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SJP Violated UNC’s Policies; Why Isn’t the Group Suspended?
Students sit on the steps of Wilson Library on the campus of University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, North Carolina, US, Sept. 20, 2018. Photo: REUTERS/Jonathan Drake
What will it take for the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC) to suspend the Students for Justice in Palestine chapter (UNC-SJP) on campus?
One day after Hamas killed 1,200 Israelis, took 240 hostages, and raped and tortured many others on Oct. 7, UNC-SJP proclaimed on social media: “It is our moral obligation to be in solidarity with the dispossessed, no matter the pathway to liberation they choose to take. This includes violence.”
On Oct 12, UNC-SJP held a “Day of Resistance Protest for Palestine” on campus. The event flier celebrated terrorism by featuring a Hamas paraglider en route to kill Israelis and commit other atrocities. In a widely circulated video, a protester shouted, “All of us Hamas.”
Given that UNC is now being probed by the Federal government for its treatment of the Jewish community, it seems like a prudent time for the school to take action against SJP for violating university policies.
State Rep. Jon Hardister (R) — the NC House Majority Whip — wrote the following to UNC’s Vice President for Safety & Emergency Operations, to UNC’s Provost, to UNC’s Chief of Police, and to other campus officials: “I do believe the use of paraglider imagery in the pamphlet that was circulated is out of bounds and could be construed as inciting violence.”
Writing to a member of the Board of Trustees, UNC’s Provost, Christopher Clemons, stated, “There is no doubt the flyer represents a celebration of violence and murder.”
Before the rally, UNC-SJP publicly “recommended” protestors wear “face coverings” to this outdoor event, even though campus policy states that masks may not be worn to “conceal identity.” UNC-SJP also posted on social media that “masks are required for all events going forward.” Students, faculty, and community members with whom I have spoken see as an attempt to conceal the protestors’ identities.
A UNC student told me that Jewish students who were silently counter-protesting this event on Oct. 12 were approached by two masked activists who allegedly said, “Let’s fight,” and allegedly brandished knives. An Israeli professor was pushed down stairs.
Fifty UNC students — the majority of whom are Jewish — wrote to a US senator: “Jewish students at UNC do not feel safe.” They report that on Oct. 12, UNC-SJP members allegedly “threatened several peaceful protesters with violence, and some brandished pocket knives and threatened our members.”
The next day, W. M. “Marty” Kotis III — a member of UNC’s Board of Trustees — sent an email titled “Free Speech vs Inciting Violence Line” to the Provost and other UNC leaders, pointing out that in Sept. 2023, UNC provided its SJP chapter with $1,380 in funding.
Kotis wrote, “We want to support protected free speech — but there are classes of speech that are not protected — inciting violence, true threats, fighting words and obscenity are four of them.”
Kotis wrote to the Chancellor and other UNC officials: “This recent [Oct. 12] protest seems to violate NC Statute 14-12.8 as well as University policy.”
The statute forbids individuals in North Carolina from wearing masks or other coverings to “conceal the identity of the wearer.”
In October, UNC-SJP held a “a week of action” with five events. The flier stated, “MASKS REQUIRED AT ALL EVENTS.”
In response, a leader of the Jewish community on campus wrote to the Chancellor: “For all of the SJP programs this week they are requiring masks to preserve the anonymity of those present. As we saw on Thursday [Oct. 12], the masks are also a sign of intimidation allowing people to say and do things they would not feel comfortable doing if they were being held accountable … it highlights the real security concern and fear Jewish students have of this group on campus.”
A tour guide recently told a woman I met that UNC’s campus had become unsafe due to SJP rallies.
On Nov. 28, I attended the event “No Peace Without Justice: A Round-Table Talk about Social Justice in Palestine,” hosted by several UNC departments. A speaker, Rania Masri, told the audience, “Oct. 7 for many of us from the region was a beautiful day” and added, “Let us demand the eradication of Zionism.”
There were SJP activists in attendance. As this picture shows, people were sitting closely together inside and not one person appeared to be masked. Yet, when protesting outside, we have seen that most SJP activists and their allies wear masks. It seems clear that masking is about concealing the identities of protestors and not about health safety.
The Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights has just opened an investigation to determine if UNC “responded to alleged harassment of students based on national origin (shared Jewish ancestry) in a manner consistent with the requirements of Title VI.”
A group of more than 100 UNC Kenan-Flagler Business School (KFBS) graduates, students, and professors sent an email to Dean Mary Margaret Frank asking that KFBS resources not be used by SJP or “any other UNC affiliated groups that have engaged in violent antisemitic rhetoric on campus.”
