Dozens of current and former Barnard College employees received unexpected text messages on Monday evening asking if they are Jewish or Israeli, according to a New York Times report — a development that has sparked widespread concern, confusion, and troubling comparisons to historical episodes of persecution.
The messages, sent to personal mobile phones, claimed to be from the US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) and linked to a survey related to an ongoing federal investigation into alleged discrimination against Jewish employees at Barnard. The college confirmed on Wednesday that the messages were authentic and part of an EEOC probe launched last summer.
Barnard’s general counsel, Serena Longley, told faculty via email that the college had handed over employee contact information to the EEOC to allow them to participate in the investigation. “Participation in the survey is voluntary,” she wrote.
The survey contained direct questions about experiences of antisemitism and anti-Israeli sentiment in the workplace, including whether staff had faced “unwelcome comments, jokes or discussions,” or “antisemitic or anti-Israeli protests” that disrupted their working environment.
The method of outreach alarmed many on campus. “Clearly, it made everyone scared,” said Debbie Becher, a Jewish professor of sociology. “I’ve been getting text messages from my former graduate students and other faculty members — I still am — asking what they should do.”
Becher called the government’s tactics “a bit terrifying,” saying, “The federal government wants to know who the Jews are through some text message and Microsoft Office form.”
Nara Milanich, a history professor at Barnard, drew a chilling parallel to fascist regimes. “We’ve seen this movie before, and it ends with yellow stars,” she said, recalling research on 1930s Italy. She criticised the federal government’s approach as “fishing” for evidence. “Evidently, they don’t have sufficient people to file lawsuits, so they have to go shake the trees to find people?”
The Trump administration has been targeting elite universities, accusing them of tolerating antisemitism. Columbia University, with which Barnard is affiliated, has seen pro-Palestinian demonstrations on campus and is currently facing the withholding of over $400 million in federal research funding until it addresses concerns about antisemitism. Federal immigration officials have also detained some pro-Palestinian protesters for possible deportation.
While Barnard officials have not publicly commented, the college has reportedly been “robustly defending” itself against the EEOC inquiry. The agency has not responded to media requests.
Longley assured faculty that Barnard would, in future, provide advance notice before disclosing personal information to government agencies — unless legally barred from doing so.
