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Illinois U expands nondiscrimination policies to protect Jewish students' Zionist identity

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Illinois U expands nondiscrimination policies to protect Jewish students' Zionist identity


Discrimination and harassment of Jewish students based on Zionist aspects of their identity will be prohibited by the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, the university and Jewish organizations announced on Tuesday as part of an agreement to extend nondiscrimination policies to include targeting of Jews and more expansive definitions of antisemitism.

The agreement of mutual understanding between the university, Jewish United Fund of Chicago, Hillel International, and Illinois Hillel would extend to Jewish students the protections of the university’s 1987 nondiscrimination policy, which prohibits discrimination and harassment based on protected characteristics against students, faculty, and staff for admissions, employment, and university programs and activities.

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The university’s pledge to protect Jewish students included their harassment or discrimination based on “Zionist aspects of their Jewish identity.” The university had previously recognized that Zionism is an integral part of the identity of Jewish identity in a 2020 statement with the same Jewish organizations and promised to recommit to the declaration.

“UIUC has agreed to reform its policies and procedures in a pathbreaking manner that can serve as a model for higher education institutions across the country,” said Hillel president and CEO Adam Lehman. “These critical commitments will make campus safer and more welcoming for Jewish students and for all students in Urbana-Champaign.”

Hillel International introduces Adam Lehman as new CEO (credit: Courtesy)

Taking real action

The university said it would take action against such discrimination, which included not permitting registered student organizations (RSOs) to boycott university-sponsored activities because of Jewish students organization participation.

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 RSOs will be required to sign nondiscrimination statements to prevent the exclusion of any students based on any protected characteristics.

Projects to be developed by the university will include a bias incidents information dashboard and an advisory council on inclusion and belonging.

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The university will offer training for administration and students on antisemitism in cooperation with Hillel, which will include how students can experience anti-Zionist conduct as antisemitism. 

There will also be at least one annual meeting held at the institution for students, faculty and staff to raise concerns about incidents of harassment.

According to the agreement, the university recognized the 2023 US National Strategy which elaborates that it is antisemitism when Jews are derided and excluded on campus based on their views on Israel, and when Israel is singled out because of anti-Jewish animus.

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The strategy also defines antisemitism as “a stereotypical and negative perception of Jews, which may be expressed as hatred of Jews.”

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“It is prejudice, bias, hostility, discrimination, or violence against Jews for being Jews or Jewish institutions or property for being Jewish or perceived as Jewish,” read the strategy and agreement. “Antisemitism can manifest as a form of racial, religious, national origin, and/or ethnic discrimination, bias, or hatred; or, a combination thereof. However, antisemitism is not simply a form of prejudice or hate. It is also a pernicious conspiracy theory that often features myths about Jewish power and control.”

Backed by the US federal state

The agreement coincides with a US  Department of Education Office for Civil Rights resolution of a complaint against the university for antisemitic discrimination.

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The OCR and the university came to a resolution agreement for a 2020 complaint that included allegations of frequent swastika graffiti on campus, damaged Jewish religious items, and a brick being thrown through a Jewish fraternity house window.

After reviewing 135 incidents of anti-Jewish discrimination and four incidents of anti-Muslim, anti-Palestinian, or anti-Arab discrimination, the OCR came to the conclusion that the university did not meet its 1964 Civil Rights Act Title VI obligations to assess whether a hostile environment was being created on campus. 

The investigation claimed that the university arms for responding to complaints lacked coordination and inconsistency in the application of policies and procedures, leading to gaps in responses to discrimination.

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The university agreed to revise its nondiscrimination policies to ensure that reported incidents were not creating a hostile environment, and policies for law enforcement response to protests to ensure Title VI compliance. The university will also provide training to law enforcement and anti-discrimination staff, and annual training on discrimination to students, staff and faculty.

“The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign has now agreed to take the steps necessary to ensure its education community can learn, teach, and work without an unredressed antisemitic hostile environment, or any other hostility related to stereotypes about shared ancestry,” Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights Catherine Lhamon said in a statement. “OCR will work with the University in the coming years to ensure its fulfillment of this core federal civil rights guarantee.”





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Authorities: Woman’s BAC was nearly 3 times legal limit in Lombard, Illinois crash that injured family of 4

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Authorities: Woman’s BAC was nearly 3 times legal limit in Lombard, Illinois crash that injured family of 4


A woman was released on electronic monitoring Wednesday after authorities said she drove drunk and caused a crash that injured a family of four in Lombard, Illinois.

Among the injured was a 10-year-old boy.

Jaquelin Onofre Reyes, 27, appeared in DuPage County First Appearance Court on Wednesday morning. The DuPage County State’s Attorney’s office had asked to have Reyes detained on a charge of felony aggravated driving under the influence causing great bodily harm, but Judge Joshua Dieden denied the motion.

Onofre Reyes was instead released on electronic monitoring — with conditions that she may not possess or consume any alcohol or drugs.

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Lombard police were called at 12:12 p.m. Tuesday for the crash at Route 53 and the Illinois Prairie Path.