UNC-SJP has boasted on social media about purposely disrupting the campus: “On Friday, November 17, a group of about 40 members of SJP and allied organizations occupied South Building for a total of 3 hours, shutting down administrative operations for the day.” A video taken from this shutdown shows masked activists chanting, “Intifada Intifada, long live the Intifada.”
When walking on UNC’s campus, I have personally seen chalkings calling for “Intifada” and “From the river to the sea,” which Jews understand as calls for violence and genocide. Another chalking says, “Long live the PFLP!” The PFLP is the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, which the United States has designated a terrorist group.
University officials need to take the safety of their students seriously, as Elizabeth Magill learned from her recent resignation as President at the University of Pennsylvania.
Kotis wrote to UNC’s chancellor about the shutdown of South Building: “It violates our honor code and federal protections. It constitutes harassment. Such calls for genocide or global jihad present a clear and present danger to our campus.” He added, “The disruption violated Policy 1300.8.”
This policy states that “Students, staff, and faculty shall be permitted to assemble and engage in spontaneous expressive activity as long as such activity is lawful and does not materially and substantially disrupt the functioning of the constituent institution.”
The SJP chapter at Rutgers University was recently suspended, in part, for “disruptive or disorderly conduct” and for “occupying” the business school. Four or more SJP chapters have been suspended nationwide since the attacks of Oct. 7. It is time for UNC to hold its SJP chapter accountable for inciting violence, purposely concealing their identities during protests, disrupting campus administration, and creating a hostile campus environment for Jewish students.
Peter Reitzes writes about issues related to antisemitism and Israel.
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Liri Albag, Karina Ariev, Daniela Gilboa and Naama Levy named as Israeli hostages to go free on Saturday
Ben Sales reports on Friday for JTA. Stay tuned for more exclusive coverage related to Jewish Canadians from The CJN.
Hamas has published the names of the four hostages it will release on Saturday, the second group of captives to go free in the initial phase of the ceasefire that began this week.
The four hostages expected to be released on Saturday are Daniela Gilboa, Liri Albag, Naama Levy and Karina Ariev. All are Israeli soldiers, an apparent breach of Hamas’ agreement with Israel, which stipulated that civilian women be released first. The four hostages are all expected to come out alive after nearly 500 days in captivity since they were abducted in Hamas’ attack on Oct. 7, 2023.
The impending release of the four soldiers also means that the two civilian women still in captivity—Arbel Yehud and Shiri Bibas—will not go free on Saturday.
Yehud is thought to be held by Islamic Jihad, another Gaza terror group. Israel had reportedly demanded her release this week. No sign of life has publicly been disclosed about her since the Oct. 7 attack.
Bibas was abducted with her children Kfir and Ariel. Hamas said early in the war that all three members of the Bibas family had been killed, but Israel has not confirmed that allegation.
Agam Berger, a female Israel soldier, is also still being held hostage. A hostage released in November 2023 said Berger, who had started her army service two days before she was taken hostage, was alive in captivity.
After the four women are released, a total of 90 hostages will still be held in Gaza, dozens of whom have been confirmed to be dead. Hamas was due to provide details as to the condition of some of them, though the extent of that information remains unclear.
The release on Saturday is due to come six days after Hamas released Emily Damari, Romi Gonen and Doron Steinbrecher, all civilian women. In exchange, Israel released some 90 Palestinian security prisoners, and is due to release dozens more in exchange for the four hostages returning to Israel on Saturday.
The release of the three hostages on Sunday occasioned celebration and relief across Israel, which has collectively held its breath ahead of Saturday’s expected release. Most Israelis are in favor of the ceasefire deal, but it has also drawn opposition because it includes the release of convicted Palestinian terrorists and potentially an end to Israel’s military campaign against Hamas in Gaza. President Donald Trump has pushed for the deal but also sounded skeptical about it lasting.
The hostage releases are part of the first stage of the Israel-Hamas ceasefire, which began on Sunday and is due to last six weeks. Over the course of that period, Hamas is to release a total of 33 hostages, most of whom are thought to be alive.
The second stage of the ceasefire, which has yet to be negotiated, would see Israel fully withdraw from Gaza in exchange for the release of the remaining living hostages. A third stage would see the rest of the hostages be released as reconstruction of Gaza begins.
