JEWISH STUDENT & FACULTY MEMBER SPEAKS OUT AGAINST ISRAEL & ZIONISM
May 14, 2024Voices within the Jewish community at Columbia rise against injustice.
Meet Jared, a passionate master’s student whose Jewish identity fuels his frustration. He’s tired of seeing police brutality on campus and condemns the ongoing atrocities in Gaza, vehemently rejecting the notion that such actions represent him or his beliefs.
Then there’s Debbie, a faculty member who’s been in the trenches since day one, fighting against the idea that criticizing Israel equals hating Jews. They’re all about keeping it real and standing up for what’s right, no matter what.
From diverse backgrounds and beliefs, they’re united in their call for JUSTICE and TRUTH.
Together, they’re sending a message loud and clear: it’s time to stop the oppression and stand with Palestine.
this isn’t just about Columbia, it’s about solidarity among us all. We won’t be silent.
Thank you Jared for speaking up!
Remember to SPEAK UP every day, expose them all.
If you advocate for TRUTH & JUSTICE, SHARE to spread the knowledge.
#FreeGaza #PalestineSolidarity #GazaGenocide #UNRWA #EndGenocide #Palestine #ICJJustice #ceasefirenow #FreePalestine #Interfaith #StandWithUs #Truth #Gaza #Humanrights #Israel #فلسطين #اسرائیل #غزة #airdropaidforgaza #middleeast #truth #facts #Israel_Gaza_War #bds #icj #Rafah
English Script:
Jared: My first name is Jared. I’m a master’s student at Columbia. I’m Jewish and I’m pissed.
Interviewer: Tell me why you’re pissed.
Jared: When thousands of Jewish people have come together over the past six months to say, “not in our name,” This is what we’re talking about. We don’t want police brought onto campus to beat up people and arrest people for practicing their First Amendment rights in our name. We don’t want Israel committing a genocide in Gaza in our name. The role of anti-Zionist Jews, non Zionist Jews and Jews who just don’t like genocide, which should be everybody, has been very important in pushing this movement forward.
Debbie Becher: We do have data that every time there is an outburst of violence in Israel and Gaza, anti-Semitism is on the rise internationally. I’m a Jewish faculty member who has been involved from the very beginning, trying to work against this narrative that any criticism of Israel is anti-Semitism. Because part of the reason that some Jewish students feel unsafe is that they’re hearing criticism of Israel and they think it means that it’s anti-Jewish hatred. And to them it might mean that. But I think we need to separate that. There are so many Jewish people who have no affiliation with Israel, no identification with Israel. And so people like myself who are involved more in the protests against the war on Gaza really complicate that to say that pro-Palestinian speech is anti-Semitic.
Jared: Students have a range of perspectives. I was raised to be a Zionist, to be a supporter of Israel, to believe that Israel was an important part of my identity. Other people were raised in refugee camps, watched their family members get killed by the Israeli military. So we all know what we’re talking about. Divestment has overwhelming support from the students and the faculty who are willing to risk their careers, their safety and their academic standing. We’re modeling the protests off of apartheid South Africa, where universities divesting were a big part of what led to the fall of that apartheid state. The occupation and the apartheid and the genocide can no longer be funded by the U.S. and by Columbia University.
Interviewer: We’ve heard from students and from family members and for people outside that there’s many Jewish students on campus who felt unsafe or have heard anti-Semitic chants or seen phrases. Do you think that there’s a disconnect, a misunderstanding, a misconception?
Jared: When we talk about the safety of students on campus here, we’re distracting from the safety of everybody in Gaza. Jewish students and Jewish faculty at Columbia, we are trying to do our best to stand up and say: “This is not about us, this is about Palestine, this is about Gaza. This is about the children sheltering in tents right now being bombed by Israel”.
Debbie Becher: We do have Jewish students who from the beginning of this conflict, they’re saying they feel very unsafe on campus. That’s absolutely understandable, that they feel unsafe and we want to care for them. The universities have been saying that in order to protect a particular group of Jewish students, they’re going to penalize, punish, discipline, suppress most other students in their name. And that’s creating nothing but division.
Jared: I wish more people had gotten to see this beautiful show of solidarity of students from across Columbia, from across the world, coming together to stand up and say no more. It was one of the most incredible things I’ve ever witnessed.
