College students at West Virginia University might need to assume twice earlier than handing out free copies of books sympathetic to the Israeli trigger.
The public university launched an investigation into scholar Eliyahu Itkowitz over accusations of non secular discrimination and harassment after he distributed copies of “The Ten Large Anti-Israel Lies: And How one can Refute Them with Reality,” the 2024 e book by authorized scholar Alan Dershowitz.
The Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression mentioned the university dropped the case in opposition to the freshman in Could after a months-long inside evaluation, however argued that your entire probe “by no means ought to have occurred within the first place.”
“This case aptly demonstrates that WVU’s coverage of investigating wholly protected expression has allowed college students and workers to weaponize the criticism course of to silence their ideological opponents,” mentioned Jessie Appleby, FIRE Program Counsel for Campus Rights Advocacy, in a Monday letter to WVU President E. Gordon Gee.
“That is an unacceptable and illegal consequence,” Ms. Appleby mentioned.
In January, the university opened the probe into Mr. Itkowitz primarily based on two complaints filed by campus eating corridor worker Hannah Harper.
She instructed the campus police and the Division of Range, Fairness and Inclusion that Mr. Itkowitz handed her a replica of an “anti-muslim e book” on Dec. 13, which she accepted.
She additionally mentioned that she acknowledged him from a social-media put up by the Muslim College students Affiliation.
In October 2024, the affiliation ran a photograph of Mr. Itkowitz on GroupMe, saying he had “already verbally harassed our Muslim sisters” and urging college students to contact campus police if “you ever really feel uncomfortable.”
“The Zionists on campus don’t get away with this conduct,” mentioned the affiliation. “We have now had one particular person arrested for vandalizing MSA property, and one other particular person charged with disruption and harassment, and he has left WVU utterly.”
In January, Ms. Harper filed one other criticism in opposition to Mr. Itkowitz for consuming on the eating corridor, claiming falsely that he had been banned. She additionally mentioned he had beforehand disparaged Muslims.
“She alleged he made anti-Muslim feedback, similar to calling her ‘anti-Jewish,’ and instructed her to do ‘[her] f—-ing job,’” mentioned the foundation in an announcement. “She additionally claimed that in November, Itkowitz walked by her within the eating corridor and mentioned to a good friend, ‘I didn’t know they let f—-ing terrorists work right here.’ Itkowitz denies making any of the feedback, and the witnesses current by no means noticed him communicate to her in any respect.”
Because of this, the university issued a no-contact order Jan. 16 instructing Mr. Itkowitz to avoid Ms. Harper. The DEI division started its investigation into the complaints on Jan. 27.
Ms. Appleby mentioned within the letter that “Itkowitz’s case will not be the primary of its variety at WVU.”
“By launching investigations and issuing no-contact orders primarily based on complaints solely alleging protected expression, WVU is permitting college students and workers with ideological disagreements to make use of its criticism course of as a cudgel to silence opponents,” mentioned Ms. Appleby.
A West Virginia University scholar handed a eating corridor employee a e book: “The Ten Large Anti-Israel Lies” by Alan Dershowitz.
She took it—then accused him of harassment, claiming the e book was anti-Muslim.
WVU launched a proper investigation. pic.twitter.com/7JpaxRNh3G
— FIRE (@TheFIREorg) June 17, 2025
She mentioned the university started a 10-month investigation into one other pro-Israel scholar who participated in a 2023 counter-protest in opposition to a pro-Palestinian protest that ended solely when the scholar left the university.
The foundation known as on the university to raise the no-contact order in opposition to Mr. Itkowitz and revise its course of for dealing with scholar complaints solely about protected speech.
“The right strategy is to have directors conduct a preliminary inside evaluation,” the letter mentioned. “If the evaluation confirms the alleged speech is protected, WVU ought to shut the matter with out ever notifying the speaker — thereby avoiding a chilling impact — whereas providing help to the complainant.”
The Washington Occasions has reached out to WVU for remark.
The foundation warned that universities can’t “permit weaponization of DEI investigations to inhibit the free alternate of concepts.”
“A college campus that investigates college students each time somebody is offended can’t perform as a house for rational dialogue and debate,” the group mentioned. “Directors should settle for that college students will typically be offended when confronted with views totally different from their very own.”
