A bill proposed by House Republicans seeks to send individuals convicted of illegal activities at anti-Israel college protests to Gaza for a minimum six-month community service sentence, asserting that “pro-Hamas” campus activists “should get a taste of [their] own medicine.”
The legislation, spearheaded by Tennessee Republican Rep. Andy Ogles and supported by Reps. Randy Weber (R-TX) and Jeff Duncan (R-SC) on Wednesday, is labeled the “Antisemitism Community Service Act,” and targets those involved in anti-Israel demonstrations, which have seen numerous arrests and instances of violence:
“If you support a terrorist organization, and you participate in unlawful activity on campuses, you should get a taste of your own medicine,” Rep. Weber told Fox News Digital. “I am going to bet that these pro-Hamas supporters wouldn’t last a day, but let’s give them the opportunity.”
Pro-Palestinian protests and encampments, which have frequently seen acts of violence and antisemitism, started at Columbia University in April and have spread to several other universities in recent days, including Yale, MIT, Princeton, Harvard, UCLA, and George Washington University.
Despite suspensions and arrests, new encampments continue to emerge:
The protesters have various demands, including urging universities to divest from Israeli companies, sever academic ties with Israeli universities, call for a ceasefire favoring Hamas, and grant amnesty to students sanctioned because of their involvement in the protests.
Additional demands include the defunding of campus police and reparations.
The bill does not explicitly mention Israel or the protesters’ affiliations but links the timing to events post-October 7, 2023, when the Hamas terrorist group perpetrated the deadliest attack against Jewish people since the Nazi Holocaust. The massacre saw the torture, rape, execution, immolation, and abduction of hundreds of Israeli civilians, as well as widespread Palestinian support for it.
The Iranian proxy Islamist terrorist organization targeted attendees at a music festival and those in southern Israeli towns, all while thousands of rockets rained down on Israeli civilian centers.
The brutal attack resulted in terrorists killing approximately 1,200 people, with about 240 hostages taken — more than half of whom still remain in Gaza. The vast majority of the victims are civilians and include dozens of American citizens:
The proposed punishment would involve community service in Gaza amidst ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas, aiming to quell the unrest and disturbances on U.S. college campuses, which have already witnessed more than 2,100 arrests despite some officials declining to allow police involvement on campuses.
In a post declaring, “Enough is enough!!!” Rep. Ogles tagged Tesla CEO and X/Twitter owner Elon Musk, who proposed last week that if someone “tears down the American flag and puts up another flag in its place, that person should get a free (but mandatory) one-way trip to that flag’s country”:
Critics have highlighted the bill’s unfeasibility and ethical implications, noting the slim Republican majority in the House and anticipated opposition in the Democrat-controlled Senate.
The proposal coincides with another bill aimed at canceling visas for international students involved in protests:
“If you hate America so much, you should get the first ticket back to your country and attend college there,” insisted Rep. Weber. “The unruly anti-Semites that are spewing hate & discontent on college campuses will not be tolerated in the United States.”
