A conservative Jewish activist, Lizzy Benichou, says she will not be intimidated into silence after being shoved to the ground during a confrontation at the University of Michigan’s Ann Arbor campus on Sunday.
Benichou was there with Liberty Under Fire USA, which had set up a table inviting students to debate whether Islam is compatible with the West. The encounter escalated from a verbal dispute into a physical altercation. The incident has renewed questions about freedom of speech, political intimidation and the safety of those expressing pro-Israel and conservative views on American college campuses.
A video showing University of Michigan student Temulun Togochog, 19, striking Joe Redden with her phone and then shoving Benichou to the ground went viral. As campus police took Togochog into custody, she was heard shouting, “I’ve already been to a mental hospital, and I’ll go again if it means killing you.”
Despite the threats and the physical assault, Togochog was released shortly after being taken into custody. Benichou, meanwhile, was taken to the hospital for treatment.
Benichou was born in Los Angeles and raised in Beverly Hills. She moved to Texas about a year ago. She has no regrets about speaking out. “I know there is a risk. All of us who are in this space have become more afraid for our lives after what happened to Charlie Kirk. But you got rid of one man who had such an impact, and you just built up thousands of others, or tens of thousands.”
Benichou acknowledged that she had been sheltered for much of her life. Growing up in Beverly Hills, she said, she had never experienced antisemitism firsthand. But Oct. 7 changed that. She began noticing a difference in how her friends responded to the Hamas attack on Israel compared with their reactions to other causes, such as the Black Lives Matter movement. What initially struck her as indifference, gradually turned into hostility toward Israel. “It started to shift from not caring to ‘Israel is evil,’ and then using antizionism as a mask for antisemitism.”
Benichou believes that universities play a significant role in this shift, along with the way the media covers Israel.
“I think these universities indoctrinate children,” she said. “There is something going on at these college campuses because it’s not the first time we see this. We’re seeing it time and time again, where young people go in completely normal and come out of these universities hating America.”
The university should be held accountable, she said, “because they put all the students on campus at risk.” She intends to press charges against Togochog.
“I really hope that this wakes people up to what’s going on in the United States, and honestly, throughout the world — the leftist ideology, the Islamic ideology and the effect they have on our country and the world,” she said. “We were in Dearborn, and an American-born student said that he would be happy to have Sharia law at the university and in America in general.”
Following the incident, Benichou said she had been overwhelmed by messages of support. However, there were a few who posted hostile comments, including, “I wish she had hit you in the face.”
Benichou hopes to see more people speaking up. “I didn’t plan on doing this with my life. But if you feel that you want to say something and speak up, please do. We need more strong voices who want to stand up for America and for the Jewish people and stand up for what they believe is right.”
