Brandeis Brief January 2022 We hope you have all had a joyous holiday season. This month LDB Chairman Kenneth L. Marcus wrote about the best news in the fight against anti-Semitism this year and the importance of humility. LDB stood up for students at Duke University when their student government revoked the registration of their chapter of Students Supporting Israel (“SSI”), applying standards that had not been applied to any other student group. LDB’s virtual speaker series featured distinguished attorneys who combat anti-Semitism. And LDB President Alyza Lewin sat down for interviews with EMET and the “Nice Jewish Girls” podcast. Read about these and other exciting developments at the Center in this month’s Brief. As always, we thank you for your tax deductible donations and acknowledge that without you our work could not be done. LDB Demands Duke overturn discriminatory treatment of SSI LDB demanded that the administration of Duke University override a veto by the president of Duke’s student government and reinstate the student’ government’s previous decision to allow the registration of Duke’s chapter of SSI. LDB told Duke’s administration in a letter that it was “legally obligated to take corrective action” , explaining that SSI was subjected to disparate treatment and “a university violates Title VI when its student government rejects a Jewish student organization’s request for recognition based on standards that are not applied to non-Jewish groups.” Read the Brandeis Center’s letter to Duke here. Read press coverage of the Brandeis Center’s work here: Jewish Telegraphic Agency; Jerusalem Post; Fox News; Jewish News Syndicate; Algemeiner “The Fight against anti-Semitism is also surging” Kenneth L. Marcus, Jewish JournalAnalyzing the state of anti-Semitism in 2021, LDB Chairman Kenneth Marcus provided some “silver linings in the dark clouds that gather”. Marcus observed that advocacy groups like LDB have improved their tools to track and measure anti-Semitism and provided valuable new data, and governments in the U.S., European Union, and around the world have sounded the alarm and adopted new policies to fight anti-Semitism.Read more here. Lawyers Against Anti-Semitism Speaker Series Brandeis BlogOn December 14, LDB hosted a distinguished panel of lawyers addressing resurgent anti-Semitism and the role of lawyers in combating it. Carly Gamill (StandwithUs), Jerome Marcus (The Deborah Project), and Professor Steven Resnikoff (DePaul College of Law) addressed the audience on legal developments and next steps in the legal fight against anti-Semitism. Watch here. Alyza Lewin featured on Julia Jassey’s “Nice Jewish Girls” podcast Julia Jassey, founder of Jewish on Campus, interviewed LDB President Alyza Lewin on her “Nice Jewish Girls” podcast for an episode, titled “The Case Against Anti-Semitism.” The two discussed Lewin’s contribution to Jewish civil rights efforts and how the law can be used to combat anti-Semitism. In addition Lewin shared how her faith impacts her work. Listen here. “Humility is to find ways we can live more gently with one another” Kenneth L. Marcus, Washington Examiner LDB Founder and Chairman Kenneth Marcus wrote on the importance of humility in the holiday season. Marcus noted that at Hanukkah, “what we best remember is the humble oil that lit the Temple’s menorah for eight days.” Marcus reflected on his own career as a civil rights enforcer in the context of American education. He called on Americans to humbly respect each other: “Each family has its own background, history, and heritage. Each child has her own flame to light. Our educators must respect them all.” Read more. Traldi speaks on the International Criminal Court ‘Situation in Palestine’ LDB Senior Counsel Arthur Traldi spoke with UK Lawyers for Israel about recent developments at the ICC and their implications for the ‘Situation in Palestine’ investigation. Watch here. LDB Study on Campus Anti-Semitism Cited in JNS Sarah Stern, Jewish News SyndicateSarah Stern, Founder and President of the Endowment for Middle East Truth (EMET), cited LDB’s groundbreaking survey of openly Jewish college students in arguing for increased intellectual freedom and diversity on college campuses. She noted, “More than one-quarter of students reported feeling unsafe as Jews on their campus or in virtual campus settings. Half of Jewish students felt it was necessary to hide their Jewish identities, and more than half avoided expressing their true beliefs about Israel.” Read Sarah Stern’s article here. Read LDB’s full survey findings here. Alyza Lewin explains how to Use the Legal System to Protect Jewish Students LDB President Alyza Lewin was recently interviewed by Sarah Stern, Founder and President of the Endowment for Middle East Truth (EMET). During the December 29 EMET webinar, Lewin discussed recent Brandeis Center cases and explained how LDB uses the legal system to protect Jewish students from anti-Semitism. LDB President Alyza Lewin speaks to the Endowment for Middle East Truth on December 29, 2021. “Ensuring that students are protected should be a bipartisan issue” Kenneth Marcus, The HillLDB Founder and Chair Kenneth Marcus published an article in the Hill with Kimberly Richey, calling on the Biden Administration to preserve questions in the Civil Rights Data Collection process that record when sexual predators are transferred from school to school, putting new children at risk. Marcus wrote, “in 2019, OCR’s receipt of K-12 sexual harassment complaints, including complaints of sexual violence, was fifteen times greater than it was in 2009… Parents and students deserve to know how their schools are dealing with sexual misconduct.” Read more. The Brandeis Center Hires Human Rights Lawyer Arthur Traldi Lynda PriorThis past month, the Brandeis Center appointed Arthur Traldi to a new Senior Counsel position. Mr. Traldi, a well-known international human rights lawyer, will primarily work with LDB’s law student programs, including LDB’s law school chapters and JIGSAW Fellows. Brandeis Center Hiring Brandeis Center LDB continues to recruit for additional positions to address increasing anti-Semitism on and off of university campuses. LDB’s recent survey illustrated the historic challenges faced by Jewish college students, demonstrating for example that two thirds of Jewish fraternity and sorority students have felt unsafe on campus. In keeping with this expansion, LDB is currently recruiting its first Communications Director, as well as seeking applicants for fellowships, clerkships, and internships.