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The Combat Antisemitism Movement (CAM) has joined a coalition of nearly 30 Jewish and non-Jewish organizations — all committed to fostering an inclusive and respectful environment in educational institutions across America — in making an urgent request to more than 60 U.S. public universities to ensure a safe campus environment for Jewish students during “Israeli Apartheid Week” this year.
Various student clubs and organizations are planning activities related to the BDS movement’s 2024 “Israeli Apartheid Week” (IAW) during the month of March.
“Since its inception in 2005, IAW has been characterized by the targeted intimidation and harassment of Jewish students and in an increased number of cases, physical violence,” the letter says. “Masquerading under the guise of advocating for Palestinian rights, IAW is a hate-fest denying the indigeneity of Jews to their ancestral homeland, delegitimizing their identity, and fostering an atmosphere of discrimination and hostility towards Jews.”
“Against this backdrop of increased Jew-hatred and the public call by BDS for ‘peaceful’ disruptive events to be organized, we have reasonable cause to believe that IAW activities will create an environment on campus that adversely affects the physical and psychological well-being of Jewish students,” it continues. “While we recognize the importance of protecting free speech, we also note the obligation of the University to maintain a campus environment that treats all its students equally, including affording protection of all students’ well-being.”
The letter cites two instances during the week of February 26, 2024 of Jew-hatred. At the University of California-Santa Barbara, the president of the UCSB Associated Students was personally targeted through placards that read, “Tessa Veksler supports genocide” and “You can run but you can’t hide Tessa Veksler.” At the University of California-Berkeley, protestors attempted to forcefully gain access to a building where Jewish students were holding an event, shattering a window and physically attacking Jewish students.
The letter calls on the universities’ legal obligations under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and other state and federal antidiscrimination laws to provide for the safety of its students and to take action against harassment, intimidation, and bullying. It also offers minimum security measures for consideration.
Signatories of the letter include:
Alums For Campus Fairness
CAMERA on Campus
Club Z
Combat Antisemitism Movement (CAM)
Coalition for Jewish Values
Institute for Black Solidarity with Israel
The Deborah Project
Israel on Campus Coalition
Israel Peace Initiative
Jewish Institute for Liberal Values
The Israel Forever Foundation
The Lawfare Project
Lawyers Against Antis-Semitism and Terrorism
Maccabee Task Force
Philos Action League
Philos Black
Philos Catholic
Philos Latino
StandWithUs
StandWithUs Saidoff Legal Department
StandWithUs Center for Combating Antisemitism
StopAntisemitism
Students Supporting Israel
VALOP Group
Zachor Legal Institute
Zionist Organization of America
#EndJewHatred
The letter was sent to the following institutions:
University of Alabama at Birmingham
Arizona State University
University of Arizona
University of California, Berkeley
University of California, Irvine
University of California, Riverside
University of California, San Diego
University of California, Santa Barbara
Irvine Valley College
San Diego State University
California State University, Sacramento
California State University, Long Beach
California State University, Northridge
San Francisco State University
University of Connecticut
University of Delaware
University of Georgia
University of Illinois
Indiana University
Purdue University
University of Kentucky
University of Louisville
Louisiana State University
University of New Orleans
University of Maryland, Baltimore
University of Maryland
University of Michigan
Wayne State University
Oakland University
University of North Carolina
State University of New York at Albany
City University of New York, City College
College of Staten Island
Hunter College
John Jay College of Criminal Justice
Lehman College
Kent State University
Ohio State University
University of Cincinnati
Portland State University
Temple University
University of South Carolina
University of Houston
Texas A&M University
University of Texas at Austin
University of North Texas
University of Texas at San Antonio
George Mason University
University of Virginia
College of William & Mary
Virginia Tech
University of Vermont
University of Washington
University of Wisconsin
West Virginia University
Rutgers University
William Paterson University
University at Buffalo
University of Wisconsin–Madison
University of California, Los Angeles
University of California, Davis
California State University Fullerton
