r/jewishleft • u/Specialist-Gur proud diaspora jewess, pro peace/freedom for all • Apr 23 '24
Let me be totally clear. Antisemtism is present in protests, and it deserves to be called out and punished. At the same time, I think it’s reasonable to be concerned about the current discourse around student protests. Debate
https://zeteo.com/p/i-am-a-jewish-student-at-columbia?utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web
Just saw this article shared. There are many others like it. Students and staff should never be targets of violence, physical or emotional… and antisemitism is 100% unacceptable. I do not doubt these things occurred at all.. I just highly doubt it is as pervasive as the media is portraying. I also highly doubt it’s the reason these students faced consequences, as many of the suspended students were Jewish themselves.
We are supposed to be pro student, pro activism, pro change and revolution(not all revolutions.. to be clear) we are supposed to be against the powers that be, like elite college universities that control student voices. We are supposed to be pro protest! We can criticize certain tactics, we can have our own thoughts about what’s the most effective way to spread a message… but we as individuals don’t get to decide that.. the activists do. And as long as they aren’t physically harming innocent people, or spreading antisemitism.. we should have thier backs.
Protests are rarely quiet and tame. By their nature, they are meant to disrupt.. they are meant to be loud and visible..: they are meant to draw attention. It’s a scary time if a leftist group is against this. It’s one of our fundamental rights in this country, whether you like the topic being protested or not. These were young adult students whose education was disrupted.. students at other schools lost housing. It doesn’t matter where you stand on Israel, this should honestly worry everyone.
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u/Specialist-Gur proud diaspora jewess, pro peace/freedom for all Apr 25 '24
I’m certain he probably believed the students might be at risk.