Campus Watch Dec. 8, 2022

GWU Investigating SJP for Protesting Hillel Event

George Washington University (GWU) is investigating the campus Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) chapter over their protest of a Hillel event.

The Algemeiner reported that the investigation stemmed from an October 11 event featuring former Israeli intelligence official Doron Tenne. According to The GW Hatchet, the students are facing probation for damaging benches during the protest through “wheatpasting,” a term used to describe using water and starch to hang posters. The university is expected to make a decision this week, per The Algemeiner.

Tufts SJP to Host Event Attacking Liberal Zionism

The Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) chapter at Tufts University is hosting an event on December 7 attacking liberal Zionism.

The event, according to the pro-Palestinian group’s Instagram page, is titled “Unpacking Liberal Zionism: Our Boycott of Student Groups” and the caption states that liberal Zionism is “harmful to the movement for Palestinian liberation.” Jewish on Campus noted in a December 5 Twitter thread that in April, Tufts SJP had pledged to boycott all student groups that normalize Israel. 

“By choosing to only work with anti-Zionists, SJP has provided a litmus test to Jewish students, ignoring the overwhelming majority of American Jews who believe in Israel’s right to exist,” Jewish on Campus tweeted. “Their campaign is inherently antisemitic.” They later added: “We refuse to be boycotted from spaces on campus. Jewish students deserve to be safe.”

Anti-Israel Flyers at CUNY School

A slew of anti-Israel flyers were found at the City College of New York (CCNY), one of the schools under the umbrella of the City University of New York (CUNY).

Stop Antisemitism tweeted out photos of the flyers on November 30; the flyers called Israel a “colonialist apartheid project” and accused Israel of targeting hospitals and schools with missiles. Another flyer stated “from the river to the sea Palestine will be free.” In response to the Stop Antisemitism tweet, CCNY tweeted that the college “stands firmly against antisemitism and bias of all kinds.” 

StandWithUs Urges Texas A&M to Take Action Against Students Behind Antisemitic Snapchat Story

At the request of and together with students at Texas A&M, StandWithUs sent a letter to Texas A&M on December 1 urging the university to take action against students who were behind an antisemitic Snapchat story.

The letter described the story as featuring “crass references to the Holocaust, defense of those who perpetrated the Holocaust, and a post, ‘we should’ve let the “ant exterminator” do his job back in WW2’ — a reference to Hitler and his attempt to annihilate all Jews … These posts promote antisemitism through Holocaust distortion and glorifying the killing of Jews.” The letter argued that because the Snapchat account is exclusive only to students, “it is therefore part of the university’s ecosystem of student offerings” and the university is obligated to enforce its policies against the students. 

“We ask that you address this matter by issuing a statement of public condemnation, identifying the posts as antisemitic, and outlining when such rhetoric crosses the line into harassing or threatening language that violates student policy,” the letter added.

Panelists at SJP Event Call for Removal of Israeli-Canadian’s Name from Carleton University Buildings

Various participants in a November 18 Students for Justice in Palestine panel called for Carleton University buildings named after a prominent Israeli-Canadian philanthropist to be removed because of his support for pro-Israel organizations.

The Charlatan reported on November 27 that the members had accused the philanthropist, David Azrieli, of being “a willing participant in a campaign of killing, dispossession, and ethnic-cleansing, directed towards the Indigenous Palestinian population, with the purpose of establishing a Jewish state on their land.” Azrieli has been the president of the Canadian Zionist Federation and a board member of the Canadian Israel Committee. The university has rebuffed efforts to rename the buildings, finding “no issues or concerns” with Azrieli’s philanthropy.

CT School Board Reverses Decision to Remove Jewish Holidays from School Calendar

A school board in central Connecticut reversed their decision to remove Jewish holidays from their schools’ calendars in November 14.

According to a Twitter thread from Stop Antisemitism, the Farmington Board of Education concluded that Jewish holidays like Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur “do not rise to the level of an operational disruption. Thus, both observances were not approved as days off from school.” Following backlash against the decision, the board issued a statement on December 5 saying that the decision was not rooted in antisemitism and they denounce antisemitism and all other forms of hate. During a December 5 meeting, the board voted unanimously to reverse their decision, per Stop Antisemitism.