Campus Antisemitism
“Sharon has taken a proactive step that shows it cares about the safety of Jewish residents,” said community activist Susan Price.
It was created as part of the Antisemitism Education Initiative at the University of California, Berkeley, which brings together campus stakeholders to inform about, discuss and develop the resources to respond to anti-Semitism.
An open letter insists that the measure would “help administrators better identify and meaningfully combat” anti-Semitism on campus, listing incidents at several schools.
According to Hillel, which urged students to back the referendum, the measure passed with more than 1,700 votes.
Jewish student leaders also sent an email on March 18 to university administrators, asking them to reconsider moving commencement.
Those who voted against the legislation claim that due to the diverse student body, not all marginalized groups can have representation.
“Israel has demonstrated to the world that a country or a region doesn’t need to be rich in natural resources in order to be a wealthy country,” notes Lawrence Bacow.
A number of anti-Semitic incidents have taken place on campus in the past few years, including the discovery of swastikas.
A similar bill was proposed in February but tabled due to concern over a clause that denounced the BDS movement and questioned Palestinian human rights. The new bill removed the clause.
“This is a step forward, a good step forward, in solving the problem of dealing with anti-Semitism on campus,” said Erez Cohen, executive director of Hillel there.
The British Parliament responded to a question on its website about sociology professor David Miller: “The government considers [his] views to be ill-founded and wholly reprehensible.”
Seven Jewish students testified in front of the student government regarding personal encounters with anti-Semitism.
