The American Zionist Movement’s Antisemitism, Anti-Zionism and Holocaust Denial Project, earlier this month, hosted Louis D. Brandeis Center For Human Rights Under Law President, Alyza Lewin, alongside Co-founder and Director of AMCHA, Tammi Rossman-Benjamin in a panel discussion on the situation and strategies for students facing anti-Semitism and anti-Zionism on campus. The conversation began with an explanation from Alyza about the situation on the ground: Jewish students being required to shed their Jewish identities to be accepted in spaces on college campuses, particularly progressive ones. Alyza opened her discussion by explaining that an inability to recognize manifestations of anti-Semitism dissimilar to Nazi-ism alongside an administrative lack of understanding of Zionism as an integral part of the Jewish identity leads to a consistent turning of a blind eye to anti-Zionist endeavors. She explained that Zion-a-phobia, the irrational fear or hatred of a Jewish homeland, spurs a campus culture where students “are being forced to give up their right to Jewish self-determination in exchange for acceptance on campus to participate fully in the campus experience.” Tammi’s presentation on the rise of anti-Zionism around the nation continued to center the narrative on the threats that Jewish students are facing on campus. AMCHA reports reveal a surge in attempts to uncouple Zionism from Judaism in 2019, and include statistics that demonstrate the extent to which the presence on campus of anti-Zionist student groups, faculty members who endorse academic boycott, and anti-Zionist administrative expression (such as the promotion of BDS) increase the likelihood of anti-Jewish and anti-Zionist harassment. The coupling of anti-Zionist harassment with a lack of public response by university administrators has led to the current situation on the ground–Anti-Zionist harassment on campus has increased since 2015, not only in number of incidents, but also in intensity, becoming increasingly hostile in denigration and discrimination. Following their initial presentations, Tammi and Alyza discussed potential solutions: Alyza promoted the use of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act and adoption by universities of the IHRA definition as a means of protecting Jewish students. She spoke of the recent successes at Tufts and the motivational power of the law in these cases. Tammi discussed the benefits to a framework not yet adopted: Acknowledge equal rights of all students to self-expression and full participation in campus life, as well as the equal rights of all students to protection from behavior that violates those rights. Through this framework, she believes, Jewish students will be able to more effectively foster a healthy campus climate without the need to define their Jewish identity, prove Israel-related harassment is motivated by anti-Semitism, or respond to criticisms about free speech. The speakers noted that their different approaches are not mutually exclusive. The law can be used to educate and motivate university administrators to take necessary steps to protect Jewish students from harassment. The policies the universities adopt, however, can and should protect all students from harassment and discrimination. In the question-and-answer section, Tammi and Alyza discussed how to respond to anti-Zionism on campus, the role of alumni in this fight, and the courage exhibited by many Jewish students leading these efforts on campus. Watch the panelist presentation here.