The United States Equal Employment Opportunity Commission filed a lawsuit against Penn alleging that the University failed to provide documents requested for an investigation into its handling of antisemitism complaints from Jewish faculty and staff on Tuesday.
The Nov. 18 complaint — which was filed in a Pennsylvania federal court — claimed that Penn “refused to comply” with a July subpoena seeking discrimination complaints filed by Jewish employees, membership lists of Jewish-related campus groups, and Jewish Studies Program employee names. In a response to the suit, Penn wrote that it has “cooperated extensively with the EEOC, providing over 100 documents, totaling nearly 900 pages.”
“However, we have not turned over to the government lists of Jewish employees, Jewish student employees and those associated with Jewish organizations, or their personal contact information,” the University statement read. “Violating their privacy and trust is antithetical to ensuring Penn’s Jewish community feels protected and safe.”
The lawsuit, first reported by The Philadelphia Inquirer, stemmed from an EEOC investigation that was launched in December 2023. The probe was announced just days before then-Penn President Liz Magill resigned from her position following mounting scrutiny over her handling of antisemitism allegations on campus.
“The EEOC remains steadfast in its commitment to combatting workplace antisemitism and seeks to identify employees who may have experienced antisemitic harassment,” 2008 College graduate and EEOC Chair Andrea Lucas — who initiated the investigation into Penn — said in a release. “Unfortunately, the employer continues to refuse to identify members of its workforce who may have been subjected to this unlawful conduct.”
In her initial notice to Penn, Lucas wrote that she had reason to believe that “since at least November 2022, the employer has engaged in a pattern or practice of harassment based on national origin, religion, and/or race against Jewish employees.”
The probe had not previously been made public.
Lucas also led a similar investigation into allegations of antisemitism at Columbia University this summer. While the institution denied wrongdoing, it paid $21 million towards a class settlement fund. According to a July 25 press release, the payment was “the largest EEOC public settlement in nearly 20 years for any form of discrimination or harassment.”
RELATED:
OREI failed to answer questions about alleged academic freedom violations, AAUP-Penn says
AAUP-Penn alleges Title VI office summoned faculty over ‘unsubstantiated’ antisemitism accusations
According to the Nov. 18 filing, Penn requested that the EEOC revoke its July subpoena — which sought more extensive documents than the University had initially provided — in a letter dated July 30.
On Sept. 2, EEOC responded to Penn, “partially modifying the subpoena” while denying Penn’s petition to revoke the order entirely, giving the University 21 days to comply.
In its statement, Penn said they have “worked diligently to combat antisemitism and protect Jewish life on campus.”
The lawsuit filing included several University statements dating back tofall 2023 that addressed instances of alleged antisemitic incidents on campus.
Both the announcement of Magill’s antisemitism action plan and the contents of the plan itself were included as evidence in the suit, along with Magill’s remarks to a meeting of the University Board of Trustees just days after she announced the plan.
At the time of its release, Magill described the plan in an email to the Penn community as a response to “pernicious acts of antisemitism” and “heartbreaking stories from those who are fearful for their safety right here at Penn.”
Anchored by the U.S. National Strategy to Counter Antisemitism, the plan committed the University to several steps to improve safety and security, engagement, and education on campus.
Magill’s messages addressing the incidents — which included unsubstantiated threats against Penn Hillel and Lauder College House and projections of pro-Palestinian messages onto campus buildings — were also included in the suit.
On Dec. 5, 2023, Magill testified in front of the U.S. Congress, drawing controversy for her statement that “it is a context-dependent decision” if calls for the genocide of Jews violated Penn’s code of conduct. The subsequent backlash prompted Magill’s resignation four days later.
Penn President Larry Jameson assumed Magill’s role later that month in an interim capacity as allegations of antisemitism continued to permeate Penn’s campus. The EEOC filing included a February 2024 message from Jameson in which he denounced then-Annenberg School for Communication lecturer Dwayne Booth’s political cartoons depicting the Israel-Hamas war, writing that the artwork was “reprehensible” and “painful to see.”
Another filing included a message from Penn Provost John Jackson Jr. addressing student concerns of doxxing and other forms of harassment.
The EEOC also published two emails from Jameson from April 2024 regarding the Gaza Solidarity Encampment that took place on College Green. One message, sent three days before the demonstration began, addressed growing campus unrest nationwide, while the other was sent 24 hours into the encampment and called for its disbandment.
The agency included two reports made to Penn’s Division of Public Safety — submitted on Feb. 26, 2024 and Jan. 17 — containing concerns about online harassment against Jewish individuals. The February 2024 report alleged that a pro-Palestinian student organization “posted harassing and doxing materials on Instagram concerning [a] faculty trip to Israel.”
Approximately 30 Penn faculty members had embarked on the three-day trip to Israel — characterized as a solidarity mission — in January of 2024.
The Jan. 17 report alleged that someone “obtained a list of people that went on birthright trips to Israel, posted the information publicly and is threatening that they are now on a list and will be avenged and should die.” According to the filing, DPS’ Special Services division looked into the matter and “the complainant was counseled on how to report the social media posts to the appropriate social media websites.”
The University statement said Penn provided information on employees who lodged complaints and “consented to have their information shared” but would not disclose information on those who objected.
Penn said it also “offered to help the EEOC” reach employees willing to provide information by “informing all employees of the investigation and how they could reach out to the agency.”
“The EEOC rejected that offer,” Penn’s statement added.
