Some people might react with skepticism when told that when examining college campuses in the United States, there has been a noticeable resurgence of anti-Semitic incidents, but the trend exists regardless. The Brandeis Center has compiled this list of facts that may surprise some about campus anti-Semitism. 1. High Volume of Incidents in the Last Decade- Anti-Semitism might not be the first thing that comes to mind when thinking about bias incidents on college campuses, but in fact, according to Aryeh Weinberg’s findings, over 40% of Jewish students report experiencing or being aware of anti-Semitism on their college campus. During a study on anti-Semitism on college campuses, the American-Israeli Cooperative Enterprise discovered an even higher amount, that “78% of Jewish students report witnessing or personally experiencing anti-Semitism.” The truly frightening outcome of this rise of anti-Israelism and anti-Semitism is the impact in the classroom, stemming from professors. As Weinberg puts it, “the academic experience of students is being impacted by anti-Israel activism on campus.” (more…)
Linda Katehi The Brandeis Center is delighted to announce that it has successfully resolved campus anti-Semitism concerns that it had raised with the University of California at Davis. In a press release to be issued later this morning, the Center will laud UC Davis Chancellor Linda Katehi for her leadership in responding to a November 2012 incident on the Davis campus that the Center had brought to light. In particular, the Center is pleased with the steps that Katehi has promised to protect Davis students at any future anti-Israel rallies or other controversial events. The November 2012 incident occurred after approximately forty protestors occupied a university administrative building late last year. When three Jewish students entered the occupied building, they were met with hostile behavior, including intimidation, bullying, and verbal harassment. The protestors reportedly began pounding their fists, getting into the Jewish students’ faces, and making menacing physical gestures, all while shouting expletives directed toward the students. The Jewish students told Brandeis Center lawyers that they had found the entire incident to be “incredibly upsetting.” The steps taken by Chancellor Katehi and the UC Davis administration, after conducting an independent investigation into information provided by the Brandeis Center, include important measures to prevent harassment during potentially controversial protests, including those directed against Israel. These steps, which UC Davis shared with the Brandeis Center, include the following, among others: 1. At least one administrator will be present at the protest to monitor the event and to intervene when necessary to ensure that everyone is safe; 2. The campus engagement team will be present to help resolve any disagreements and to facilitate dialogue; 3. Aggie Hosts will be present to serve as security when appropriate; and 4. Police will be nearby for law enforcement. “These are important steps,” LDB President Kenneth L. Marcus commented, “and they demonstrate the university’s commitment to preventing a recurrence of the November incident.” Beyond these measures, the Davis administration also agreed to assemble a committee specifically dedicated to revising the information given to protestors. Marcus praised Chancellor Katehi and her staff, “We are very impressed with Chancellor Katehi’s leadership, as well as with the professionalism of her legal staff. I have spoken with Chancellor Katehi and am pleased with her commitment to ensuring a safe environment for all Davis students, including Jewish students and students of Israeli background, and I also appreciate the dedication of the university counsel’s office to protecting the civil rights of all Davis students.” In addition to praising UC Davis administration, the Brandeis Center also thanked the Amcha Initiative and Tammi Rossman-Benjamin for conducting additional investigative work which helped to bring the November 2012 incident to light.
Tammi Rossman-Benjamin The Brandeis Center and Scholars for Peace in the Middle East (SPME) have just issued the following statement: WASHINGTON, DC — The Louis D. Brandeis Center for Human Rights Under Law (LDB) and Scholars for Peace in the Middle East today issued a Joint Statement in defense of University of California at Santa Cruz lecturer Tammi Rossman-Benjamin. Rossman-Benjamin, an activist known for her opposition to campus anti-Semitism, has recently been the target of a public campaign of character assassination because of her advocacy for the civil rights of Jewish college students. LDB and SPME joined together today to defend Rossman-Benjamin against these smears and to denounce efforts to suppress advocacy for the civil rights of university students. Rossman-Benjamin is a co-founder of the AMCHA Initiative, an organization that combats anti-Semitism on American college and university campuses. She is also a member of the Brandeis Center’s Academic Advisory Board and a former member of SPME’s Board of Directors. Rossman-Benjamin has famously accused her university, UC Santa Cruz, of harboring a hostile environment for Jewish students. The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights has opened an investigation into Rossman-Benjamin’s complaint, which is now pending. On June 20, 2012, Ms. Rossman-Benjamin delivered a speech at the Ahavath Torah Congregation in Stoughton, Massachusetts. During the course of that speech, Ms. Rossman-Benjamin described anti-Semitic incidents at the University of California. Ms. Rossman-Benjamin attributed some responsibility for contemporary campus anti-Semitism to two organizations, Students for Justice in Palestine and the Muslim Students Association. Rossman-Benjamin also stated that some members of these organizations have had connections with terrorist organizations. In response to that synagogue presentation, student activists at the University of California have launched a campaign to condemn Rossman-Benjamin. As a result of this campaign, in March 2013, Associated Students at the University of California (ASUC) at Berkeley adopted a resolution that called on outgoing UC President Mark Yudof to condemn Rossman-Benjamin’s remarks. LDB and SPME jointly announced: “We find the accusations against Rossman-Benjamin to be false, scurrilous, and unjustifiable. Over the years, Rossman-Benjamin has tirelessly campaigned against anti-Semitic and anti-Israeli harassment. Perversely, Rossman-Benjamin is now being branded a purveyor of hate speech and Islamophobia precisely because she attempted to expose hate speech which her accusers would prefer to shield from scrutiny.” LDB President Kenneth L. Marcus commented, “I have worked with Tammi Rossman-Benjamin over the years, and I consider her to be a bold and courageous fighter for the civil rights of Jewish college students. It is reprehensible that some people are targeting her for abuse because of her fight against campus anti-Semitism.” (more…)
Jerusalem Post logo LDB Board Member Richard Cravatts (Simmons/SPME) has co-authored this important op ed about the abuse which has lately been heaped upon two of the most outspoken critics of campus anti-Semitism. The piece features LDB Academic Advisor Tammi Rossman Benjamin and British mathematics lecturer Ronnie Fraser, the subject of Brandeis Blog postings here and here and here. Cravatts’ co-author is Acting SPME Executive Director Asaf Romirowsky. Blaming the victim for anti-Semitism By ASAF ROMIROWSKY, RICHARD CRAVATTS Jerusalem Post 04/20/2013 22:56 Whether or not the union feels it is being anti-Semitic is not relevant; anti-Semites rarely admit to their behavior. Of late we have witnessed a new methodology used to suppress those who speak out against anti- Semitism in academia. Tammi Rossman-Benjamin, a Hebrew lecturer at UC Santa Cruz, and Ronnie Fraser, a lecturer in mathematics in London, have respectively taken on their schools and unions with regard to how anti-Semitism has infected their organizations and caused an uncomfortable, even hostile, environment based on the politics of the Israeli/Palestinian conflict. (more…)