{
  "id": "2024-11-06-depaul-university-antisemitic-attack",
  "slug": "depaul-university-antisemitic-attack-2024-11-06",
  "institution": {
    "name": "DePaul University",
    "shortName": "DePaul",
    "state": "IL",
    "type": "private-r2",
    "alertSystemName": "DePaul Public Safety Alert",
    "enrollment": 21000
  },
  "incident": {
    "date": "2024-11-06",
    "type": "aggravated-assault",
    "cleryCategory": "timely-warning",
    "headline": "Two Jewish students attacked outside the student center; hate-crime investigation",
    "headlinePublic": "Two Jewish students attacked outside the student center; hate-crime investigation",
    "summary": "On the afternoon of November 6, 2024, [two Jewish DePaul University students were attacked in front of the Lincoln Park Student Center](https://abc7chicago.com/post/hate-crime-investigation-underway-after-jewish-students-attacked-outside-depaul-student-center-lincoln-park-campus/15522695/) by masked assailants who [used antisemitic slurs while striking them](https://www.cnn.com/2024/11/07/us/depaul-jewish-students-attack-israel/index.html). [DePaul issued a Public Safety alert](https://offices.depaul.edu/president/notes-from-rob/2024-2025/Pages/nov-6-2024-incident-on-campus.aspx) the same evening, and Chicago Police investigated the incident as a hate crime. Adam Erkan was later charged.",
    "outcome": "The two students, identified in lawsuits as Max Long (an IDF reservist) and Michael Kaminsky, were beaten, with Long suffering a brain injury/concussion and Kaminsky suffering a fractured wrist that required surgery. Chicago Police investigated the assault as a hate crime; Adam Erkan, whom prosecutors described as having worn a ski mask, was charged with seven felonies including four hate-crime counts. Erkan reached a December 2025 plea deal in which the felony and hate-crime charges were dropped, pleaded guilty to misdemeanor battery causing bodily harm, and was sentenced to two years of probation and 100 hours of community service. A second masked attacker has not been identified or charged. The two students have since sued DePaul University for negligence.",
    "resolution": "confirmed-threat",
    "casualties": {
      "killed": 0,
      "injured": 2
    }
  },
  "alerts": [
    {
      "sequence": 1,
      "type": "initial",
      "timestampApprox": "Evening of November 6, 2024 CST",
      "channel": "email",
      "verbatimText": "",
      "isVerbatimConfirmed": false,
      "sourceDescription": "Reconstructed from CBS Chicago, ABC7, and DePaul President's office reporting on the November 6, 2024 Public Safety alert sent the evening of the incident",
      "annotations": []
    },
    {
      "sequence": 2,
      "type": "follow-up",
      "timestampApprox": "Evening of November 6, 2024 CST, after the initial Public Safety alert",
      "channel": "email",
      "verbatimText": "Earlier this evening, you received a Public Safety alert about a battery that occurred in front of the Student Center on the Lincoln Park Campus at approximately 3:20 p.m. this afternoon. I'm appalled to share that the attack targeted two Jewish students at DePaul who were visibly showing their support for Israel. Masked attackers punched our students, who sustained physical injuries but declined medical treatment.\n\nStudent Affairs is working with the students to offer care and resources. We are outraged that this occurred on our campus. It is completely unacceptable and a violation of DePaul's values to uphold and care for the dignity of every individual.\n\nThe university is actively working with the Chicago Police Department to investigate this incident so that they can determine whether to classify it as a hate crime that targeted our students because of their Jewish identity. We will do all we can to hold those responsible accountable for this outrageous incident. We will continue to do everything possible to ensure DePaul is a safe and welcoming space for every member of our diverse university community.\n\nWe recognize that for a significant portion of our Jewish community, Israel is a core part of their Jewish identity. Those students – and every student - should feel safe on our university campus. Our shared expectations and guiding principles make it clear that DePaul will not tolerate any acts of hatred or violence. Please know that the safety and wellbeing of our university community remains our highest priority. If you have information regarding this incident or experience any threats or acts of violence, please report them immediately to Public Safety at 773-325-7777 (Lincoln Park) or 312-362-8400 (Loop). If you are in need of support, a collection of resources for students, faculty and staff is available here.",
      "isVerbatimConfirmed": true,
      "sourceUrl": "https://offices.depaul.edu/president/notes-from-rob/2024-2025/Pages/nov-6-2024-incident-on-campus.aspx",
      "sourceDescription": "DePaul President Robert L. Manuel's 'Notes from Rob' message archived on the official DePaul University site, November 6, 2024",
      "annotations": [
        "President Manuel's statement was issued the same evening as the Public Safety alert, unusually fast presidential engagement for a non-life-threatening incident",
        "The phrase 'I'm appalled' (later echoed as 'outraged') gave the letter its widely quoted tone; NBC Chicago's headline was simply 'Outraged'",
        "Explicitly framing the targeting around 'their Jewish identity' set the institutional position before the police completed their hate-crime classification",
