It's raining on US campuses. Years of positive affirmation campaigns, identity and diversity politics and, on the other hand, conservative offensives against free expression have reached a boiling point with accusations of anti-Semitism against the universities. Trustees withdrew millions in funds, a loud appearance in Congress by the rectors of three of the country's most important universities, followed by the resignation of one of them; political pressure, manifestos… The headlines have been gaining weight for weeks. But as most of the dozen sources consulted for this report warn, anti-Semitism in universities is not a consequence of the Gaza war, but much earlier; It is not as widespread as it seems, and it is not only promoted by pro-Palestinian groups.
Some sources recall that the worst anti-Semitic attacks in the United States were the work of white supremacists, such as the one in Charlottesville, Virginia, in 2017, promoted by then-President Donald Trump. And for his followers, including Republican Congresswoman Elise Stefanik, who bloodily attacked the presidents of the universities of Pennsylvania, Harvard and MIT in a congressional appearance ten days ago. Bleed in the truest sense of the word: the first of them, Liz Magill, resigned three days later; The position of the second, Claudine Gay, is in the eaves and she remains under surveillance, with vans stationed outside her house or she wanders around Harvard wallpapered with her image and the legend “unable to direct”: a typical statement of the darkest phases of history.
The harassment of Gay and her companions – three women involved in the shooting – is, according to her critics, due to her failure to condemn demonstrations against Israel and the Jews, including alleged calls for genocide, that have frightened students at that school have. Confession. They have also angered many donors, practically the masters of American universities: last year they donated $59.5 billion to their operations. More than 80% of donations came from 1% of donors, which is why he was determined to set the pace for the monasteries: the threat of withdrawing 100 million from one of them accelerated Magill's downfall.
A van with the picture of Chancellor Claudine Gay and the motto “Unable to Lead,” on Wednesday at Harvard.MASV
Gay, the chancellor of Harvard (annual budget $50 billion), resists despite difficulties. The support of more than 700 faculty professors – many of them Jews – and the board's confirmation on Tuesday were useless as donors and several members of Congress continue to clamor for its leader. But Derek J. Penslar, professor of Jewish history and director of the Harvard Center for Jewish Studies, downplays the severity of the controversy. “The situation is not as serious as most American media reports, although anti-Semitism is a serious and growing problem on campuses and in society at large. At Harvard, Jewish students have been subjected to merciless and hateful social media posts, insults and exclusion since the October 7 Hamas massacre. There was only one report of physical assault, and whether this actually occurred is still under investigation. But there is also no doubt that they were exposed to various forms of anti-Semitism that caused them psychological and emotional discomfort,” explains Penslar.
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The alleged call for genocide against the Jews and inaction by principals denounced by Stefanik is shocking coming from someone who has supported crazy theories like the Great Replacement or welcomed Trump's unfunny jokes about the Jews. A tweet about anti-Semitism on campus may create the false impression that the problem of anti-Semitism in the United States is primarily due to left-wing pro-Palestinian activism; While in reality, anti-Semitic beliefs are much more widespread on the far right than on the far left, and the most violent and deadly anti-Semitic actions against American Jews are planned and carried out by white nationalist extremists.” As in the Charlottesville case, where Trump's false equidistance (“It gives up violence both sides,” he said of a white supremacist’s deadly attack on anti-racist protesters) that further emboldened the far right. A year later, in 2018, a white supremacist killed 11 people in a synagogue in Pittsburgh. The worst anti-Semitic attack in US history.
Reached via email, Waxman added: “While I am concerned about the anti-Semitic incidents that have occurred on some campuses since the outbreak of war, I do not believe it is accurate to say that these are hotbeds of anti-Semitism. Of course, there is. But the scope and severity are often exaggerated.” The echo chamber of the headlines, the coincidence of the interests of the major newspapers with those of some donors also explain the extent to which the debate has reached.
