisemitism seriously,” Koby said. “It sounds like the president is going to take this very seriously, and that he is effectively polling the government for all options that he can take.”

In an email to international students this week, Pitt promised to share relevant information with these students as soon as the university learns it.

“We know that this proclamation and media reports regarding this order may cause some confusion and anxiety for some in our community,” part of Pitt’s email reads. “Please know we are closely monitoring all messages from the government and will alert you when there is anything that we believe may have an impact on our community.”

Trump’s order is the latest development in months-long campus tensions over the Israel-Hamas War, which has seen the deaths of more than 45,000 Palestinians and 1,700 Israelis. A ceasefire went into effect this month.

The deaths of thousands of Palestinians have struck a chord with many college students. At schools across the nation, students have expressed their concerns through protests, encampments and activism. Some student-led protests have remained peaceful; others have resulted in clashes with police.

The Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression, a Philadelphia-based nonprofit, also expressed concern over the order’s student visa piece. Public colleges like Pitt have First Amendment obligations to both citizens and student visa holders, said Alex Morey, FIRE’s vice president for campus advocacy.

“There are ways Congress can and should address antisemitic harassment on campus,” Morey said in an email. “But asking administrators to monitor and report foreign students who've done nothing more than express a particular political view, is deeply un-American. Depending on how colleges implement this, they run the risk of violating clearly established constitutional rights.”

FIRE instead recommends the government combat campus antisemitism by confirming that Title IV prohibits discrimination based on ethnic stereotypes, prohibiting harassment on the basis of religion, and codifying the Supreme Court’s definition of discriminatory harassment that protects students from harassment while promoting free speech rights, Morey said.

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