Tammi Rossman-Benjamin
Sapir Journal, Volume Ten Summer 2023
“As a practical matter, DEI programs limit their “equity” and “inclusion” efforts to certain identity groups, which rarely include Jews.”
For more than a decade, Jewish students on American campuses have been targets of abusive conduct because of their support, or perceived support, for Israel. The incidence of such behavior has increased dramatically over the last few years in not only quantity but also severity, as the anti-Israel activism of students and faculty has expanded to include verbal and physical attacks on Israel’s on-campus supporters.
Yet, while universities have promptly and vigorously addressed harassment directed at some identity groups, they have done little or nothing about the far more frequent acts of anti-Zionist harassment perpetrated on their campuses.
Desperate to find ways to keep Jewish students safe, many in the Jewish community have pinned their hopes on the White House’s recently released U.S. National Strategy to Counter Antisemitism, which describes itself as “the most ambitious and comprehensive U.S. government-led effort to fight antisemitism in American history.”
At first blush, there’s cause for hope.
For one thing, the White House report acknowledges for the first time the significant harm anti-Zionist harassment inflicts on Jewish students, noting they have been “derided, ostracized, and sometimes discriminated against because of their actual or perceived views on Israel.”
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