Earlier this month, the New York State Assembly passed a resolution rejecting the anti-Semitic Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions movement (BDS). Assemblyman Walter Mosley (D-Brooklyn) along with 74 other members co-sponsored the bill, which “[supports] efforts to achieve a negotiated two-state solution and the right of Israelis and Palestinians to self-determination.“ Additionally, this resolution reaffirms New York State’s recognition of Israel’s right to exist as a Jewish State, whereas Israel and the U.S. share “a common bond rooted in values of freedom, democracy, and equal rights.” This resolution comes after victories against BDS on several legislative fronts: Tennessee Governor Bill Haslam, in April, signed a landmark anti-BDS resolution confronting the anti-Semitic movement. Two days later, the Indiana General Assembly, through resolution 59, condemned BDS as a violation of academic freedom. In May, Illinois became the first state to pass a bill that prevents the state from investing in companies that divest from Israel. LDB President Kenneth L. Marcus commented: “I commend Assemblyman Mosley and his colleagues on their courage to pass this bill. Let this passage be a model for state and local legislatures all over the country.”
On Monday, June 22, the AMCHA initiative launched a new webpage filled with testimonies from Jewish students who have been subject to anti-Semitic acts on college campuses across the country. An article in The Algemeiner states that “students at 47 colleges and universities in 20 states” recounted these incidents for the webpage. The testimonies detail truly horrific acts, including both physical and verbal abuse. A number of students were attacked for wearing the Star of David or wearing shirts with the word “Israel” or Hebrew lettering on them, while others received racist remarks about the Holocaust, Nazis, and the nation of Israel. The article states that all the testimonies posted on the website were “stated publicly at student government meetings or have been quoted by the press.” The AMCHA initiative is a non-profit watchdog organization that seeks to fight anti-Semitism on college campuses in the United States. The Brandeis Center works with AMCHA frequently, including recently joining to write a letter to University of California President, Janet Napolitano, about an anti-Israel class at UC Riverside, and urging President Napolitano to adopt the State Department definition of anti-Semitism, which she has since publicly supported. The testimonies of these Jewish students come as another sober reminder that campus anti-Semitism is on the rise in America.