Columbia University president Minouche Shafik resigned on Wednesday, becoming the third Ivy League president in just the last year to leave office amid criticism of what many observers perceived as a refusal to protect Jewish students from antisemitic discrimination, harassment, and assault.

“I write with sadness to tell you that I am stepping down as president of Columbia University effective Aug. 14, 2024,” Shafik said in a statement announcing her decision. “This period has taken a considerable toll on my family, as it has for others in our community. Over the summer, I have been able to reflect and have decided that my moving on at this point would best enable Columbia to traverse the challenges ahead. I am making this announcement now so that new leadership can be in place before the new terms begins.”

Shafik, who took office in 2023, managed to survive a grating US congressional hearing earlier this year in which Republican lawmakers accused her of capitulating to riotous pro-Hamas demonstrators, who, following Hamas’ Oct. 7 massacre across southern Israel, flagrantly broke rules proscribing hate speech and unauthorized protests. Pledging to correct her alleged failures, Shafik seemed poised to continue leading Columbia University with the full support of its trustees and most of its faculty.

However, two incidents over the summer crumbled what little credibility she had left with the public, the Jewish community, and federal lawmakers who have been investigating her administration. In June, the university reached an out of court settlement with a student who accused it of neglecting its obligation to foster a safe learning environment during the final weeks of last spring semester. While stopping short of admitting guilt, the settlement virtually conceded to the plaintiff her argument that the campus is unsafe for Jewish students, agreeing to provide her and others “Safe Passage Liaisons” tasked with protecting them from racist abuse and violence.

Another scandal in the same month took longer to brew. Days before Columbia settled its student’s lawsuit, the Washington Free Beacon published an explosive report about four university administrators who took turns exchanging text messages which, as Shafik described, “touched disturbingly on ancient antisemitic tropes.” According to the Free Beacon, which obtained the communications from a trove of documents shared by the US House Committee on Education and the Workforce, four officials — Susan Chang-Kim, Cristen Kromm, Matthew Patashnick, and Josef Sorett, who is dean of Columbia College — described Jews as “privileged” and venal, reacting to a panel in which Jewish leaders participated to plea for help and explain the link between anti-Zionism and antisemitism.

No one was immediately fired after the report went viral. Outraged, Jewish and pro-Israel leaders lambasted what they perceived as a teflon privilege which insulated administrators from the controversy and pointed to the outcome of the matter as evidence that antisemitism at Columbia is institutional. In response, thousands of rabbis implored Shafik to resign.

“The bigotry and double standards are blatant, and entirely at odds with the experiences that I and others had at Columbia in the past. Imagine if something like this had happened during a session when Black, Latino, Pacific Islander, or LGBTQ faculty and students were speaking about hostility they faced on campus,” said Coalition for Jewish Values (CJV) vice president Rabbi Steven Pruzansky, who led the call for Shafik to step down. “Any faculty dismissing their concerns, much less ridiculing them or sharing hateful sentiments, would find themselves unemployed without delay.”

Pummeled by volleys of opprobrium, Shafik attempted to assuage concerns that Columbia University — one of America’s most prestigious institutions of higher education — had become a sanctuary for antisemites and those who proudly described themselves as enemies of both Israel and the US.

“We will launch a vigorous program of antisemitism and antidiscrimination [sic] training for faculty and staff this fall, with related training for students under the auspices of university life,” she said,  addressing the administrators’ conduct. “Columbia’s leadership team recognizes this as an important moment to implement changes that will build a stronger institution as a result. I know that you all share this commitment.”

Ultimately, three of the Columbia administrators embroiled in the text message scandal resigned last week.

For many, Shafik’s words rang false, coming too long after the campus had been commandeered by Columbia students who praised Hamas’ Oct. 7 massacre across southern Israel and chanted “F—k the Jews,” “Death to Jews,” “Jews will not defeat us,” and “From water to water, Palestine will be Arab.”

