General Discussion

Sympthsical

(9,037 posts) Thu Sep 29, 2022, 05:56 PM Sep 2022

UC Berkeley groups ban "Zionists" from events.

(Note to mods: This is not about the I/P conflict but about freedom of expression and antisemitism on public American campuses)

But we probably should have a discussion about antisemitism on our campuses at some point.

And, of course, it's Jewish students who are placed in the crossfire.

https://jweekly.com/2022/09/06/bds-measure-at-berkeley-law-hurts-students-not-israel/

Not only was the outreach process highly questionable, but the substance of the bylaw is antithetical to our school’s academic principles. UC Berkeley is “committed to ensuring freedom of expression and dialogue that elicits the full spectrum of views held by our varied communities.” In particular, our law school is driven by the acceptance and promotion of intellectual differences.

Yet at the urging of LSJP, some student affinity groups at Berkeley Law will now no longer hear from anyone who supports the State of Israel. Rather than inviting dialogue and education, LSJP has silenced a particular group of individuals: Zionists are forbidden from speaking on any topic with these affinity groups.

It is no secret that Israeli policy is little affected by the BDS movement. Instead, the consequences are felt by the Jewish students at Berkeley.

Here lies the sad but predictable outcome of the new bylaw: No matter our organization’s official stance, the Jewish students at Berkeley Law are left divided. If we publicly condemn the BDS movement and the bylaw, some Jewish students will feel we have strayed from our mission to be a welcoming space for all Jewish views. Or we can say nothing, and many other Jewish students will feel unsupported by their own Jewish community.

Can't pin this stuff on MAGA. And if you think the groups that foment this sort of thing stop at only "Zionists" then you haven't been on a campus in a few decades.