Individuals

An increasingly hostile campus environment doesn’t just magically happen. Behind the encampment protests and the sometimes-violent university occupations are people driving the conversation. Activist Tracker maintains a growing database of individual case files documenting the faculty members, students, activists, and public figures shaping campus discourse around radical ideology, hostile activism, terror, and antisemitism.

Each entry lays out what these individuals are actually doing on campus: the petitions they sign, the demonstrations they support, the statements they make, the organizations they lead, and the social media posts they proudly put out into the world.

Sinclair Thomson

📍 New York City

🗺️ New York

🏫 New York University (NYU)

Sinclair Thomson is an Associate Professor in the Department of History at New York University (NYU). His record includes repeated support for anti-Israel activism on campus, signing petitions and letters that defend disruptive protests, legitimize antisemitic rhetoric, and push divestment demands targeting Israel. By giving faculty endorsement to these efforts, Thomson has helped normalize hostility toward Jewish students at NYU.

Elaine Freedgood

📍 New York City

🗺️ New York

🏫 New York University (NYU)

Elaine Freedgood is a professor of English at New York University (NYU). Beyond her academic research, she has repeatedly aligned herself with faculty efforts to defend antisemitic campus protests and promote boycotts targeting Israel. Her record demonstrates a consistent willingness to give faculty legitimacy to movements that marginalize Jewish students and spread hostility toward Israel.

Julie Livingston

📍 New York City

🗺️ New York

🏫 New York University (NYU)

Julie Livingston is a professor of History and Social and Cultural Analysis at New York University (NYU). She has repeatedly aligned herself with campus movements that excuse antisemitism and target Jewish students. By signing faculty petitions, boycott resolutions, and public letters, she has provided academic cover for groups and causes that normalize hostility toward Israel and Jewish communities.

Emily Susan Apter

📍 New York City

🗺️ New York

🏫 New York University (NYU)

Emily Susan Apter, a professor at New York University (NYU), has repeatedly aligned herself with anti-Israel activism. Through petitions and public letters, she has defended campus agitators, supported academic boycotts of Israel, and endorsed measures that target Jewish and Israeli institutions. Her actions contribute to an academic environment where antisemitism and hostility toward Jewish students are normalized under the banner of “academic freedom.”

William Lafi Youmans

📍 Washington, DC

🗺️ New York

🏫 George Washington University (GW)

William Lafi Youmans has played a leading role in advancing anti-Israel activism on campuses. He was a key figure in the early development of Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP), helping to organize the pivotal 2002 conference at UC Berkeley that shaped the group’s strategy and messaging. At George Washington University (GWU), Youmans has been a prominent leader of GWU-Faculty for Justice in Palestine (GWU-FSJP), participating in faculty protests and openly supporting encampment activities. In April 2024, he joined professors protesting for Palestine as part of GWU-FSJP, where police were present during demonstrations.

Sarada Balagopalan

📍 New Brunswick

🗺️ New Jersey