Faculty had engaged in similar behavior. On Oct. 8, Columbia professor Joseph Massad published in Electronic Intifada an essay cheering Hamas’ atrocities, which included slaughtering children and raping women, as “awesome” and describing men who paraglided into a music festival to kill young people as “the air force of the Palestinian resistance.” Additionally, Shafik stood by while her subordinates launched an investigation into a vocal pro-Israel professor, Shai Davidai, an action he described as revealing “the depths of [Columbia’s] hostility towards its Jewish community.”

In April, while Shafik testified on Capitol Hill, an explosion of anti-Israel demonstrations on the eve of the Jewish holiday of Passover forced the administration to shutter the campus and institute “virtual” learning. Prior to that, footage of the protest showed Columbia students — who occupied a section of campus and named it a “Gaza Solidarity Encampment” — proclaiming support for Hamas, calling for the destruction of Israel, and even threatening to harm members of the Jewish community on campus. The situation was so severe that security officials deactivated Davidai’s identification card and temporarily banned him from campus because his safety could not be “guaranteed,” a measure which reflected the administration’s belief that the students it hesitated to rein in, as well as the non-students they invited to campus, were prepared to perpetrate violence to make their point.

As of the date of her resignation, a lawsuit alleging that Shafik did nothing after pro-Hamas agitators beat up five Jewish students in the school’s Butler Library and another attacked a Jewish student with a stick, lacerating his head and breaking his finger, had yet to reach trial.

“I have tried to navigate a path that upholds academic principles and treats everyone with fairness and compassion,” she said in Wednesday’s statement. “It has been distressing — for the community, for me as president, and on a personal level — to find myself, colleagues, and students the subject of threats and abuse. As President Lincoln said, ‘A house divided against itself cannot stand’ — we must do all we can to resist the forces of polarization in our community. I remain optimistic that differences can be overcome through the honest exchange of views, truly listening — and always — by treating each other with dignity and respect. Again, Columbia’s core mission to create and acquire knowledge, with our values as foundation, will lead us there.”

Follow Dion J. Pierre @DionJPierre.

The post Columbia University President Minouche Shafik Resigns Amid Numerous Antisemitism Scandals first appeared on Algemeiner.com.

Last week, The Algemeiner reported that Mary Black, a member of the Raleigh City Council in North Carolina who recently filed for re-election, has come under fire for regularly attacking Israel and Zionists, despite her job having no apparent responsibilities concerning Middle Eastern affairs.

Since then, Black, 30, has come under increased scrutiny from the media, community members, and fellow Democrats. The North Carolina Democratic Party Jewish Caucus told The Algemeiner they have endorsed Mitchell Silver, a former New York City Parks Commissioner and Raleigh Chief Planner, who is running for the Raleigh City Council seat currently held by Black.

Rabbi Eric Solomon of Beth Meyer Synagogue, the largest congregation in Raleigh, publicly endorsed Silver this week in a widely read and shared social media post.

Over the weekend, a local progressive paper reported on some of the Jewish community’s concerns about Black. In addition, a group of more than 20 prominent Democrats wrote a letter asking the Wake County Democratic Party — which includes Raleigh — “not to endorse between Democrats in local elections in Raleigh this fall.” Multiple political insiders told The Algemeiner this is significant because there is widespread agreement that Black won her seat in 2022 in large part based on the endorsement of the Wake County Democratic Party.

Black has alienated many voters and members of the Jewish community by working closely with a pro-Hamas activist and spending much of her time in office attempting to have the Raleigh City Council pass a divisive, anti-Israel, one-sided Gaza ceasefire resolution. After several attempts, the resolution did not pass.

To get a better sense of how local Jewish Democrats are responding to Black’s intense and disproportionate focus on the world’s lone Jewish state and its supporters, The Algemeiner interviewed Conner Taylor, 2nd vice chair of the North Carolina Democratic Party Jewish Caucus; Linda Brinkley, president of the Wake County chapter of the caucus; and Lynn Schwartz, vice president of the Wake chapter caucus

The Jewish Caucus representatives were clear that while their statewide caucus has endorsed Silver in District A (the seat currently held by Black), the local Wake County chapter does not make or ask for specific endorsements when Democrats, such as Silver and Black, are running against one another.