The post Liri Albag, Karina Ariev, Daniela Gilboa and Naama Levy named as Israeli hostages to go free on Saturday appeared first on The Canadian Jewish News.
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Oklahoma Legislator Introduces Bill to Adopt IHRA Definition of Antisemitism
The Tulsa, Oklahoma skyline. Photo: Photomakers/Wikimedia.
Oklahoma State Rep. John Waldron, a Democrat elected in Tulsa, has introduced legislation that would use the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s (IHRA) definition of antisemitism to guide state employees in assessing bigotry against Jews.
Rising antisemitism on college campuses motivated Waldron to draft a bill to aid schools in identifying hate speech. He said he hoped to “give higher education tools for defining what political speech, and therefore protected under the First Amendment, and hate speech that tends toward violence, and should be dealt with according to administrative procedure is,” according to KTUL ABC 8 in Tulsa.
The legislation, House Bill 2243, was introduced last week and says that “state officials and institutions have a responsibility to protect citizens from acts of hate and bigotry motivated by discriminatory animus, including antisemitism, and must be given the tools to do so; valid monitoring, informed analysis and investigation, and effective policymaking all require uniform definitions.”
Joe Roberts, executive director of the Jewish Federation of Tulsa, released a statement advocating for the legislation.
“For Jewish Oklahomans, HB 2243 is more than policy — it is a statement that Oklahoma stands firmly with the Jewish community against rising hate,” Roberts said. “By adopting the IHRA definition, Oklahoma is taking a crucial step in ensuring that our community is protected, our voices are heard, and our concerns are taken seriously. The IHRA definition is the gold standard in identifying and addressing antisemitism, and its adoption here will help build a safer and more inclusive Oklahoma for all.”
IHRA — an intergovernmental organization comprising dozens of countries including the US — adopted the “working definition” of antisemitism in 2016. Since then, the definition has been widely accepted by Jewish groups and lawmakers across the political spectrum, and it is now used by hundreds of governing institutions, including the US State Department, European Union, and United Nations. Dozens of US states have also formally adopted it through law or executive action.
According to the definition, antisemitism “is a certain perception of Jews, which may be expressed as hatred toward Jews. Rhetorical and physical manifestations of antisemitism are directed toward Jewish or non-Jewish individuals and/or their property, toward Jewish community institutions and religious facilities.” It provides 11 specific, contemporary examples of antisemitism in public life, the media, schools, the workplace, and in the religious sphere. Beyond classic antisemitic behavior associated with the likes of the medieval period and Nazi Germany, the examples include denial of the Holocaust and newer forms of antisemitism targeting Israel such as demonizing the Jewish state, denying its right to exist, and holding it to standards not expected of any other democratic state.
The Oklahoma legislation describes the IHRA definition as “an essential definitional tool used to determine contemporary manifestations of antisemitism and includes useful examples of discriminatory anti-Israel acts that can cross the line into antisemitism.” The bill also notes its usage “by various agencies of the federal government and by over 30 governments around the world.”
Opponents of state legislation to codify into law the IHRA definition often claim that such moves threaten free speech, particularly criticism of Israel. However, the text of Waldron’s bill explicitly counters that objection, stating, “Nothing in this section shall be construed to diminish or infringe upon any right protected under the First Amendment to the United States Constitution or the Oklahoma Constitution.”
The Oklahoma state legislature has scheduled the bill for its first reading on Feb. 3.
Other states where representatives have worked recently to introduce or pass similar laws utilizing the IHRA definition include New York, Ohio, New Jersey, New Hampshire, North Carolina, and South Dakota, among others. According to the Combat Antisemitism Movement, as of Nov. 1, 2024, 1,262 entities worldwide have adopted the definition, including 45 countries, 37 US state governments, and 96 city and county governments.
In a Wednesday guest column in The Oklahoman, Roberts further advocated for the bill and defended the IHRA definition from its detractors’ conventional argument.
“Critics of the IHRA definition have raised concerns about free speech, arguing that defining antisemitism in law could suppress legitimate criticism of Israel. This is simply not true,” Roberts wrote. “The IHRA definition explicitly states that criticism of Israel, similar to that leveled against any other country, is not antisemitic. What the definition does do is distinguish between legitimate discourse and hateful rhetoric — such as denying Israel’s right to exist, holding Jews collectively responsible for Israel’s actions, or using classic antisemitic tropes to demonize the Jewish state.”
