A pro-Jewish alumni group has launched a social media ad campaign to pressure Columbia University to aggressively combat anti-Semitism at its Manhattan campus.
Alumni supporting equity on campus He said the six-figure advocacy and awareness campaign also targets Columbia University’s Barnard College to do more to curb anti-Jewish hatred.
“Leaders at Columbia and Barnard have consistently failed to protect Jewish students from anti-Semitic discrimination and harassment,” said Avi Gordon, the group’s executive director.
“By refusing to take meaningful action against anti-Semitism, and in some cases enabling anti-Semitism themselves, the leadership of Columbia and Barnard College has created a culture of hate on their campuses. You’re complicit,” Professor Gordon said.
The move follows the House Education and Labor Committee’s expansion of its investigation into anti-Semitism in higher education to include Columbia University and Barnard College, as well as Harvard University, the University of Pennsylvania, and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
Anti-Semitic flyers depicting the white and blue skunk and Star of David of the Israeli flag were recently posted on Columbia University’s Morningside Heights campus, sparking outrage in the Jewish community.
ACF noted that more than 100 Columbia University faculty members (including 33 from Barnard College) signed a letter defending Hamas’ October 7 massacre as a “military action.”
More than 10% of Barnard College (women’s college) faculty justified atrocities, including sexual violence against women and girls, by trying to place them “in the larger context of Israel’s occupation of Palestine,” the ACF said. Ta.
Last November, the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights launched anti-Semitism or Islamophobia investigations into three New York schools: Columbia, Cornell, and Cooper Union.
ACF also cited University of California, Berkeley lecturer Hatem Bazian for canceling a “Day of Dialogue and Reflection” class in which Professor Barnard featured one of the country’s “leading anti-Semites” as the headline speaker. They also expressed dissatisfaction with the start of the spring semester.
Mr. Bazian is the president of American Muslims for Palestine and the founder of Students for Justice in Palestine, who was suspended from Columbia University for holding an unauthorized Israel-bashing event on campus. He supports the boycott, divestment and sanctions movement against the Jewish state for its mistreatment of Palestinians.
ACF also required Columbia University and Barnard College to adopt the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s Working Definition of Anti-Semitism and enforce a code of conduct for students, with Barnard and Columbia University students and faculty members in October On the 7th, they called for clarity that defending Hamas’ atrocities is unacceptable. .
A Colombian spokesperson said: [Minouche] Mr. Shafik does not tolerate anti-Semitic behavior and takes a strong stand against reported anti-Semitic threats, images, and other violations, and added additional measures to protect our campus. We have repeatedly emphasized that we will continue to provide these resources. ”
The statement also said the university must address the “root causes” of anti-Semitism, and Shafik created a task force to help Columbia University address “this ancient but horrifyingly resilient form of hate.” He also said.
“In the coming months, the task force will identify practical ways to strengthen support for all members of the Columbia, Barnard, and Teachers College communities, especially Jewish students. “In the long term, it will recommend changes related to academics, extracurricular activities and administrative policies,” the university said.
A Barnard College spokesperson said the school is “resolutely committed to fostering an environment where ideas are freely exchanged in a respectful and inclusive atmosphere.”
“We unequivocally condemn anti-Semitism and all forms of hatred. Our most important responsibility is to ensure that Barnard School is a peaceful and peaceful school where all students can thrive without fear for their safety or security. It’s about making sure it’s a comfortable space.”
Barnard said the group is part of a task force on anti-Semitism with Columbia and Columbia Teachers College.