        "The closing nod that 'for a significant portion of our Jewish community, Israel is a core part of their Jewish identity' was a deliberate refusal to bracket Israel solidarity from Jewish identity, a contested move at many peer institutions during the Israel–Hamas war"
      ],
      "characterCount": 1852
    }
  ],
  "context": "[DePaul University](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DePaul_University), founded in 1898, is the largest Catholic university in the United States, with approximately 21,000 students across its Lincoln Park and Loop campuses in Chicago. It is operated by the Vincentian fathers (Congregation of the Mission). On the afternoon of November 6, 2024 (one day after the US presidential election and 13 months into the Israel–Hamas war) [two Jewish DePaul students were attacked at approximately 3:20 p.m. CST in front of the Student Center on the Lincoln Park Campus](https://abc7chicago.com/post/hate-crime-investigation-underway-after-jewish-students-attacked-outside-depaul-student-center-lincoln-park-campus/15522695/). The students were visibly showing support for Israel; their attackers wore masks, struck one in the face and body, pushed the other to the ground, and used antisemitic slurs before fleeing. [DePaul issued a Public Safety alert that evening](https://offices.depaul.edu/president/notes-from-rob/2024-2025/Pages/nov-6-2024-incident-on-campus.aspx), and President Robert L. Manuel issued a same-day statement condemning the attack and noting Chicago Police were investigating it as a hate crime. [Adam Erkan, whom prosecutors described as having worn a ski mask, was later charged](https://www.cbsnews.com/chicago/news/suspect-in-2024-attack-of-two-jewish-students-depaul-university-pleads-guilty/) with seven felonies including four hate-crime counts, but pleaded guilty in December 2025 (under a deal that dropped the felony and hate-crime charges) to misdemeanor battery causing bodily harm and was sentenced to two years of probation and 100 hours of community service. A second masked attacker remains unidentified. [The two students have since sued DePaul](https://www.cbsnews.com/chicago/news/depaul-university-lawsuit-jewish-students-attacked-max-long-michael-kaminsky/) for alleged negligence in failing to protect them. The case is significant for the archive because it documents how Catholic universities navigate antisemitic violence on campus during the Israel–Hamas war, the alert language explicitly named the religious-political targeting in a way many peer institutions have avoided.",
  "keyFindings": [
    "DePaul's Public Safety alert explicitly stated the victims were targeted for 'visibly showing support for Israel,' rather than using vague hate-crime language",
    "President Robert L. Manuel issued a same-day statement framing the institutional position before police completed the hate-crime classification",
    "Chicago Police investigated the incident as a hate crime and Adam Erkan was charged with seven felonies including four hate-crime counts; in December 2025 a plea deal dropped the felony and hate-crime charges and he pleaded guilty to a single misdemeanor battery count, receiving probation and community service",
    "The two student victims later sued DePaul for negligence in failing to protect them",
    "The case illustrates how Catholic universities navigate antisemitic violence on campus during the Israel–Hamas war"
  ],
  "sources": [
    {
      "title": "Incident on campus today | Notes from Rob (President Robert L. Manuel, DePaul University)",
      "url": "https://offices.depaul.edu/president/notes-from-rob/2024-2025/Pages/nov-6-2024-incident-on-campus.aspx",
      "type": "official-archive"
    },
    {
      "title": "2 Jewish DePaul students attacked while showing support for Israel - CNN",
      "url": "https://www.cnn.com/2024/11/07/us/depaul-jewish-students-attack-israel/index.html",
      "type": "local-media"
    },
    {
      "title": "Jewish students attacked on DePaul Lincoln Park campus in antisemitic hate crime, CPD says - ABC7 Chicago",
      "url": "https://abc7chicago.com/post/hate-crime-investigation-underway-after-jewish-students-attacked-outside-depaul-student-center-lincoln-park-campus/15522695/",
      "type": "local-media"
    },
    {
      "title": "Suspect in 2024 attack of two Jewish students on DePaul University's campus pleads guilty to battery - CBS Chicago",
      "url": "https://www.cbsnews.com/chicago/news/suspect-in-2024-attack-of-two-jewish-students-depaul-university-pleads-guilty/",
      "type": "local-media"
    },
    {
      "title": "2 Jewish students sue DePaul University for negligence after antisemitic attack on campus - CBS Chicago",
      "url": "https://www.cbsnews.com/chicago/news/depaul-university-lawsuit-jewish-students-attacked-max-long-michael-kaminsky/",
      "type": "local-media"
    },
    {
      "title": "Chicago authorities charge man with hate crime for attack of Jewish DePaul students - Times of Israel",
      "url": "https://www.timesofisrael.com/chicago-authorities-charge-man-with-hate-crime-for-attack-of-jewish-depaul-students/",
      "type": "local-media"
    }
  ],
  "confidence": "high",
  "tags": [
    "hate-crime",
    "antisemitism",
    "religious-institution",
    "catholic-university",
    "depaul",
    "illinois",
    "chicago",
    "lincoln-park",
    "israel-hamas-war",
    "timely-warning",
    "aggravated-assault"
  ],
  "dateAdded": "2026-05-03",
  "lastUpdated": "2026-05-06",
  "addedBy": "ingestion"
}