November 14, 2018 NGO Rescinds Award to Women’s March Due to Anti-Semitism The Friedrich Ebert Stiftung (FES) foundation, a leading left-wing think tank for the German Social Democratic Party, withdrew its Human Rights Award to the Women’s March USA while it investigates allegations of anti-Semitism. The decision to award the Women’s March faced much criticism, including from doctoral students associated with FES who “accused the organizers of the march of hardcore antisemitism and support of the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions campaign targeting the Jewish state.” The award ceremony, which was supposed to be held on November 12, was suspended, since “the FES is unable to assess with certainty the validity of the charges against individual members of the organization’s leadership.” Anti-Semitism Blog
November 7, 2018 UCLA Sends Cease-and-Desist Letter to NSJP On October 31, UCLA’s Administrative Vice Chancellor Michael Beck sent a cease-and-desist letter to National Students for Justice in Palestine (NSJP) over the logo used in their promotional material. NSJP had created a logo for their upcoming annual conference that featured the UCLA Bruin Bear playing with a Palestinian kite. That same day, the Jewish Journal had publicized the fact that NSJP was using the logo. Anti-Semitism Anti-Zionism Blog
October 31, 2018 Alarming Incidents in Germany Over the past few weeks, several alarming incidents have occurred in Germany. For starters, Alexander Gauland, the leader of the far-right German political party known as Alternative for Germany (AfD), wrote a newspaper article which, according to reputable historians, mirrors a speech written by Adolf Hitler. In his recent article, written for the newspaper Frankfurter […] Blog
October 31, 2018 Recognize, Define, and Condemn Anti-Semitism Reposted from The Harvard Crimson, by David J. Benger, Oct. 31, 2018 On Sep. 6, 1972, Munich Olympic Games correspondent James K. “Jim” McKay looked at the television camera and solemnly pronounced, “Our greatest hopes and our worst fears are seldom realized. Our worst fears have been realized tonight.” All 11 Israeli Olympic athletes who were […] Anti-Semitism Blog
October 25, 2018 Seizure of Kosher Meat Leaves Malmo’s Jews with Few Options Authorities in Sweden began seizing kosher meat products from Malmo’s only kosher meat shop, eventually shuttering the store’s entire kosher section over supposed health concerns. Anti-Semitism Blog
October 25, 2018 Malaysian Prime Minister Doubles Down on Anti-Semitic Rhetoric Earlier this month, Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad repeated anti-Semitic claims he has made since the 1970s that Jews are “hook-nosed” and that the extent of the holocaust is greatly exaggerated by historians. Anti-Semitism Blog
October 24, 2018 LDB Welcomes Fall 2018 Interns The Louis D. Brandeis Center for Human Rights Under Law is happy to introduce its newest Civil Rights Legal Fellow and Communications & Development Interns for the Fall of 2018. Rhoda Offei completed her Masters in Law at the Cornell University in May 2012 and is currently a Civil Rights Legal Fellow with the Louis […] Blog
October 24, 2018 Members of Anti-Semitic Group Arrested Over Charlottesville Rally On October 2nd, four members of the anti-Semitic Rise Above Movement were arrested after being charged with conspiracy and incitement of a riot and participating in attacks against counter-protesters at the Charlottesville Unite the Right rally last year. The defendants, who are currently in custody in California, each face up to 10 years in prison. Anti-Semitism Blog
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 […] Anti-Semitism Blog
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. Anti-Semitism Anti-Zionism Blog
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. Anti-Semitism Blog
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 Anti-Semitism Anti-Zionism Blog
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. Anti-Semitism Anti-Zionism Blog
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.” Anti-Semitism Blog
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.” Blog
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. Anti-Semitism Blog
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 […] Blog
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. Anti-Semitism Anti-Zionism Blog
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. Anti-Zionism Blog
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. Anti-Semitism Blog
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. Anti-Semitism Blog