Authorities said Onofre Reyes was driving a Hummer sport-utility vehicle south on Route 53 when she veered into the northbound lanes in an attempt to pass traffic in front of her. When Onofre Reyes tried to get back into the southbound lanes, she hit another car, crossed back into oncoming northbound traffic, and hit an Infiniti sport-utility vehicle headed north, authorities said.

Inside the Infiniti were a family of four, with two children ages 7 and 10. Everyone in the family was taken to the hospital, authorities said.

The 10-year-old boy suffered serious injuries and has been taken to another hospital for surgery, authorities said.

Police found that Onofre Reyes had two open containers of alcoholic beverages in her car at the time of the crash, authorities said. Her blood alcohol level was .238 — nearly three times the legal limit, authorities said.

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“This incident involved a reckless and irresponsible individual who allegedly chose to operate a motor vehicle while impaired with complete disregard for the safety of others,” Lombard police Chief Joe Grage said in a news release. “Unfortunately, this decision led to a crash that caused significant injuries to innocent people.”

Onofre Reyes is due back in court on Jan. 20 in front of DuPage County Judge Ann Celine O’Hallaren Walsh.



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SCOTUS blocks deployment of National Guards to Illinois

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SCOTUS blocks deployment of National Guards to Illinois


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 SCOTUS blocks deployment of National Guards to Illinois



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Supreme Court rejects Trump’s bid to deploy National Guard in Illinois

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Supreme Court rejects Trump’s bid to deploy National Guard in Illinois


WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court on Tuesday rebuffed the Trump administration over its plan to deploy National Guard troops in Illinois over the strenuous objections of local officials.

The court in an unsigned order turned away an emergency request made by the administration, which said the troops are needed to protect federal agents involved in immigration enforcement in the Chicago area.

Although the decision is a preliminary one involving only Chicago, it will likely bolster similar challenges made to National Guard deployments in other cities, with the opinion setting significant new limits on the president’s ability to do so.

The decision marked a rare defeat for President Donald Trump at the Supreme Court, which has a 6-3 conservative majority, after the administration secured a series of high-profile wins this year.

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In doing so, the court at least provisionally rejected the Trump administration’s view that the situation on the ground is so chaotic that it justifies invoking a federal law that allows the president to call National Guard troops into federal service in extreme situations.

Those circumstances can include when “there is a rebellion or danger of a rebellion” or “the president is unable with the regular forces to execute the laws of the United States.”

The court ruled against the administration on a threshold question, finding that the law’s reference to the “regular forces” only allows for the National Guard to be called up if regular military forces are unable to restore order.

The court order said that Trump could only call up the military where they could “legally execute the laws” and that power is limited under another law called the Posse Comitatus Act.

“At this preliminary stage, the Government has failed to identify a source of authority that would allow the military to execute the laws in Illinois,” the court said.

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As a result, the Trump administration has failed to show that the National Guard law “permits the President to federalize the Guard in the exercise of inherent authority to protect federal personnel and property in Illinois,” the court added.

The decision saw the court’s six conservative justices split, with three in the majority and three in dissent. The court’s three liberals were in the majority.

The dissenters were Justices Samuel Alito, Clarence Thomas and Neil Gorsuch.

“I have serious doubts about the correctness of the court’s views. And I strongly disagree with the manner in which the court has disposed of this application,” Alito wrote in a dissenting opinion.

“There is no basis for rejecting the President’s determination that he was unable to execute the federal immigration laws using the civilian law enforcement resources at his command,” he added.

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Trump’s unusual move to deploy the National Guard, characteristic of his aggressive and unprecedented use of executive power, was based on his administration’s stated assessment that the Chicago area was descending into lawless chaos.

That view of protests against surging immigration enforcement actions in Chicago is rejected by local officials as well as judges who have ruled against the administration.

The deployment was challenged in court by the Democratic-led state of Illinois and the city of Chicago, with their lawyers saying Trump had an ulterior motive for the deployment: to punish his political opponents.

They argued in court papers that Trump’s invocation of the federal law was not justified and that his actions also violated the Constitution’s 10th Amendment, which places limits on federal power, as well as the Posse Comitatus Act, which generally bars the military from conducting law enforcement duties.

U.S. District Judge April Perry said she “found no credible evidence that there is a danger of rebellion” and issued a temporary restraining order in favor of the state.

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The Chicago-based 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals largely reached the same conclusion, saying “the facts do not justify the president’s actions.”

The court did narrow Perry’s order, saying that Trump could federalize the troops, but could not deploy them.

The Supreme Court has frequently ruled in Trump’s favor in recent months as the administration has rushed to the justices when policies are blocked by lower courts.

Trump’s efforts to impose federal control over cities led by Democrats who vociferously oppose his presidency are not just limited to Chicago. He has also sought to deploy the National Guard in the District of Columbia, Los Angeles and Portland, Oregon.

Most recently, hundreds of National Guard troops deployed in Illinois and Oregon were set to return to their home states.

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The deployment in the District of Columbia, which is a federal enclave with less local control, has been challenged in court, but there has been no ruling yet.

A federal appeals court allowed the Los Angeles deployment, and a different panel of judges on Oct. 20 ruled similarly in relation to Portland.



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