Hillel files, then withdraws, brief supporting Harvard's campus antisemitism fight against Trump

Hillel argued that the Trump administration’s moves to defund the school “do not help Jewish students or improve the campus climate.” Follow us on GoogleA sign at Harvard Hillel in Cambridge, Massachusetts, in the aftermath of the Oct. 7 attacks in Israel, on December 12, 2023.(photo credit: Joseph Prezioso / AFP via Getty Images)ByANDREW LAPIN/JTAJULY 24, 2026 12:19In the span of a few hours, Hillel International filed, then withdrew, an amicus brief supporting Harvard University in its ongoing legal battle with the Trump administration over campus antisemitism enforcement procedures.A representative for the Hillel parent organization told the Jewish Telegraphic Agency the original 22-page brief filed on Wednesday “was filed without having gone through our internal review process.” They did not elaborate further.The whiplash further complicated institutional Jewish efforts to address campus antisemitism while sounding an alarm about some of the government’s aggressive enforcement mechanisms.In its since-withdrawn brief, Hillel had argued that Harvard has improved in its response to antisemitism, also asserting that the Trump administration’s moves to defund the school “do not help Jewish students or improve the campus climate.” “To the contrary, they disproportionately impact the very Jewish students and Jewish researchers the government purportedly seeks to help,” the brief continued. It followed Harvard’s own brief in the case, which centers on federal efforts to cite antisemitism as grounds to freeze more than $2 billion in US Health and Human Services contracts and grants.Demonstrators in support of Gaza raise red hands behind Harvard graduate student Shabbos Kestenbaum, a witness at a US House Judiciary Subcommittee hearing on ‘Antisemitism on College Campuses’ last year. (credit: EVELYN HOCKSTEIN/REUTERS)Hillel withdraws amicus brief backing Harvard against TrumpJewish legacy groups have sought to straddle their demands for a crackdown on campus antisemitism with concerns that the Trump administration’s threats of massive cuts could harm research and students.The brief had been signed by Mark Rotenberg, Hillel International’s general counsel and head of its Campus Climate Initiative, as well as by attorney David Zimmer. Neither Rotenberg nor Zimmer immediately returned requests for comment.Harvard Hillel, which is independent from Hillel International, told JTA in a statement that it had nothing to do with either the decision to file or withdraw the brief.“We hope that this dispute between Harvard and our government soon comes to a resolution that safeguards the rights of Harvard’s Jewish students and faculty, strengthens the university’s academic mission, and advances the preeminence of American research and industry,” a Harvard Hillel spokesperson said.Hillel’s defense of Harvard in the case had immediately proved controversial. Shabbos Kestenbaum, a Jewish Harvard alum turned conservative campus activist, had castigated Hillel for the brief and urged Jews to stop donating to the organization on social media Wednesday evening, shortly before the group announced it was withdrawing the brief.“I encourage Jewish donors to pull their funding and support from Hillel and instead support organizations that positively impact the Jewish future,” Kestenbaum wrote on Facebook in response to the amicus brief. “It’s clear that Hillel does not want to reform.”Kestenbaum later told JTA, “It’s increasingly obvious to any donor who wants to have an honest conversation with American Jewish students that a significant amount of the Jewish establishment is failing in that mission.”He also had harsh words for Harvard Hillel, accusing the organization of having discouraged an undergraduate student from flying an Israeli flag, among other allegations.In response, a Harvard Hillel representative did not address Kestenbaum’s specific allegations. The representative told JTA that the organization “decisively improves the lives of Jewish students, and Harvard as a whole. For anyone who cares about defeating antisemitism at Harvard — there is no better allocation of your resources than supporting Harvard Hillel.”Follow us on Google