Different university campuses across the US reported at least 350 anti-Semitic or anti-Israel incidents over the course of the 2021-2022 academic year, events that have had a detrimental effect on Jewish students and represent a rising tide of hostility towards Zionists.
This was reported by the Anti-Defamation League ?ADL, for its acronym in English?, an anti-hate organization founded in 1913 whose mission is to "stop the defamation of the Jewish people and guarantee justice and fair treatment for all", in a report issued a few days ago where it was noted that For decades, a small but vocal segment of US student and faculty groups have embraced anti-Israel and anti-Zionist views.
The report, which they say is more of a snapshot of what is happening on campus than a scientific text, says that these attacks, in some cases are directly against the Jewish state, while in others Jewish students were intimidated and isolated by their alleged political views.
"The anti-Semitic hate directed at pro-Israel students is very disconcerting," Jonathan Greenblatt, executive director of the ADL, said in a statement.
Thus, there were 359 occurrences of anti-Israel sentiment during the 2021-2022 academic year, according to the ADL's annual campus report, which was released on Wednesday. According to the organization, the study was neither exhaustive nor scientific because it only covered "extreme" forms of action and not the "usual" criticism of Israel on campus.
The study found that many of the incidents had "anti-Semitic intent or impact." A more hostile atmosphere on campus for Jewish students may be the result of "other incidents," some of which may not themselves be anti-Semitic.
The report noted an alleged growing pressure to make anti-Semitism and anti-Zionism "central parts of campus life or as a prerequisite for full inclusion in the university community."
Most of the hundreds of events were protests or other actions directed against Israel and the Jewish people, there were also 20 resolutions in favor of the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement and 19 cases of targeted harassment. The investigation found that students were increasingly isolated by their Zionist beliefs, increasingly advocating violent resistance to Israel, and increasingly adopting anti-Semitic stereotypes and language.
The study says activists frequently use the phrases "Zionism" and "Zionist" to insult and mock Jewish students, while several of them have been barred from participating in events by progressive university groups because of their support for Israel.
Jewish students at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign were attacked by a pro-Palestinian activist who threw a rock at them.
A Hillel building was spray-painted with the words "Fucking Genocides" and a banner was put up supporting the conspiratorial belief that Israel was responsible for the 9/11 attacks. A Jewish student was subjected to verbal harassment, including the phrases "Zionism is inhumane" and "disgusting racist Zionist."
In turn, they reported claims that Jews control the media and use their wealth to "spread Islamophobia" and "maintain their control" of the government, among other anti-Semitic stereotypes and platitudes.
The ADL collected the data for the report by tracking social media, following anti-Israel groups online, reading campus newspapers and other media outlets, consulting with other organizations, and hearing directly from victims of abuse.
In recent weeks, during the Jewish holidays, there has been an increase in anti-Israel and anti-Semitic acts on college campuses across the United States, particularly at a Hillel installation on the George Washington University campus at Ithaca College, the University of North Florida, American University, and California State University Sacramento.
Following reports of widespread harassment of Jewish students and a sustained lobbying campaign by Jewish groups, New York City's public university system pledged late last month to fight anti-Semitism on campus. .
A third of Jewish students, according to a survey conducted by Hillel and the ADL last year, had experienced anti-Semitism on campus, most commonly in the form of verbal harassment both in person and online, as well as physical attacks on Jewish students already His properties.
The University of Vermont, the State University of New York at New Paltz, the University of Southern California and Brooklyn College are under federal investigation for anti-Semitism.
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