Alejandro Baer, a researcher at the Higher Council for Scientific Research (CSIC) and a professor and director of the Center for Studies on the Holocaust and Genocide at the University of Minnesota for a decade, focuses on political instrumentalization. “Anti-Semitism and the way it is defined and fought has become an important element of America’s culture wars. Democrats and Republicans accuse each other of having anti-Semites in their respective camps and see only the speck in each other's eye. Among Republicans there are QAnon conspiracy theorists and white supremacists who shouted at the 2017 Charlottesville rally: “Jews will not replace us.” And among Democrats there are anti-Zionists who see Hamas’ violence as legitimate resistance or the right to exist question the state of Israel. Universities are Democratic strongholds and are under attack from Republicans. But after October 7, it was destroyed for them due to the permissiveness of statements and actions that were clearly anti-Semitic,” he summarizes via email.
Pro-Palestinian activists, on the Harvard campus on Wednesday.MASV
Republicans have found a nut to crack ahead of the 2024 elections; It's his umpteenth culture war, but this time with signs of victory, judging by Trump's clear advantage in some key states. They also have support from some Democrats. Unlike other identity questions, the identity question of Judaism – that of Israel – is both a red line and a factor that mobilizes the entire political spectrum, emotionally; even existential. But complicity with his rivals has opened a waterway in Joe Biden's party. This week, the House of Representatives passed a bipartisan resolution condemning anti-Semitism on campus and calling for the resignation of Chancellor Gay and her MIT colleague Sally Kornbluth. The vote highlighted the stark Democratic divisions exposed by the Gaza war: 84 Democrats, including progressive Jews, voted in favor, compared to 125 against. All but one Republican supported the text.
Far from remaining trapped in the bubbles of liberal thought in universities – with Harvard, a Democratic bastion, at the helm – the issue has jumped into the political arena to fuel the 2024 election campaign, with a debilitating Biden and, increasingly, an energizing Biden Support.
“There has not been a single incident on campus.”
Fall bids farewell to Harvard with a backdrop of sparse trees and subzero temperatures. This week, with final exams and the holiday rush, it was difficult to find students willing to pause for a few minutes. María and Sissy, freshmen, are unaware of the controversy: “We just saw a lot of signs and posters, some sticking them up and others tearing them down,” they say, alluding to a popular leaflet campaign calling for the release of Hamas hostages . “But beyond that, we don’t know exactly what’s happening and who’s right. It really doesn't seem like big news to us. Jordana, a third-year history student, has a strong opinion: “There was not a single incident, not one. Furthermore, only one side is talked about, the other doesn't seem to exist, and the media siding with the angriest donors has a lot to do with it. I think Principal Gay is addressing the issue well and the harassment she is receiving is unjustifiable.”
After she was confirmed to her position by the Harvard Board of Regents, unexpected plagiarism allegations loom against her — who also happens to be black — this week, as the vans carrying her photo and disqualifying message continue to roll. Jordana denounces the bias of the controversy: “There is a clear attempt to suppress any pro-Palestinian opinion, there is no talk of threats to Arab students or restrictions on their freedom of expression.” A veiled Muslim student who does not wish to be named is correct to him: “Of course anti-Semitism is undoubtedly a problem, and a very serious one, but so is Islamophobia.”
This young woman claims that there have been other incidents of the opposite nature on campus since October 7th. “Harassment, harassment, insults…verbal but very unpleasant statements directed at Arabs and Muslims.” Vans also drove through Harvard with photos and personal information of students supposedly defending Hamas. It was recorded that the wife of a well-known professor insulted a student who was wearing a keffiyah [pañuelo palestino]“. The video went viral and the first and last names of the harasser and her spouse were published by the university newspaper, The Harvard Crimson.
“It is not a phenomenon that affects our daily lives, but it is everywhere: in coffee conversations, in the hallways, in the reactions; Any student could tell you that they are witnessing the debate, but many will not dare to talk to you for fear of taking sides,” Jordana concludes. Neither the institution itself, which has not yet responded to a request for comment on the recent establishment of a working group against anti-Semitism, nor the Crimson. A few meters away from the two young women, Patrick, a British graduate, barely tries to tear down the posters calling for the hostages' release. “They stuck them together, there's no way to remove them. “The controversy over anti-Semitism on campus is pure theater: it is about the interests of a few millionaires who are angered by hearing about things they don't like, such as that a massacre of civilians is being carried out in Gaza or that a ceasefire is now necessary,” he said. .