Taylor explained that the Jewish community is concerned about much more than Black’s support for a ceasefire resolution. “For many of Raleigh’s Jews, I think the real turning point, that really galvanized the Jewish community, was her [Black’s] very close working relationship with Rania Masri.”

The Algemeiner was the first to report that in November, Masri spoke at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, declaring that Oct. 7 — when Hamas-led Palestinian terrorists invaded southern Israel and perpetrated the biggest single-day massacre of Jews since the Holocaust — “was a beautiful day.” Masri expressed pride and admiration for Hamas and their paragliders and went on to “demand the eradication of Zionism.” In addition, Masri posted a video on Facebook that called Hamas fighters “heroes.”

In March, Masri asked her Facebook followers to vote for Black for “Best Politician in Wake County.” In June, a smiling Masri attended Black’s campaign kickoff event.

Taylor explained the “betrayal” felt by the Jewish community observing Black and Masri’s close working relationship, seeing Black pose for photographs with Masri, speak on a panel with the pro-Hamas activist, speak at a fundraiser with Masri standing behind her, and speak at a local rally standing with the controversial figure.

“A very important piece of context here,” Taylor shared, “is that Mary Black, in District A, represents the heart of Raleigh’s Jewish community. Two large synagogues are there … Many, many Jewish Democrats who voted for Mary Black in 2022 then had to see their member of City Council — who was supposed to be representing all of her constituents, including her Jewish constituents — openly embracing a woman [Masri] who has said that the rape and murder of Jews is a beautiful thing.”

Rabbi Solomon has attempted many times to start a dialogue with Black. Solomon, a political progressive, recently wrote a widely shared social media post in which he denounced Black’s “incitement” and endorsed her opponent Silver in the upcoming election.

Solomon explained why he went from voting for Black in 2022 to supporting one of her opponents in 2024: “I speak to CM [Council Member] Mary Black *privately* beseeching her to stop speaking/posting about the Gaza War as her words are a source of incitement. After the Pittsburgh Synagogue terrorist attack and the October 7th massacre, District A Jews are living in fear. I explain we need her help, not her antagonism. I am careful not to call her an antisemite but her focus on this issue above all others as well as the tenor and content of her comments lean into antisemitic tropes. Her positions are not pro-Palestinian; they are pro-Hamas.”

The rabbi noted that Black has held many community meetings during Shabbat and on a Jewish holiday, when observant Jews are unable to attend, and devoted significant time and energy to Israel-related issues that are “not relevant” to the City Council’s business.

“CM [Council Member] Black holds numerous District A community discussions on the Jewish Sabbath and one session on Hanukkah during the exact time when it is customary to light candles,” Solomon wrote in his social media post. “I find a way to attend the meeting, racing out by leaving my wife and children behind in hopes that a respectful, face-to-face meeting will help her realize the seriousness of the issue. Nearly all attendees agree with my words and urge her to stop bringing Gaza War resolutions to the council … I speak publicly against Mary Black because she continues to post insidious one-sided statements and videos that are not relevant to the City Council and continues to threaten me and my community.”

As reported by The Algemeiner, Black has publicly used the antisemitic slur “zios,” a term that was originally deployed by far-right extremists and has more recently been used by activists on the progressive far left. In an apparent attempt to delegitimize Israel and its supporters, Black has used an asterisk when discussing Israel, by writing “Isr*ael,” and misspelled Zionist as “xionist.” On a local Jewish social media group, a Raleigh resident explained, “She’s throwing around Zionist like a curse word.”

When asked about Black’s use of the word “zios,” Taylor responded, “It’s bizarre that a Democratic elected official is using online slang that originated with the grand wizard of the Ku Klux Klan.”

