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I woke up on a cold Monday morning ready for my first day of the spring semester at Syracuse University. The wind bit at my face as I moved outside, the kind of sharp chill only central New York delivers. The scent of fresh coffee and toasted bagels filled the air as students huddled over their breakfasts at Goldstein Student Center, still shaking off the morning frost.

I caught the South Campus bus, gripping the icy metal pole as it lurched forward, sensing an air of optimism about classes starting fresh. Stepping off, I braced myself and walked toward my first class, the crunch of salt and snow beneath my boots grounding me in the possibilities of a new term.

For most students, the first day of college is a moment of excitement. But for Jewish students at Columbia University this year, that sense of anticipation was shattered mere moments into a specific lecture on the history of modern Israel.

A group of masked students flooded into the room, their movements swift and deliberate. They distributed flyers emblazoned with the image of a boot crushing the Star of David — a symbol not simply of opposition to Israel, but of open hostility toward Jews themselves.

The protesters’ message was not an invitation for discussion. Rather, it was an unmistakable attempt at intimidation and a blatant display of antisemitism intended to isolate and silence Jewish students and faculty. The classroom, meant to be a........

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