 NEW YORK (Press Release) — Even as most campuses prepare for summer break, some continue to be occupied by anti-Israel demonstrators.
Top Stories Denver. It’s been two weeks and despite calls from University of Denver Chancellor Jeremy Haefner, the anti-Israel encampment still remains — and is becoming more hostile. “It was just a huge mob … I had them come up into my face and try to hit me,” said one student. Another student described how he was assaulted by protesters as he walked around campus with an Israeli flag: “I wasn’t saying anything hateful toward the camp at all … And then I just got shoved really hard.” Another added: “They told me that they wished Hamas killed my family, that was terrible.” Wayne State. On Tuesday morning, Wayne State University in Detroit announced a move to remote classes “effective immediately until further notice” as anti-Israel protesters continue to block major walkways, raise concerns for fire marshals, and challenge public safety, according to local reporting. Leaders of the University, Michigan’s third-largest university with more than 24,000 students enrolled, have no immediate plans to disperse the camp, though they estimate it now includes roughly 40 protesters, many of whom do not appear to be students. Take Action: Tell Wayne State this is unacceptable. UC. On Tuesday morning, academic workers at UCLA and UC Davis launched a second round of strikes related to anti-Israel protests across the University of California (UC) system. The strikers — including teaching assistants, tutors, and researchers — are represented by United Auto Workers 4811, the same local union that launched worker strikes at UC Santa Cruz earlier this month. Leaders of the UC system have repeatedly denounced these strikes and filed unfair labor practice complaints. In addition to protests at UCLA and UC Davis, local reporting suggests “as many as three other campuses could join the strike by Friday.” UC Irvine students wrote an open letter protesting the removal of Professor Daniel Levine from teaching a Jewish texts course. This news follows many months of harassment and intimidation of Jewish students on campus. |
| Campus Champions
Summer School Assignment. “The data is shocking, unacceptable, and actionable. If students of any other minority group were dealing with anything even close to what Jewish students have been managing, there would be riots in the streets,” argues Samuel Abrams, a professor at Sarah Lawrence college in a new op-ed for the Jewish Journal. With the brief pause that summer vacation offers, Abrams urges the Jewish community to “support students and faculty and regain control of the narrative and the facts,” preparing to organize and advocate while still ensuring Jewish students feel safe and welcome on every college campus. DEEPER: Hillel International filed a federal Title VI civil rights complaint against Sarah Lawrence in March. Building Bridges. As anti-Israel protests show — and deepen — divides on campus, BridgeUSA, co-founded by Manu Meel, aims to promote constructive dialogue between students nationally. Founded in 2017, BridgeUSA now has chapters at 63 colleges and 17 high schools in 39 states. As Meel told the Wall Street Journal, “The real divide in Gen Z is not left-right but moderate versus extreme…There’s a silent majority that wants to have a dialogue, but all the air is taken up by the vocal extremes, and the universities are held hostage by them.” |
| Am Yisrael Chai 💪✡️
Interfaith Solidarity. International Christian community groups recently presented Israeli President Isaac Herzog with an Israeli flag adorned with the names of the hostages taken by Hamas. President Herzog wrote: “A meaningful and beautiful show of solidarity for our hostages! A flag of Israel made up of the names of those brutally taken captive by Hamas on October 7th. A moving token of support from Christian friends of Israel from all over the world.”
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