On Wednesday, May 8, a new letter written by (and signed by) hundreds of Jewish students at Columbia University appeared on social media. Columbia Business School Assistant Professor Shai Davidai (as mentioned in his X/Twitter bio) shared the Google Doc on the Weibo platform.
He linked the document to his post, writing: “Hundreds of Jewish students at @Columbia just published one of the most incredible student letters I have ever read.
Not only was it beautifully written, but it also clearly laid out their experience on campus over the past six months.
Their letters tell a better story than any professor like me about what it’s like to be a Jewish student now.
Please take 4-5 minutes to read their letter. Give Jewish students a voice. “
What is included in the letters shared by Jewish students at Columbia University?
The letter shared publicly, titled “In Our Name: A Letter from a Jewish Student at Columbia University,” begins with the words “many spoke in the name” of their community. The statement could be seen as a mockery of Jewish students who support the Palestinian cause.
These claims can be linked to a previous report by Jewish students on the problem of “anti-Semitism” on American campuses. On April 23, another Jewish student, Jared Kannel, spoke to TRT World and claimed that he felt “100% safe” on college campuses.
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Cannell, who has been attending pro-Palestinian protests and participated in demonstrations in Gaza camps at Columbia University, said: “I am a Jewish student at Columbia University. When we talk about anti-Semitism on campus, it makes people to divert attention away from Gaza and away from Palestine and Palestinian students on campus, it’s completely safe to put it back to me and it’s all a distraction because they don’t want us to talk about the uninterrupted focus on Gaza and Palestinian civilians The massacre…”
However, a new letter from hundreds of Columbia University students of the Jewish faith emphasizes that these “people who claim to represent ‘true Jewish values’ … legitimize (their) lived experiences of anti-Semitism.”
The letter states that most of these students “did not choose to become political activists” and “are ordinary students… trying to pass their final exams.” However, the other side of the narrative allegedly “did not choose to become political activists” Under the guise of demonizing them,” they “forced” these students to engage in “activism and forced (them) to publicly defend our Jewish identity.”
The letter continues: “We proudly believe that the right of the Jewish people to self-determination in our historic homeland is a fundamental principle of our Jewish identity.” This large group of Jewish students at Columbia University claimed that “Judaism cannot be separated from Israel.” Among other things, they declare, “Simply put, Zionism is the embodiment of this faith.”
Next, they emphasize that their religious texts are full of “references to Israel, Zion, and Jerusalem” and that Israel is filled with “archaeological remains of Jewish presence spanning centuries.”
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It was also emphasized that although most of them do not “observe religious beliefs devoutly,” “Zionism remains a pillar of (their) Jewish identity.”
Students highlighted the collective alienation associated with their community in the face of multigenerational trauma. Ultimately, they declared that Israel was not only their “ancestral homeland” but “the only place in the modern world where Jews can safely control their own destiny.”
Highlight common cases of suspected anti-Semitism
Students have since linked the “nature of Hitler’s anti-Semitism” to the “evil irony of today’s anti-Semitism”, which is seen as a “twisted reversal of[their]Holocaust legacy” due to alleged support for Palestine Protesters “had their presence dehumanized on campus and, as the letter noted, they were given “the title of white colonizer.”
What other claims are made in the letter?
Jewish faith students at Columbia University claim these “anti-Semitic” slurs label them as “oppressors of all brown people,” while others throw at them claims that the Holocaust is not special.
Additionally, the student body reportedly chanted the following lines, including their classmates at Columbia University:
- “We don’t want Zionists here.”
- “The Zionist state must die.”
- “Back in Poland (where [their] Relatives lie in mass graves)”
- In a separate statement, they also noted that demonstrators allegedly held “signs telling Jewish students that they were Hamas’ next target.”
- The person who wrote the letter also spoke about a CUAD camp leader’s declaration that “Zionists don’t deserve to live” and that “(they) are lucky (anti-Israel protesters) aren’t just out to murder Zionists.” By. ‘”
The Jewish student group further accused society of “blaming” and “scapegoating” Jews “for the social evils of the time.”
A lengthy petition submitted to the Columbia community later listed several instances of the history of violence faced by Jews as students labeled themselves “genocide victims” for not being “European enough.” Their claims have reignited divisions between them and university classmates who support the Gaza cause, who claim Palestinians are victims of an Israeli-instigated genocide.
Other statements claim that many people “abuse” the word “Zionism” as a sanitized slur, with the word believed to be synonymous with “racist, oppressive or genocidal”.Remarkably, these students proudly cling to their unwavering love for Israel while speaking of “anti-Semitism is changing”
Before signing, the group of Jewish students also accused “students and faculty” of physically blocking the campus entrance.
Are there pro-Palestinian Jewish protesters?
In addition to the claims in this latest letter, other media reports have previously highlighted other Jewish students supporting pro-Palestinian campus protests.
commondream.org shared another open letter signed by hundreds of Jewish students at American universities condemning Israel’s “genocidal attack on Gaza.”
An excerpt from the open letter in support of the student camps in Gaza reads: “We demand that academic and political leaders stop misrepresenting and demonizing the protests and their organizers”
The letter’s original five Jewish student authors reportedly emphasized that they came from different college campuses across the United States. However, they describe themselves as “members of Jewish Voice for Peace, IfNotNow, the Students for Justice in Palestine chapter, and several independent campus organizations,” claiming that the letter was written independently and has no affiliation with the aforementioned organizations.
Their public address further stated, “We reject the way these camps are being smeared as anti-Semitic, and we call on our institutions to take action to stop Israel’s attacks on Gaza.”
Additionally, the signatories took note of those who spread “messages of violence, hatred and anti-Semiticism,” stating that they “wholeheartedly reject that these camps are anti-Semitic and that they pose an inherent threat to the safety of Jewish students.”
source:
- First (pro-Israel) letter published by Jewish student at Columbia University: https://docs.google.com/document/u/1/d/e/2PACX-1vRQgyDhIjZupO2H-2rIDXLy_zkf76RoM-_ZIYsOfn9FkI7TETgRtOfXK9VobMvGh6iEZfDPgALXJTCR/pub
- Second (pro-Palestinian) letter from Jewish students at U.S. universities: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScBV5XUZq2-F4kOIIcblWfC1chTcc_f27YnD9rednFNu2mZGA/viewform