Larson Condemns Republican's Unserious Campus Resolution, Calls for Real Action
Washington, D.C. - Yesterday, Rep. John B. Larson (CT-01) voted against H. Res. 927, a resolution addressing the testimony of university presidents at a Congressional hearing last week.
“I wholeheartedly condemn the hateful, antisemitic speech and actions that have risen in the United States and on college campuses since October 7th,” said Larson. “It is heartbreaking to hear about the impact this has had on students across the country and the failures of college communities to come together in safety and support. On November 2nd, I voted for a resolution which passed the House condemning antisemitism on campus. There should be no doubt of my conviction that antisemitic speech is heinous and should be denounced.”
“It has been clear from the beginning that Rep. Stefanik has no interest in taking these issues seriously, and instead engineered a “gotcha moment” to feed into the Republican culture wars. While it is clear that colleges across the country must do more to protect their Jewish students, singling out specific college administrators for comments made in a Congressional hearing and not on-campus actions is a meaningless exercise.”
“The experience of the last two months should lead us, as legislators, to examine strengthening Civil Rights laws on campus, increasing funding for Jewish organizations, and other policies that will protect Jewish students. We must think critically about how to protect free speech on campus while also providing a safe environment for every student. Before taking the unprecedented step of calling for the termination of specific individuals at private institutions, we should give the individuals the opportunity to defend themselves. Today’s resolution does none of these things.”
“This resolution continues the House Majority’s agenda of unserious legislating, spending time creating a moment made for Fox News consumption instead of crafting thoughtful legislation that would fund the government, aid Ukraine in their fight against Putin’s aggression, protect and enhance Social Security, or otherwise meaningfully improve the lives of the American people.”