CHICAGO — Dozens of public commenters at the University of Illinois system board meeting on July 25 urged trustees to divest the university’s investments from companies they said fund the Israel–Gaza conflict, and described a campus climate they said has failed to protect both Jewish and Palestinian students.

Speakers representing a mix of current students, alumni and community groups told the board during the allotted public‑comment period that university relationships and investments with Israeli institutions and certain corporations amount to complicity in human rights abuses and have harmed students on campus. Charles Cohen, executive director of Metro Chicago Hillel, said Jewish students feel unsafe and urged administrators to adopt remedies similar to agreements reached in Urbana‑Champaign to address discrimination. “Jews are scared,” he said.

Other commenters detailed alleged incidents they said were evidence of anti‑Palestinian discrimination. A UIC alum who said she had served as sorority president told trustees, “Using our presence on campus is not representation, it's exploitation,” and asked the system to create a student‑selected chancellor advisory committee for Middle Eastern and North African students. Another alum said the system awarded $200,000 to research projects in partnership with the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and linked that grant to broader campus harms: “That $200,000 grant went to researchers at a university in a country currently committing genocide,” she said.

Several speakers reported filing or pursuing complaints with university offices and with the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights. One speaker said an Office for Civil Rights investigation is now open; another said they had to file complaints after alleged removal of Palestinian students from online events and after being doxxed on a website aimed at exposing pro‑Palestinian activists. Olivia Schwartz, a student from Urbana‑Champaign, said she and others reported antisemitic incidents to campus officials and that she had seen little substantive action. “No one from the chancellor to the vice chancellor or student affairs to the Title VI office can say they are unaware,” she said.

Speakers on both sides of the issue urged stronger protections for students’ free‑speech rights and for their physical safety. Commenters demanded trustees direct the university to divest from specific defense and weapons manufacturers and to end partnerships they described as morally inconsistent with the university’s teaching on ethics and public good. One alum asked trustees to “divest from any investments in companies that sustain Israel's ability to kill us and to steal our land.”

Board chair Brandon Ruiz and other trustees declined to engage in debate during the public‑comment period; the board’s stated procedures reserve that time for comment rather than discussion. After repeated interruptions from protesters later in the session, Ruiz cautioned that disruptions could require removal and emphasized the board’s public‑comment procedures.

No formal board action on the investment or divestment requests was taken at the meeting. Several speakers said they expect further action or formal responses from the university system and noted ongoing complaints to federal civil‑rights authorities.

Why it matters: Trustees oversee university investments, policies on nondiscrimination and student conduct. Public commenters asked the board to align investment decisions and campus procedures with the university’s stated commitments to access, equity and safety for students and faculty.

What trustees recorded: The board listened to 10 public commenters under its rules and did not vote on any of the demands presented during public comment.