MIT Professor Publishes Account of Campus Antisemitism After Oct. 7 Attacks

Yossi Sheffi, a long-time MIT professor, released a self-published book documenting antisemitic harassment of Jewish students and staff on campus following the Oct 7 massacre.

In "Unsafe at MIT," Yossi Sheffi, holder of an endowed chair in engineering systems at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, offers a chronological narrative of how Jewish students and faculty experienced antisemitic rhetoric and protests after the Oct 7 massacre. Using dozens of interviews conducted by an unnamed journalist, the book describes megaphone-wielding mobs, tent encampments and confrontations with Israeli staff, while accusing President Sally Kornbluth of neglecting campus protest policies.

Sheffi repeatedly names Students for Justice in Palestine and the Coalition Against Apartheid as frequent instigators, framing the episode as part of a coordinated campaign of delegitimization. He also cites a 2026 MIT quality-of-life survey indicating higher Jewish student satisfaction, which he attributes to Trump-era federal actions and a Supreme Court decision curbing affirmative-action, noting a decline in Black enrollment.

The self-published volume, issued by Transoft Inc., has been noted by the New York Times, which highlighted its unconventional format and lack of an index. Reviewer Scott W. Johnson, a retired attorney, situates the book within broader national debates over campus free speech and antisemitism.