On October 31, the Council on American-Islamic Relations, the largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization in the U.S., deemed Pomona College an “institution of particular concern,” citing “reported creation of a hostile campus environment for Palestinian, Muslim, Arab, Jewish and other students, staff, and faculty opposing the genocide of the Palestinian people in Gaza,” according to a news release.

The designation “stems from [Pomona College’s] leadership’s opposition to a referendum by their democratic student government calling for the college to sever ties with Israeli companies profiting from the genocide of Palestinians, its militarized police response to students’ peaceful pro-Palestine protests, and its alleged failure to protect Palestinian, Arab, and Muslim students from harassment and discrimination.”

Pomona College President Gabrielle Starr did not respond to the Courier’s requests for comment. Nor did Patricia Vest, the college’s interim chief communications officer.

“Pomona College’s actions have created an environment of repression and fear for students who are courageously and non-violently standing against Israel’s occupation, apartheid, and genocide in Palestine,” wrote CAIR-LA Executive Director Hussam Ayloush in a statement. “By designating Pomona College as an ‘Institution of Particular Concern,’ we are raising an alarm about the growing threat to the safety and rights of Palestinian, Muslim, Arab, Jewish, and other students who refuse to remain silent in the face of oppression. CAIR-LA will continue to stand in solidarity with these students and demand that the college live up to its stated­ values of diversity, openness, and inclusion.”

The University of Michigan and University of Georgia were also named institutions of particular concern by CAIR. Earlier this year, CAIR and the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee named UCLA as another institution of particular concern.

On October 24, CAIR-LA condemned Pomona College’s decisions to suspend 10 students it said participated in an October 7 divestment protest at Carnegie Hall. That protest resulted in property damage to the building, the suspension of 12 Pomona College students, and numerous students from other Claremont Colleges getting banned from Pomona College.