Education Dept. to Investigate Berkeley Student Bylaws Banning Zionist Speakers
The Department of Education’s Office of Civil Rights (OCR) has opened an investigation into Berkeley Law School over the several student groups who passed bylaws barring Zionist speakers to campus.
OCR sent a letter to attorneys Gabriel Groisman and Arsen Ostrovsky, who heads The International Legal Forum, responding to their November 18 complaint against the law school. The OCR letter, which was obtained by the Journal, said that they would be investigating “whether the University failed to respond appropriately in the fall 2022 semester to notice from Jewish law students, faculty, and staff that they experienced a hostile environment at the law school based on their shared Jewish ancestry when University-recognized student organizations passed a bylaw against inviting speakers who support ‘Zionism, the state of Israel, and the occupation of Palestine.’” Groisman and Ostrovsky had argued that Berkeley Law violated Title VI of the Civil Rights Act by failing to take action against the student groups with the bylaws.
Vanderbilt Assistant Football Coach Who Defended Kanye Undergoing Bias Training
Vanderbilt University Vice Chancellor for Athletics and University Affairs and Athletic Director Candice Lee announced on December 13 that Assistant Football Coach Dan Jackson is undergoing the process of bias training for defending rapper Kanye West in a Facebook post.
Lee said that Jackson, from his personal Facebook account, had defended West under the auspices of “free expression and equality in the treatment of Black and white public figures” and was unaware of West’s antisemitic remarks. But when Jackson became unaware, he realized his remarks “were hurtful and lacked critical context.” The university found that Jackson violated university policy on “unprofessional communication” and as such he has stepped away from football for the rest of the 2022 season. Lee added that Jackson “is in the process of completing relevant educational work, including unconscious bias, inclusion and anti-discrimination sessions offered by campus and community resources.”
“Jews Not Welcome” Graffiti Found at Maryland High School
Antisemitic graffiti stating “Jews not welcome” was found at Walt Whitman High School in Bethesda, Md. on December 16.
WUSA9 reported that the graffiti was found on the school’s welcome sign and that it came right after a Holocaust lesson; students had lobbied the school for Holocaust education after learning that their fellow classmates didn’t know what the Holocaust was.
“We all opened our phones at the same time and you could hears kids saying ‘oh my god’ check your emails,” student Rachel Barold told the local outlet. “Everyone was in shock about what happened.”
NC High School Student Hacks Intercom to Shout “Heil Hitler”
A student at a North Carolina high school is being disciplined for hacking the school’s intercom and saying “Heil Hitler” and other antisemitic remarks as well as threats to President Joe Biden on December 15.
The News & Observer reported that Enloe High School Principal Jacqueline Jordan issued an apology to students over the intercom on December 16 and addressed the issue of antisemitism in emails to parents. “Antisemitism is, unfortunately, on the rise in our country, along with other forms of hate,” Jordan said. “We must continue to do everything we can to resist and reverse this trend.”
Columbia Antisemitism Panel Postponed
An antisemitism panel scheduled for the Columbia School of Social Work on December 19 was postponed.
The event, titled “Jewish Identity & Antisemitism in America,” was slated to feature writer and editor Jordyn Tilchen, Jewish activist and content creator Ilana Wolstein and Eden Cohen, Founder and President of A Wider Frame and Senior Adviser to Israeli Special Envoy for Combating Antisemitism and Delegitimization Noa Tishby. Tilchen tweeted out a email from the university saying that the event was postponed “at the request of the panelists and moderator.” “The event was postponed twice after the school cowered to antisemitic complaints and bullying from students and faculty alike,” Tilchen wrote. “We also very much agreed to be available for the panel and were not responsible for its postponement, as the email they sent out suggests. Why does the blame continue to fall on the Jews?”
A spokesperson for the Columbia school told the Journal that the event was postponed because “it was planned as a hybrid event, and building an in-person crowd during finals week on campus proved difficult. We look forward to rescheduling the event on this critical topic in the new year.”
