Statement by Jewish Faculty Network - Nova Scotia on Student Protests for Palestine and “Jewish Student Safety”

The Jewish Faculty Network consists of Jewish faculty from universities and colleges across Canada who share a strong commitment to social justice in support of an ethical life, whether defined through religious observance or secular action. Our family and personal histories are profoundly shaped by the Holocaust and other confrontations with antisemitism, just as our histories are touched by the State of Israel and the debates about its actions, especially given the genocide now occuring in Gaza.

JFN - Nova Scotia was recently convened and currently involves Jewish scholars from Mount Saint Vincent, Saint Mary’s and St. Francis Xavier universities.

We are concerned with the dire threat to academic freedom and freedom of expression inherent in the Israel-Palestine issue. Pro-Israel organizations are mobilizing discourses about the ‘safety’ of Jewish students basically to shut down opposition. Where real Antisemitism exists, it must be countered.

While criticism of Israel may make some Jewish students uncomfortable, it is not threatening to their safety. Moreover, there are many Jewish students who are participating in the student occupations in support of Palestinian people’s rights.

JFN - Nova Scotia supports the student occupations at university campuses across the United States, Canada and the world and condemns the harmful and frequently violent attacks against them by the police and by groups supporting Israel.

Protest on campuses has a long and honoured history, going back to the Vietnam War and further. Instead of repressing student expressions of solidarity for human rights and peace, we call on universities to uphold academic freedom, and demonstrate their stated institutional commitments to equity and social justice by responding to student demands, including calls for divestment. As with the sorcerer’s apprentice, attempts to cut down the demonstrations will lead only to more resistance, and will likely be a defining moment of our generation, just as with the Vietnam War and the anti-South African apartheid struggle.

We also note with alarm that the US House of Representatives has just passed a motion to adopt the so-called “International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance - Working Definition of Antisemitism.” (IHRA-WDA) This is very disturbing. Originated and touted by Israel, the IHRA-WDA is a toxic piece of work. It contains eleven examples, seven of which include criticism of the State of Israel or its policies and practices. It has been used and will be used to criminalize and/or prohibit free expression on important political issues. It has been renounced as a threat to academic freedom by over forty Canadian academic faculty associations and the General Council of the Canadian Association of University Teachers (CAUT).

If we are to use definitions, a far better one is provided by the Jerusalem Declaration on Antisemitism, endorsed by over 300 of the world’s top scholars on Judaism, antisemitism and the Holocaust, which explicitly allows for criticism, even harsh criticism of the Israeli regime.

For more information and for interviews, contact: Shira Lurie, shira.lurie@smu.ca, 647-568-8733.