On the Jewish side, Rabbi Getzel Davis of Hillel Harvard, the local chapter of a Jewish university organization, is unlikely to compromise with the institution: “The most important thing is that the culture changes and that we have an administration that names, denounces and combats anti-Semitism , whenever and wherever he appears; and ensure that this campus is a safe learning environment for Jewish students and everyone else. We look forward to continuing to work with Chancellor Gay and other senior Harvard officials on educational programs and the implementation of policies to protect Jewish students,” said Davis, one of the university’s chaplains.
Posters calling for the release of hostages held by Hamas, at Harvard.MASV
Next to the courtyard of the student dormitories, three pro-Gaza activists warm up the icy morning with a megaphone. Without success, but also without risk: There are no side effects, no complaints, just indifference. Rafael Kadaris, who introduces himself as an “atheist born in a Jewish family,” takes the lead. A Californian with no connection to the campus, he is spokesman for the very remaining Revolutionary Communist Party of the USA and as such defends the need for a revolution to blow up the system. Gaza could be the source of the explosion, he says with conviction. The next day, a group of people (mostly retired) form a human chain in a central square in Harvard to demand a ceasefire. None of them have any connection to the university either.
Already on October 19th, in an interview with EL PAÍS, the philosopher Michael Walzer pointed out the atmosphere of anti-Semitism in universities, which, in his opinion, was limited to left-wing circles. When contacted this Wednesday to develop the topic further, he explains: “The emergence of anti-Semitism in the wake of the Gaza war, particularly on university campuses, is not exactly a surprise.” Anti-Israel incitement has been the primary vehicle for students to express their left-wing orientation, thereby avoiding many other issues that require the left's attention. The shock of October 7th should have given this left a rethink. Instead, it became an opportunity for some, but not all, left-wing students to demonstrate their commitment to the Palestinian cause, and their discourse, following that of Hamas, morphed from anti-Israel incitement to clear and often cruel anti-Semitism. “.
Walzer, professor emeritus at Princeton, sees what he sees as a legitimate controversy over the rectors as an opportunity to correct mistakes and move forward. “Some university management and professors reacted quickly and well, but many did not. Far-right Republicans, who often played on anti-Semitic themes, saw a populist opportunity: to take action against the academic elite. Hence the hearings [en el Congreso] and the harassment of the three principals who reacted poorly because they followed the advice of their lawyers and never spoke from the heart, which was what the moment called for. I think things are getting better now. “There is a lot of rejection on campus,” summarizes Walzer.
Identity, diversity and inclusion: Where do Jews fit in?
Alejandro Baer, researcher at the Higher Council for Scientific Research (CSIC) and for a decade professor and director of the Center for Studies on the Holocaust and Genocide at the University of Minnesota, denounces the seriousness of the phenomenon of anti-Semitism. Furthermore, the current controversies and reports of insecurity and harassment of Jewish students are placed in the context of affirmative action in American universities. “Affirmative action and identity politics have created a perverse effect that particularly affects Jewish minorities on campus. Diversity and inclusion plans and the critical race studies on which they are based understand American society in binary terms of oppressor-oppressed or White-BIPOC. [siglas inglesas de “Negros, Indígenas y Gente de Color”]. If you belong to a victim group, you receive special protection, and if you belong to an oppressor group, it is assumed that you cannot suffer discrimination or injustice in the same way. “Jews do not fit into either category, but are still assigned to the white, oppressive group.” The expert emphasizes that the typification is perverse: regardless of whether they are the target of white supremacy or, as now, of pro-Palestinian demonstrators: they would never be seen as victims or at least not with the same status as victims as other minorities. “This represents an erasure and denial of their identity and their experiences of persecution and discrimination. Paradoxically, in the name of this very poorly focused anti-racism, an anti-Semitic stereotype is also perpetuated: Jews have equal power.”
After the Hamas attack that sparked the war, Baer added: “We see a projection of this simplistic framework that is blind to its anti-Semitic implications. We saw it in the campus demonstrations where the suffering of the 'oppressor' was expressed.” ignored. Jewish and even justified and celebrated the violence of the “oppressed” Palestinians. Did no one think that students, teachers and staff of Jewish origin would feel attacked?”
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