RSS
Pro-Palestinian Academics Target University of Pennsylvania as School Launches Initiative to Combat Antisemitism
A swastika graffitied in the basement of the University of Pennsylvania’s Stuart Weitzman School of Design on Sept. 14, 2023. Photo taken by student.
Over 500 academics and writers have signed a petition lambasting the University of Pennsylvania (Penn) for suggesting that anti-Israel activism on campus amid the ongoing Israel-Hamas war has been linked to antisemitism or harassment of Jewish students, accusing the school of fostering an “atmosphere of intimidation and Islamophobia” against Arabs, Palestinians, and Muslims.
The petition came as Penn launched a new task force to combat antisemitism amid recent incidents of antisemitic vandalism and anti-Israel protests that descended into demagoguery and intimidation of Jewish students.
“The university has failed to condemn — publicly, clearly, and consistently — the numerous episodes of harassment and intimidation directed specifically against Arab, Muslim, and Palestinian students and faculty,” the academics wrote in an open letter, citing a previous missive issued by the Penn branch of the American Association of University Professors (AAUP). The AAUP letter did not mention any specific instances in which an Arab or Muslim faculty member or student was harmed, but it argued in part that the university’s recent efforts to temper extremist rhetoric in the classroom and around campus led to harassment and discrimination.
“There should be no place for injustice, racism, and hate, including anti-Arab and anti-Palestinian hate, at Penn,” the more recent statement read, arguing that Penn faculty members, students, and staff “are being falsely defamed, smeared, and maligned.”
“The university administration has repeatedly made public statements suggesting that the presence and activities of Palestinian and pro-Palestinian voices on the Penn campus are linked to antisemitism or harassment of Jewish students and faculty,” the petition added. “To be clear: we unequivocally oppose antisemitism, and we also stress — as many scholars of Jewish history and the Holocaust have — that supporting Palestinians under Israeli military occupation, siege, and attack and calling for justice and freedom is not antisemitism.”
The petition came a few days after Penn unveiled new details about its nascent antisemitism task force, which was formed in response to an explosion of antisemitic incidents on campus this year.
“Penn’s campus cannot and will not be comfortable or uncontested space for antisemitism,” Penn president Elizabeth Magill said in a statement while announcing the new committee’s membership. “The task force is critical to Penn’s commitment to counter this threat … I believe Penn can become a higher education leader in the fight against antisemitism, but it will take all of us working together to make a serious change.”
The task force — which is comprised of faculty, students, staff, alumni, and members of Penn’s Board of Trustees — is chaired by Mark Wolff, dean of the School of Dental Medicine.
Penn has been embroiled in controversy this academic year stemming from concerns over antisemitism. Last month, a pro-Palestinian protest on campus devolved into intimidation of Jewish students, as speakers berated pro-Israel counter-protesters in the wake of Hamas’ Oct. 7 terrorist onslaught against Israel.
“The Israeli Jew has bastardized Judaism! Bastardized it! Trampled on it! How could you let this genocidal regime crap all over your God and your religion like this?” one speaker said at the protest, according to footage seen by The Algemeiner. “How can you, as a people who have seen the same amount of oppression in the past, stand by the same genocidal tactics, and lies, and methods that they use on our people? How could you stand for that? Look at you — you’re not even looking at this direction. You’re scared. You’re scared of being wrong.”
Addressing Jewish students who were standing nearby holding a counter-protest, the speaker continued. “Israelis! Hello, Israelis! Look at me! If I asked you to give me one justification, it would be a lie, misinformed, or consumed in post 9/11 dogma. Ask yourself, Israelis: Do you want to continue living in this false narrative, this fairy tale, or do you want to actually talk to the people? That [Israeli] flag has murdered.”
He concluded: “I hope you sh—t when you go on your bed tonight. I hope your dreams are filled with the horrors of dead Palestinian babies, burned Palestinian children, dead Palestinian women, a hundred square miles, leveled. I hope this scorches your brain. I hope you are terrified of this, because you should be.”
Professor Eve Troutt Powell, who teaches history of the modern Middle East at the university, accused Israel of not learning “the lessons of the Holocaust” shouting at the demonstration, “That was the lesson! Never again! This now is never again!”
Professor Huda Fakhreddine, who teaches Arabic literature, added, “Israel is the epitome of antisemitism … it desecrates the memory of the Holocaust victims. It humiliates every Jewish person.”
Days later, members of Alpha Epsilon Pi (AEPi), a traditionally Jewish fraternity, discovered graffiti saying “The Jews R Nazis” on the door of a property next to their house. The campus’ Division of Public Safety was investigating the vandalism as a potential hate crime.
Before the war in Gaza, the university came under fire in September for refusing to cancel or move a “Palestine Writes Literature Festival” held on campus. The event, which caused outrage and heightened tensions across campus, featured several activists who promoted conspiracies about Jewish power and called for violence against Israel.
One day before “Palestine Writes” took place, an unidentified male walked into the university’s Hillel building behind a staffer and shouted “F—k the Jews” and “Jesus Christ is king!” before overturning tables, podium stands, and chairs, according to students and school officials who spoke with The Algemeiner.
Days earlier, just before the Jewish New Year of Rosh Hashanah, a swastika was graffitied in the basement of the university’s Stuart Weitzman School of Design.
Major donors the school have threatened to pull funding from the school unless it does more to fight antisemitism, denouncing Magill for refusing to denounce the anti-Zionist festival.
Magill recently apologized and expressed regret for not promptly condemning the “Palestine Writes” event.
Follow Dion J. Pierre @DionJPierre.