Roberts wrote that Waldron’s legislation “does not criminalize speech, it simply provides guidance for recognizing when antisemitism is at play.” He concluded his column warning that “antisemitism is not just a Jewish issue; it is a threat to the fabric of our society. It is an attack on the values that bind us together as Oklahomans and as Americans. If we are serious about protecting our way of life, we must act now. Pass HB 2243.”
According to the Jewish Virtual Library, 8,800 Jews lived in Oklahoma in 2024, making up 0.22 percent of the state’s population.
Oklahoma Gov. J. Kevin Stitt has urged more Jews to move to Oklahoma and called for his fellow Christians to learn from Jewish traditions. “The Jewish community is welcome in Oklahoma,” he told the New York Post last year. “When you think about the values of who we are as Oklahomans it matches with the Jewish community, family-focused, very faith-focused, entrepreneurial, hard-working.”
Stitt, a self-described “Old Testament-loving Christian,” added, “Christians — we don’t do a good job of bringing the family together and really setting aside electronics and, and really focusing on the Sabbath. You know, one day a week, and I just think that’s something that we can learn a lot from the Jewish community.”
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Former NFL Players Take Solidarity Trip to Israel, Advocate for Release of Hamas Hostages
Tony Richardson, far left, and Nick Lowery, far right, posing for a photo with Israeli President Isaac Herzog during their recent trip to Israel. Photo: The Office of the President of Israel
NFL legends Nick Lowery and Tony Richardson, who are former Kansas City Chiefs teammates and members of the team’s Hall of Fame, took a tour of southern Israel recently to see areas and meet families impacted by the deadly Hamas terrorist attack that took place on Oct. 7, 2023.
Lowery, one of the NFL’s greatest placekickers, and Richardson, a former NFL star fullback, toured Kibbutz Kfar Aza and the Nahal Oz base of the Israel Defense Forces, as well as the site of the Nova music festival massacre. They met with families of those kidnapped during the Oct. 7 terrorist attack in an effort to help advocate for the release of the hostages. Their five-day visit to Israel that started on Dec. 29 was sponsored by Project Max and the nonprofit organization Athletes for Israel, which aims to bring well-known sports figures to the Jewish state.
The goal of Project Max is to fight racism, antisemitism, and intolerance through sports. Lowery is part of the #SportSpeaksUp campaign that is led by Project Max CEO Eric Rubin.
During their time in Israel, Lowery and Richardson spoke with Yoni and Amit Levy, father and brother of Naama Levy, who has been held hostage by Hamas terrorists in the Gaza Strip for over 450 days. Naama, 20, is one of five young women kidnapped on Oct. 7, 2023, by Hamas-led terrorists from the IDF base in Nahal Oz near the Israel-Gaza border. She was filmed being dragged into a jeep by terrorists, with her hands tied behind her back, during her abduction. Her ankles were cut, her face was bleeding, and her sweatpants were blood-stained.
“As a father, nothing to be proud more than to have a daughter like Naama,” Yoni told the NFL legends in a video that was shared on social media. “She’s quite shy, but very, very strong inside. It gives us a lot of hope that she is surviving.” Amit, 22, further told Lowery and Richardson: “I think it’s so important what you are doing because it’s been so long, it’s easy for people to move on. It’s not just a poster. [She’s] my sister and she has dreams.”
In response, the athletes expressed hope that Naama will return home soon. They also said they will do what they can to speak up in support of the hostages. “One of our goals is to help her dream and give voice to it,” said Lowery, 68. “The connection with Naama as a triathlete, to work through pain, to work through challenge … I hope that the athletes that are watching this … if Naama can’t speak up for herself, we must speak for her and the others. She will be back. We love this place. We love the people.”
Lowery and Richardson also visited the soccer field in the Druze-majority town of Majdal Shams in northern Israel, where 12 Druze children and teenagers were killed, and at least 42 were injured, by a Hezbollah rocket on July 27, 2024. During the stop they met with 13-year-old Jwan Ibraheem, who survived the rocket explosion and is having a difficult time moving on with his life after blaming himself for not being able to save his best friend who was killed by the Hezbollah rocket.
The former NFL teammates also toured Hostages Square in Tel Aviv, and met with Israeli President Isaac Herzog, Speaker of the Knesset Amir Ohana, and IDF soldiers. “We will be a voice to those who don’t have one,” they told Herzog. They also took a tour of religious sites in the Old City of Jerusalem, such as the Church of the Holy Sepulchre and the Western Wall, and Lowery was re-baptized at the Sea of Galilee. They also stopped by the StandWithUs center in Jerusalem, where they learned more about the history of Israel and antisemitism.
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