by Carrie Zaremba, Mondoweiss, September 2, 2024 https://mondoweiss.net/2024/09/u-s-universities-spent-the-summer-strategizing-to-suppress-student-activism-here-is-their-plan/
Schools across the U.S. have altered policies and even landscapes in an attempt to make a repeat of last spring’s Palestine protests impossible. The result is a far-reaching war on free expression and the increased militarization of higher education. . . . *In Shot at Gaza Protesters, NYU Makes “Zionist” a Protected Class* *New York University students who speak out against Zionism will now risk violating the school’s nondiscrimination policies.* by Natasha Lennard, Intercept, August 27 https://theintercept.com/2024/08/27/zionist-nyu-gaza-campus-protests/ . . . New York University led by troubling example when the school shared an updated code of student conduct last week. Ostensibly aimed at curtailing bigotry, the new language instead shuts down dissent by threatening to silence criticism of Zionism on campus. Students who speak out against Zionism — an ethno-nationalist political ideology founded in the late 19th century — will now risk violating the school’s nondiscrimination policies. . . . *How U.S. College Administrators Are “Dreaming Up Ways to Squash Gaza Protests”* interview with Natasha Lennard, DemocracyNow! September 5, 2024 https://www.democracynow.org/2024/9/5/university_gaza_protests *New York University adopts measures declaring 'Zionists' a protected class* *Pro-Palestinian groups say move is 'dangerous precedent' that equates Zionism with Judaism* Middle East Eye, August 27 https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/nyu-adopts-measures-declaring-zionists-protected-class . . . The NYU chapter of Faculty and Staff for Justice in Palestine (NYU FSJP) released a statement on Sunday condemning the move, saying that it sets a dangerous precedent which could also shield other ethnonationalist movements, such as Hindu nationalism and Christian nationalism, from criticism. "The new guidance sets a dangerous precedent by extending Title VI protections to anyone who adheres to Zionism, a nationalist political ideology, and troublingly equates criticism of Zionism with discrimination against Jewish people," NYU FSJP said. . . . *Rebuking New York University for trying to Outlaw Criticism of Israel by Conflating Zionism with Judaism* Juan Cole, Informed Comment, Committee on Academic Freedom, Middle East Studies Association, August 31, 2024 https://www.juancole.com/2024/08/university-criticism-conflating.html . . . We call your attention to alternative perspectives on the relationship of Judaism and Zionism, for example, the Jerusalem Declaration on Antisemitism, which has been endorsed by hundreds of eminent scholars of Jewish studies and Holocaust history. This statement rejects the conflation of Zionism with Judaism, clearly distinguishes between the two and establishes that criticism of the former (and of the actions and policies of the State of Israel) must be regarded as legitimate. We also note that equating Zionism with Judaism, as the NYU policy statement does, effaces the many Jewish students for whom Zionism is not part of their religious nor ethnic identity. . . . In short, in its explicit provisions but also in its elisions, contradictions and ambiguities, the new policy is likely to undermine the ability of students to exercise their First Amendment right to freedom of speech and assembly, while also threatening the academic freedom of NYU faculty by subjecting them to monitoring and sanctions by administrators. Regrettably, this is exactly the kind of revised policy designed to suppress student and faculty activism against which the American Association of University Professors warned in its 14 August 2024 statement. . . . *AAUP Condemns Wave of Administrative Policies Intended to Crack Down on Peaceful Campus Protest* American Association of University Professors, August 14, 2024 https://www.aaup.org/news/aaup-condemns-wave-administrative-policies-intended-crack-down-peaceful-campus-protest . . . The recent proliferation of these new restrictive policies seems to be an attempt to appease politicians who are calling for university administrators to use a heavy hand against faculty and student protestors. We must reiterate, as we said in our November 2023 statement Polarizing Times Demand Robust Academic Freedom, “By acceding to external political pressures and demands for political censorship instead of encouraging the utmost freedom of discussion, college and university administrations abandon their own responsibility for protecting the academic community’s central mission of education, research, and service to the broader society and to the public good.” Administrators who claim that “expressive activity” policies protect academic freedom and student learning, even as they severely restrict its exercise, risk destroying the very freedoms of speech and expression they claim to protect. # # # *As Classes Start, Universities Begin a New Wave of Repression Against the Palestine Movement* *University administrators are unleashing a fresh wave of attacks to discipline the Pro-Palestine movement. These draconian measures show the links between universities and the Zionist interests of the bipartisan regime.* by Maryam Alaniz, Left Voice, August 24, 2024 https://www.leftvoice.org/as-classes-begin-universities-begin-a-new-wave-of-repression-against-the-palestine-movement/ . . . *This new McCarthyism *is rooted in ideological positions like the idea that criticism of Zionism constitutes antisemitism. Due to the ideological importance of universities under capitalism in reproducing the ideas of the bourgeoisie, they have become ground zero for intimidation and attacks against students, faculty, and staff who dare to speak out. . . . *Anti-Defamation League promotes the falsehood that anti-Zionism is antisemitic* Despite calling itself a civil rights group, the ADL serves the interests of right-wingers in Israel and the United States. Freedom Socialist Party, August 2024 https://socialism.com/fs-article/anti-defamation-league-promotes-the-falsehood-that-anti-zionism-is-antisemitic/ *US colleges revise rules on free speech in hopes of containing anti-war demonstrations* by Nick Perry, Jake Offenhartz and Jocelyn Gecker, Associated Press, https://apnews.com/article/campus-protests-gaza-israel-hamas-war-columbia-b2321b9626e4a824f47cfce6b680e6d9 *University of California bans encampments and face masks* by Cecilia Nowell and Dani Anguiano, Guardian, August 19, 2024 https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/article/2024/aug/19/university-california-gaza-protests-encampment-face-mask-bans *Cal State, University of California ban encampments, impose protest rules* California's two systems issue similar restrictions in wake of last spring's pro-Palestinian demonstrations by Amy DiPierro And Michael Burke, Ed Source, August 19, 2024 https://edsource.org/2024/cal-state-university-of-california-ban-encampments-impose-protest-rules/717832 . . . Cal State, the nation’s largest public university system, was first to issue its policy Thursday, a bundle of restrictions that govern public assemblies on university campuses. UC President Michael Drake followed Monday with a letter outlining his expectations for campus chancellors to impose restrictions on how students could engage in protests this fall. The two systems join a wave of colleges that have revisited rules about how and where people can demonstrate on their campuses in the wake of pro-Palestinian protests last spring. Critics say some strengthened restrictions could limit free speech rights. . . . As part of this year’s state budget agreement, lawmakers directed Drake’s office to create a “systemwide framework” for consistently enforcing protest rules across UC’s campuses. Lawmakers are withholding $25 million from UC until Drake submits a report to the Legislature by Oct. 1 detailing those plans. . . . *CA Educators Are Resisting Anti-Palestine Bills Pushing “Academic Police State”* *Activists say the bills will make public education more hostile for people already targeted by anti-Palestinian racism.* by Marianne Dhenin, Truthout, August 20, 2024 https://truthout.org/articles/ca-educators-are-resisting-anti-palestine-bills-pushing-academic-police-state/ . . . As lawmakers convene in Sacramento this month to conclude the current legislative session, a coalition of educators and advocates is organizing to stop four proposed bills: Senate Bills 1277 and 1287, and Assembly Bills 2918 and 2925. Many opponents have grouped themselves under the umbrella of the California Palestine Solidarity Coalition, including the Arab Resource and Organizing Center (AROC), the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) California, the California Coalition for Liberated Ethnic Studies, and Jewish Voice for Peace California. The coalition argues this legislation would make public education even more hostile and dangerous to educators and students who are already being targeted amid an unrelenting wave of anti-Palestinian racism and police violence on college campuses. . . . All four of the bills are authored by members of the California Legislative Jewish Caucus, a pro-Israel group of lawmakers comprising 15 percent and 17.5 percent of the State Assembly and State Senate, respectively — enough to exercise leverage as a bloc of votes on the floor. The caucus has refused to support calls for a ceasefire in Israel’s war on Gaza and has engaged in the dangerous conflation of anti-Zionism and antisemitism, painting even anti-Zionist Jewish protesters, such as those affiliated with Jewish Voice for Peace, as anti-Semites. . . . *'Extremely Concerning': Pro-Palestinian students at Columbia and NYU face censorship as semester begins* *College students and their supporters accuse the universities and Meta of censoring pro-Palestine movement* by Maysa Mustafa, Middle East Eye, August 27 https://www.middleeasteye.net/trending/columbia-and-nyu-pro-palestine-students-face-censorship . . . These actions come in the wake of a new campaign, a collaboration between the Secure Community Network (SCN), a non-profit that aims to be " the official homeland security and safety initiative of the organized Jewish community in North America", and Hillel International – which focuses on fostering a relationship between Jewish Americans and the state of Israel. The "Operation SecureOurCampuses" campaign is in response to "the increase in safety and security incidents stemming from antisemitic activity affecting Jewish students, faculty, and staff on university and college campuses," said the press release for the campaign's launch. "'Operation SecureOurCampuses' will leverage SCN’s national, regional, and local resources, along with the national network of security professionals, to deploy critical resources to protect Jewish students at colleges and universities, to include: full-time intelligence analysts dedicated to monitoring campus developments and providing intelligence support; assessments of Jewish facilities on campuses; direct consultations on physical security and emergency plans and procedures; and enhanced coordination with law enforcement and public safety officials and centers of Jewish life, including fraternal organizations, religious institutions, and other campus groups. The National SJP said the SCN "held a roundtable with representatives from law enforcement agencies including the FBI, to generate a list of ten security recommendations for universities to quell pro-Palestine protests in the fall" ... . . . *“Campus Has Become Unrecognizable”: Columbia Prof. Franke Faces Firing After DN Interview on Gaza* DemocracyNow! September 5, 2024 https://www.democracynow.org/2024/9/5/katherine_franke * Professor Fired over Palestine, Detained by Chicago FBI * DDGeopolitics on X, August 28, 2024 https://x.com/DD_Geopolitics/status/1829559215352095180 *Northwestern Suspends Journalism Professor Steven Thrasher After Gaza Solidarity Protest* DemocracyNow!, September 5, 2024 https://www.democracynow.org/2024/9/5/steven_thrasher -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- Groups.io Links: You receive all messages sent to this group. View/Reply Online (#32077): https://groups.io/g/marxmail/message/32077 Mute This Topic: https://groups.io/mt/108317164/21656 -=-=- POSTING RULES & NOTES #1 YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. #2 This mail-list, like most, is publicly & permanently archived. #3 Subscribe and post under an alias if #2 is a concern. #4 Do not exceed five posts a day. -=-=- Group Owner: [email protected] Unsubscribe: https://groups.io/g/marxmail/leave/8674936/21656/1316126222/xyzzy [[email protected]] -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