The post Pro-Palestinian Academics Target University of Pennsylvania as School Launches Initiative to Combat Antisemitism first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
RSS
Treasure Trove spotlights a menorah designed in the early years of the State of Israel
This laurel branch Hanukkah menorah, designed by artist Maurice Ascalon (1913-2003), won first prize at the 1950 Tel Aviv Design Competition. Between 2,000 and 4,000 of these were made by the Pal-Bell factory in Israel, and they were sold not only in Israel but in select department stores around the world, including Macy’s in New York and Harrods in London.
The shape of the oil containers resembles ancient Roman lamps, while the large pitcher is a reference to the single jug of oil that lasted for eight days that is at the heart of the Hanukkah story.
These hanukkiyot were manufactured out of cast bronze with a green patina that was created using reactive chemicals, a process developed by Ascalon, resulting in an antique verdigris look.
Ascalon, who was born in Hungary and originally named Moshe Klein, immigrated to Palestine in 1934 after training in Brussels and Milan. He started the Pal-Bell Company in the late 1930s for the production of ritual and secular decorative items. “Pal” is short for Palestine and “Bell” is short for bellezza, Italian for beauty and an allusion to his time in Milan where the artist learned and perfected his sculpting skills. During Israel’s War of Independence in 1948, Ascalon designed munitions for the Israeli army and, at the request of the Israeli government, retrofitted his factory to produce arms for the war effort.
Ascalon closed Pal-Bell and moved to the United States in 1956, where he taught sculpture at the University of Judaism in Los Angeles and opened Ascalon Studios, which produces large-scale sculptures for public spaces and houses of worship.
The studio, which is now run by Ascalon’s son David and his grandson Eric, was retooled during the COVID pandemic to manufacture safety boxes that allowed health-care workers to assist a patient on a ventilator while minimizing exposure.
Treasure Trove wishes you a happy Hanukkah , which starts on Dec. 25. This year, as Peter, Paul and Mary sang, “Light one candle for the terrible sacrifice, justice and freedom demand. Don’t let the light go out!”
The post Treasure Trove spotlights a menorah designed in the early years of the State of Israel appeared first on The Canadian Jewish News.
RSS
Germany: 5 Killed, Scores Wounded after Saudi Man Plows Car Into Christmas crowd
Magdeburg Christmas market, December 21, 2024. Photo: REUTERS/Christian Mang
i24 News – A suspected terrorist plowed a vehicle into a crowd at a Christmas market in the German city of Magdeburg, west of the capital Berlin, killing at least five and injuring dozens more.
Local police confirmed that the suspect was a Saudi national born in 1974 and acting alone.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz expressed his concern about the incident, saying that “reports from Magdeburg suggest something bad. My thoughts are with the victims and their families.”
Police declined to give casualty numbers, confirming only a large-scale operation at the market, where people had gathered to celebrate in the days leading up to the Christmas holidays.
The post Germany: 5 Killed, Scores Wounded after Saudi Man Plows Car Into Christmas crowd first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
RSS
Syria’s New Rulers Name HTS Commander as Defense Minister
A person waves a flag adopted by the new Syrian rulers, as people gather during a celebration called by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) near the Umayyad Mosque, after the ousting of Syria’s Bashar al-Assad, in Damascus, Syria, Photo: December 20, 2024. REUTERS/Ammar Awad/File Photo
Syria’s new rulers have appointed Murhaf Abu Qasra, a leading figure in the insurgency which toppled Bashar al-Assad, as defense minister in the interim government, an official source said on Saturday.
Abu Qasra, who is also known by the nom de guerre Abu Hassan 600, is a senior figure in the Islamist Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) group which led the campaign that ousted Assad this month. He led numerous military operations during Syria’s revolution, the source said.
Syria’s de facto leader Ahmed al-Sharaa discussed “the form of the military institution in the new Syria” during a meeting with armed factions on Saturday, state news agency SANA reported.
Abu Qasra during the meeting sat next to Sharaa, also known by the nom de guerre Abu Mohammed al-Golani, photos published by SANA showed.
Prime Minister Mohammed al-Bashir said this week that the defense ministry would be restructured using former rebel factions and officers who defected from Assad’s army.
Bashir, who formerly led an HTS-affiliated administration in the northwestern province of Idlib, has said he will lead a three-month transitional government. The new administration has not declared plans for what will happen after that.
Earlier on Saturday, the ruling General Command named Asaad Hassan al-Shibani as foreign minister, SANA said. A source in the new administration told Reuters that this step “comes in response to the aspirations of the Syrian people to establish international relations that bring peace and stability.”
Shibani, a 37-year-old graduate of Damascus University, previously led the political department of the rebels’ Idlib government, the General Command said.
Sharaa’s group was part of al Qaeda until he broke ties in 2016. It had been confined to Idlib for years until going on the offensive in late November, sweeping through the cities of western Syria and into Damascus as the army melted away.
Sharaa has met with a number of international envoys this week. He has said his primary focus is on reconstruction and achieving economic development and that he is not interested in engaging in any new conflicts.
Syrian rebels seized control of Damascus on Dec. 8, forcing Assad to flee after more than 13 years of civil war and ending his family’s decades-long rule.
Washington designated Sharaa a terrorist in 2013, saying al Qaeda in Iraq had tasked him with overthrowing Assad’s rule and establishing Islamic sharia law in Syria. US officials said on Friday that Washington would remove a $10 million bounty on his head.
The war has killed hundreds of thousands of people, caused one of the biggest refugee crises of modern times and left cities bombed to rubble and the economy hollowed out by global sanctions.
The post Syria’s New Rulers Name HTS Commander as Defense Minister first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
You must be logged in to post a comment Login