The suppression of Jewish voices at Tufts and Pitzer [UPDATED]

Anti-Israel groups on college campuses have come up with a new tactic in their effort to pass BDS (Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions) resolutions. They are manipulating the voting to exclude Jews from the process.

At Tufts, a group called Students for Justice in Palestine decided to place an anti-Israel divestment resolution on the school senate’s agenda on the evening before the Jewish holiday of Passover, at a time when many Jewish students would be unable to attend the student government meeting. More than 50 students emailed their “senators” urging them to postpone the vote until after the Jewish holiday. The senate ignored their request.

Similarly at Pitzer College, the student senate unexpectedly held a vote on Easter Sunday on whether to prohibit Student Activities Funds to be used for payment on goods or services from any corporation or organization associated with Israel. Many student senators were not present, and therefore unable to vote, due to their observance of Easter and Passover.

The resolution passed 22-0, with four abstentions.

The author of the resolution claimed, absurdly, that the vote occurred on Easter Sunday and during Passover by coincidence. As for why she didn’t announce that the BDS measure would be taken up, the author admitted it was “because my intention was to have it pass.” “I have had enough intellectual conversation about why people disagree with me,” she explained.

Another example of the snowflake as fledgling fascist.

45 Jewish, Christian, education, and civil rights organizations have sent a letter to the president of Tufts, Anthony Monaco, protesting the deliberate effort to exclude Jewish students from the divestment vote process. The groups ask that the following steps, among others, be taken at Tufts:

1. Direct the TCU Senate to nullify the divestment resolution vote and schedule a re-vote for a time when the resolution can be fairly discussed and debated, and when all students – but especially those who are personally affected by the resolution — have an opportunity to express their opinions and equitably participate in the student government process;

2. Review, update and diligently enforce campus policies and procedures to guarantee that all members of the campus community, irrespective of their opinions, beliefs or identity, are equitably and adequately protected from intolerant behavior that infringes on their freedom of expression and denies them equal rights;

3. Ensure that prompt and appropriate disciplinary measures are taken when any individual or group engages in behavior that suppresses the freedom of expression or civil rights of others. To be a credible deterrent against campus abuses, “appropriate disciplinary measures” must include rigorous penalties such as suspension and expulsion.

If I find out how the president responds, I’ll report it. Frankly, I would be surprised if Tufts agrees to any of the above measures or takes any meaningful action at all in response to the targeted and deliberate exclusion of Jewish students from Tuft’s political process.

UPDATE: I’m happy to report, via a Tufts alum, that the Trustees have voted not to change Tufts’ investment policy. Further, they identified significant “concerns” in the manner in which the student senate passed the divestment resolution.

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