Black has also been accused of trivializing the Holocaust, implying that Israel has treated the Palestinians like the Nazis treated the Jews and comparing politics in Raleigh to “Nazi Germany.”

Taylor told The Algemeiner, “As someone who lost many family members to the Holocaust, I don’t think anything happening in Raleigh approaches the Holocaust or is comparable to the Holocaust. I think that is an incredibly bizarre statement regardless of what she may have meant by it. I think many, many of her constituents, just generally speaking, have viewed these social media posts about all of this as unsettling, as bizarre, as unprofessional, and as unbecoming of an elected official.”

Others have also described Black’s social media posts to The Algemeiner as bizarre and unsettling.

Black, a self-described “intersectional environmentalist,” recently shared a post on Threads that celebrated the attempted assassination attempt on former US President Donald Trump. She also posted that those who she calls “zionologists” have taught her that “the massacre of children is justified because Babies [sic] voted for Hamas” and has expressed concern that Palestinians have difficulty obtaining cilantro.

In 2022, Black was endorsed by the Wake County Democratic Party.

The Algemeiner reached out to local and statewide party leaders for additional information and comment for this story. Kevyn Creech, chair of the Wake County Democratic Party; Anderson Clayton, chair of the state party; and Jonah Garson, first vice chair of the state party did not respond.

In addition to attacking Israel, Black has recently attacked the United States, writing, “IM [sic] AMERICAN! We do war crimes for breakfast.”

Taylor told The Algemeiner that Jews in Raleigh, as well as the broader population, are unhappy with the polarization that has taken hold of the City Council and its intense focus on foreign affairs far out of the purview of local lawmakers.

“Many, many people in the Jewish community in Raleigh, over the past year, have been dismayed with how divisive the City Council has become,” he said. “There have been members of the City Council that have become hyper focused on issues happening thousands of miles away that the City Council has no ability to impact, to the neglect of local issues — things like schools, things like housing, things like transportation. In general, the Jewish community is really searching for, and supportive of, Raleigh-focused candidates for City Council, like … Silver.”

Taylor explained the enthusiasm that the statewide Democratic Party Jewish Caucus has for the candidacy of Silver.

“He’s a Raleigh-focused candidate. He is not campaigning on solving issues in Yemen or Gaza or Tibet or Ukraine,” Taylor argued. “He is focused on Raleigh, North Carolina … He is really a phenomenal candidate. He helped draft Raleigh’s 2030 comprehensive plan.”

Taylor discussed what he described as Silver’s “really robust housing and zoning policy ideas” which, he said, focus on development while protecting “existing communities.” The Jewish caucus’ 2nd vice chair added that Silver’s experience as a former New York City Parks Commissioner and Raleigh Chief Planner would benefit the Raleigh City Council, again noting that he is discussing local concerns rather than Israel or Gaza.

In a recent social media post, Black suggested that opposition to her candidacy was based on racism, noting the Democratic Jewish Caucus’ efforts to oppose her re-election.

In response to the accusation, Taylor told The Algemeiner: “We have endorsed an African-American candidate [Silver]. So, I’m not really sure how anyone could have the impression that our decision not to endorse Mary Black was related to her being African American when we have endorsed an African American for this same seat.”

Black’s social media posts are filled with concerns about racism and white supremacy. Yet, she has also harshly criticized what she calls “black capitalism.” On Threads, Black shared an image which read, “CAPITALISM RUINS EVERYTHING AROUND ME,” followed by the anarchy symbol. She also stated on Threads, “Black capitalism is truly a plague on our people.”

North Carolina civil rights leaders, such as the late Floyd McKissick, took the opposite view, embracing and championing Black capitalism and entrepreneurship in the state.

On Aug. 8, Black was endorsed by a local Democratic Socialists of America chapter “to keep her seat as an anti-Zionist leader on the Raleigh City Council.”

