Trump administration’s go to to Boston to probe school antisemitism is off

The feds’ request to go to Boston Wednesday to probe the town’s response to “incidents of antisemitism” at its faculties and faculties was not accepted by the Wu administration, at a time when Harvard and the Trump administration are battling.

U.S. Division of Justice officers met with metropolis attorneys, division chiefs and a pacesetter from Boston’s Jewish neighborhood on April 9 — upfront of a extra intensive assembly with Mayor Michelle Wu that the federal authorities’s new antisemitism activity pressure had been eying for this Wednesday.

Now that assembly seems to be off, in keeping with the mayor’s workplace, which says that it by no means confirmed the April 23 sit-down as a result of activity pressure’s failure to reply to the town’s repeated requests for particulars on the “unspecified” antisemitic incidents at its Ok-12 faculties and faculties that the feds stated they needed to deal with.

“There is no meeting with the DOJ on the schedule this week,” a metropolis spokesperson stated in a Tuesday assertion. “The duty pressure had requested a gathering to debate the town’s dealing with of unspecified incidents, with out offering particulars.

“At the request of the task force, city officials and representatives from the Jewish community met with the task force on April 9, and we have been awaiting more information prior to confirming any additional meetings. We have not heard back.”

The Division of Justice didn’t instantly reply to a request for remark.

Inner emails reviewed by the Herald present a Division of Justice official first reached out to the Wu administration to arrange an in-person assembly with Boston’s mayor, legislation enforcement leaders and a metropolis lawyer on March 14.

A day earlier, Mayor Wu, who has been battling with the Trump administration over immigration and different insurance policies, was despatched a letter informing her of the federal activity pressure’s intention to go to her and three different big-city mayors as a part of its probe into purported antisemitic incidents at their respective faculties and faculties.

“We are aware of information alleging that schools in Boston have faced unacceptable incidents of antisemitic harassment and violence,” Leo Terrell, senior counsel to the assistant lawyer basic, wrote within the March 13 letter.

“Within the next 30 days, we would like to meet with you to discuss actions, if any, that the city is taking to address alleged discrimination or hate crimes against Jewish individuals in any Boston schools, to include K-12 institutions and post-secondary institutions.”

Inner emails reveal a forwards and backwards between the DOJ’s Kevin Jenkins and metropolis company counsel Adam Cederbaum that led to an “advanced site visit” between metropolis and federal officers on April 9 that was geared toward laying the groundwork for a extra formal sit-down between activity pressure management and Mayor Wu.

Whereas the DOJ consultant requested that such a gathering be held this Wednesday, the emails reveal that Wu administration officers had been hesitant to verify that date.

Town’s reticence, per the emails, centered round its request to view the information of antisemitic incidents in Boston that had been referenced in Terrell’s letter to Wu.

Whereas the town made the request a number of occasions, the feds apparently didn’t present the knowledge, after which went silent after the April 9 website go to at Metropolis Corridor.

“We are working on reviewing our records for specific incidents in the Boston area that we can discuss on the 23rd,” Jenkins wrote to Cederbaum on April 7.

Per the mayor’s workplace, that April 23 assembly, which was contingent on these information being supplied, was by no means confirmed by the Wu administration, and the town hasn’t heard again from the feds since that early April time-frame.

Cederbaum formally accepted a gathering with the federal activity pressure in a March 21 letter to Terrell, that reiterated the town’s want to view any related info that may be mentioned forward of time.

“Boston has one of the most vibrant Jewish communities in the United States, a source of pride and strength for our city and our region, and we stand firmly against antisemitism,” Cederbaum wrote. “We take significantly the dialogue of antisemitic incidents that you’ve got requested.

“In order to ensure that we are prepared for a productive discussion with you and your team, we ask that the division share with us any information on the incidents of antisemitic conduct in Boston referenced in your letter.”