Campus Antisemitism
Nearly two decades later, a record 48,000-plus young Jews from 67 countries (and an additional 8,300 Israelis who travel with them) left everything familiar to spend 10 days connecting with Israel, Israelis, their Jewish selves and each other.
The conference, which included nearly 400 professionals and pro-Israel students from 80 campuses, described best practices in promoting Israel, especially among non-Jewish students.
The latest fliers included an image of a disfigured military member with a quotation from the late former Sephardic Chief Rabbi of Israel Ovadia Yosef that said, “Goyim were born only to serve us.”
Rising pro-Israel activist Tremanye Smith says, “With any kind of movement, you’re going to have a far spectrum of folks on the fringes. If groups took time to see the entire scope, and their ideology is to protest human-rights abuses, then they would probably have a change of heart.”
In an email to the Tufts community, the university’s president, Anthony Monaco, did not explicitly label the posters, which featured militarized pigs condemning “Israeli apartheid,” as anti-Israel or anti-Semitic, rather as “disturbing and hurtful” to the school.
Despite Miko Peled saying that the Jewish people have “a reputation for being sleazy thieves,” university officials defend the right to allow him an event platform.
“This campaign is based on lies and the same idiocy that infects every anti-Israel individual. BDS is anti-Semitic and the Hillel is pro-Israel, and should say that publicly,” said George Washington University junior Shep Gerszberg.
With anti-Israel groups and anti-Semitism gaining prevalence on college campuses, pro-Israel activists with the Hasbara Fellowship visit Israel to learn how to fight back.
Anti-Israel lesson plans are fast becoming a problem in high schools across the country and even in unlikely places like the heavily Jewish populated town of Newton, Mass.
With anti-Israel fever raging on many North American campuses, a new book offers some help in sorting out where incoming undergraduates may feel increasingly uncomfortable.
“Anyone who propagates hateful messages is free to express their opinions as they wish, but should not be given a public platform at an educational establishment to do so,” said Liora Rez of the Center for Combating Hate in America.
Open to incoming and enrolled college students, up to $16,000 will be awarded to implement the winning proposal.