Black has recently dismissed concerns that she is antisemitic as being “funny.” She took to Threads this week to share, “Reading what I’ve written on social media about this war on Gaza and all the responses last week about me being antisemitic when this is who I am is so funny to me.”

Peter Reitzes writes about issues related to antisemitism and Israel.

The post North Carolina Lawmaker Faces Backlash From Local Jewish Leaders, Fellow Democrats Over Attacks on Israel, Zionists first appeared on Algemeiner.com.

A new study has found that the curriculum used in Palestinian Authority (PA) schools is still filled with anti-Jewish and anti-Israel hatred. How will that affect the chances for Middle East peace?

One of the most significant provisions of the Oslo Accords, which Israel and the PA signed three decades ago, was that the Palestinians would stop teaching hate to their children. According to the Oslo II agreement (Article XXII [1]), the PA is obligated to “abstain from incitement, including hostile propaganda.”

The most important place to begin implementing that new policy was the PA’s schools. The only hope for a genuine and durable peace in the region is if Palestinian Arab children are raised to embrace peace and coexistence, and reject hatred and violence.

Yet in the years following the signing of those accords, multiple studies by groups such as Palestinian Media Watch, MEMRI, and Impact-SE found that the PA was continuing to teach children to hate and kill Jews.

The US State Department and J Street kept telling us that the Palestinian Authority was changing, becoming moderate, rejecting violence. Yet the actual school books used in PA schools told a different story.

Now a study from Tel Aviv University’s Institute for National Security Studies (INSS) has confirmed our worst fears. Its review of PA school curricula has found that the PA continues to “espouse some of the worst views against Jews and Israel in their textbooks.”

Palestinian Arab children are still being taught to “dehumanize Israel and Jews.” Instead of aspiring to live peacefully next door to Israel, they aspire to “securing Palestinian justice over Israel’s ruins … to adhere to the vision of ending the state of Israel.” In fact, Israel is not even mentioned on the maps in PA schoolbooks — “instead, the region is referred to as ‘Palestine’ or ‘Occupied Palestine.’”

The PA schoolbooks make a mockery of concepts such as tolerance and pluralism. According to the report, they present an “antisemitic portrayal of Jews.” Furthermore, “Jews are continuously maligned as the enemies of Islam,” and “Jews are the ‘enemies of Islam in all times and places.’”

To cite just one of innumerable examples, a standard 8th grade Arabic Language textbook used in PA schools “teaches reading comprehension through a violent story that promotes suicide bombings and exalts Palestinian militants in the Battle of Karameh.”

In that narrative, Arab fighters “cut the necks of enemy soldiers” and “wore explosive belts, thus turning their bodies into fire burning the Zionist tank.” They celebrate “leaving behind some of the bodies and body parts, to become food for wild animals on land and birds of prey in the sky.”

Have you ever wondered why countless Palestinian Arab children participate in mobs that try to stone and burn Jews to death? Or why Palestinian Arab college students vote for pro-terrorist, antisemitic parties in their university elections? Or why so many young Palestinian Arabs have enthusiastically engaged in the most heinous acts imaginable, such as killing Jewish babies?

The INSS study provides the answer: because that’s how they are raised. Every day of their young lives, Palestinian Arab children study from textbooks that glorify anti-Jewish terrorists and teach antisemitic hatred.

All the peace plans that pundits and diplomats promote mean nothing in the face of this tragic reality. All the talk about borders and refugees and settlements is meaningless so long as one side raises its children to wage a never-ending war against Jews.

Tel Aviv University’s Institute for National Security Studies has done an important public service by examining the  Palestinian Authority’s textbooks. The results may be deeply disturbing, but they help us understand the basic reality of the Middle East today. That reality will never change so long as Palestinian Arab children are taught to hate and kill Jews.

Moshe Phillips is National Chairman of Americans For a Safe Israel/AFSl, a leading pro-Israel advocacy and education group.

The post Palestinian Schools Still Teach Their Children to Hate Jews first appeared on Algemeiner.com.