Blogs | Brandeis Center

The Brandeis Center blog features regular posts on issues of anti-Semitism and anti-Zionism, such as high-profile legal cases, new IHRA adoptions and anti-BDS laws. Posts also recap LDB events, conferences, webinars, speaking engagements, and white papers. They are often authored by our outstanding law clerks and interns.

October 24, 2018 Anti-Semitic Kavanaugh Fliers Pervade College Campuses across the U.S.

In the wake of Brett Kavanaugh’s controversial appointment to the Supreme Court, attention turned to four U.S. college campuses where anti-Semitic fliers pervaded student centers and classrooms. Fliers posted at UC-Berkeley, UC-Davis, Vassar College, and Marist College blamed Jews for stirring the sexual assault allegations against Kavanaugh. New reports claim that the same fliers were […]

October 24, 2018 LDB Applauds University of Michigan for Addressing Professor’s Discriminatory Conduct

On September 21st, the Brandeis Center’s President Alyza Lewin and Director of Legal Initiatives Aviva Vogelstein, sent a letter to University of Michigan’s President Dr. Mark D. Schlissel, urging his administration to take further action following a discriminatory incident by a professor. Professor John Cheney-Lippold refused to provide a letter of recommendation to a University of Michigan student upon realizing that she intended to study abroad in Israel.

October 24, 2018 More Anti-Semitism at the University of Michigan

On October 4th, Emory Douglas was invited to speak to students as part of the Stamps School of Art & Design’s “Penny Stamps Speakers Series Presentation.” Students receive academic credit for attending these lectures. Douglas showed a slide that compared Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to Adolf Hitler, accusing him of genocide. “Guilty of Genocide” is written across Netanyahu’s forehead, and his hand is raised as if he is giving a Nazi salute.

September 27, 2018 Amid Anti-Semitism Row, Corbyn’s Labour Adopts IHRA Definition

After much deliberation, the British Labour Party adopted the full IHRA definition of anti-Semitism

September 23, 2018 Continued European Anti-Semitism Includes Assaults and Vandalism

This month, a Palestinian man was given four months in jail following his assault of a Jewish man and Holocaust survivor Elie Weisel’s home was vandalized.

September 23, 2018 Malaysian Prime Minister Defends Anti-Semitic Comments

In an interview with the Associated Press on August 13th, Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad, a proud anti-Semite claimed that “Anti-Semitic is a term that is invented to prevent people from criticizing the Jews for doing wrong things.”

September 23, 2018 Kuwait Airways Forced to Pay Damages to Israeli Citizen After Refusing Her Ticket

Advocacy group UK Lawyers for Israel (UKLFI) has successfully forced Kuwait Airways to “pay substantial damages plus costs to an Israeli National who was refused a ticket on a Kuwait Airways flight from London to Bangkok on the grounds of her nationality.”

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September 23, 2018 Norwegian Paper Publishes Blatantly Anti-Semitic Cartoon

On August 7th, a Norwegian newspaper, Dagbladet, published an extremely anti-Semitic cartoon, prompting Israel’s ambassador to Norway to demand the removal of the image and apologize. The cartoon depicts Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, whose body is in the shape of a swastika, punching a Druze Israeli off of a “whites only” bench.

September 23, 2018 US Announces Plan to Defund UNRWA

On Friday, August 31st the State Department announced its plan to completely defund the United Nations Relief and Works Agency, better known as UNRWA. The US decision is part of a larger protest against the agency, which has been blamed repeatedly for perpetuating the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians. Former Israeli Ambassador to the […]

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August 22, 2018 British Labour Party Faces Backlash Over Definition of Anti-Semitism

The British Labour Party has encountered a storm of criticism following its decision to adopt a diluted definition of anti-Semitism. The definition of anti-Semitism adopted by the Labour Party is based upon the IHRA definition, but omits references to Israel.

August 14, 2018 Senate Introduces Bipartisan Bill Banning Use of Human Shields

On July 24, Senator Ted Cruz (R-Texas) introduced a bipartisan bill that would sanction those engaging in and supporting the use of “human shields,” which refers to the placing of non-combatants around combatants to deter enemy attack, therefore putting countless civilian lives at risk. This despicable act has been utilized by a number of terror groups against the United States and Israel, with some of the most violent offenders including Hamas, Hezbollah, Boko Haram, and the Islamic State. The bill, known as the ‘STOP Using Human Shields Act,’ enjoys support from those on both sides of the aisle.

August 8, 2018 Call for Papers: Journal of Contemporary Antisemitism

The following Call for Papers on the changing manifestations of antisemitism, recently received by the Louis D. Brandeis Center, may be of interest to some of our readers: Academic Studies Press (ASP) is currently inviting submissions for the next issue of the Journal of Contemporary Antisemitism, which is due for publication in Spring 2019.

August 8, 2018 Stanford University Student Steps Down As RA After Criticism Generated By Anti-Semitic Post

On August 1, the Brandeis Center’s President Alyza Lewin and Director of Legal Initiatives Aviva Vogelstein sent a letter to Stanford University President, Marc Tessier-Lavigne, urging him to address a threatening, anti-Semitic Facebook post by a current Stanford student who is scheduled to be a Resident Assistant (RA) this upcoming year.

August 6, 2018 Department of Justice Hosts Religious Liberty Summit

On July 30th, the United States Department of Justice (DOJ) hosted a religious liberty summit, “Religious Liberty: Our First Freedom and Why it Matters.”

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July 26, 2018 Austrian Freedom Party Proposes Jewish Registries for Kosher Food

The far-right Freedom Party of Austria (FPÖ) proposed a plan that would require Jews to add their name to a government registry in order to be allowed to purchase kosher meat. The same rules would apply to Muslims who intend to purchase halal meat.

July 26, 2018 Congress Introduces Bill Banning Boycotts of Countries Friendly to U.S.

On June 13, a bill banning the boycotting of countries friendly to the United States was introduced in the House of Representatives. The Export Administration Anti-Discrimination Act (EAADA), or H.R. 6095, was introduced by Ron Desantis (FL-06) and co-sponsored with House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte (VA-06).

July 26, 2018 Israel Passes Jewish Nation-State Law

On Thursday, July 19th, the Knesset, Israel’s Parliament, passed a law declaring Israel to be a Jewish nation-state. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s right-wing coalition praised the move as “historic”, but it has also garnered significant controversy.

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July 26, 2018 Congress Introduces Bill to Review Palestinian Educational Material

In June, members of the House of Representatives introduced a bill to review Palestinian textbooks. The bipartisan bill, known as the Palestinian Authority Educational Curriculum Transparency Act, was introduced by Rep. David Young (R-Iowa), and co-sponsored by Rep. Josh Gottheimer (D-NJ), Rep. Peter Roskam (R-IL), and Rep. Brad Sherman (D-CA).

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July 19, 2018 UK Government Investigation Allows Allegation that Top Accounting Firm Ignored Palestinian Authority Terrorist Payments to Proceed

A United Kingdom (UK) government investigation has allowed a complaint to proceed that alleges top accounting firm PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) ignored payments to terrorists when it audited the Palestinian Authority (PA). Major donors, like the United States, United Kingdom, and World Bank, rely on such audits to ensure millions of taxpayer dollars are not diverted […]

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July 19, 2018 Labour Anti-Semitism Affecting Jewish Students in the United Kingdom

Jewish students in the United Kingdom are blaming the British Labour Party’s recent spate of anti-Semitic statements and actions on the rise in campus anti-Jewish discrimination in the England.