DON’T BE SHY TO SAY ‘JEW’

Universities are obsessed with the terms, “inclusion,” and “belonging.” Whatever the crisis, college leaders furiously click their ruby slippers, whisper “there’s no place like inclusion, there’s no place like belonging,” and wait for all of us to awaken in the bosom of Kansas and Auntie Em. But in practice, we never do. Least of all the Jews.

Every antisemitic act on a campus (an attack on a menorah, urination on a Hillel building, spitting on a student, a threat to shoot up a Jewish dining hall) gives the lie to the twin mantras of “inclusion” and “belonging.” Each episode elicits another legalistic statement from a president or dean, each one weaker and more cautious than the last. As we confront antisemitism in academia, how nice it would be instead to read a heartfelt statement from a college president that begins, “Jews are us.”

Why are university leaders so incapable of conveying the most basic feelings of inclusion and belonging for the Jews on their campuses? How can they do better? I offer seven simple dos and don’ts.

First, do use the word “Jews” explicitly whenever making comments and issuing statements to the community. Probably best to avoid, “Calling for the annihilation of Jews is context dependent.” Instead, try this: “Jews on our campus have been attacked. Jews have been made to feel unwelcome and excluded. This is a violation of our core principle of inclusion. Stop doing it now.”

And remember, attacks on Israelis — just because they are Israelis — are attacks on Jews. Attempts to boycott Israel — just because it is Israel — are a form of discrimination against Jews. The Hamas killing spree was targeted at Jews.

At the heart of every antisemitic campaign (as with the Boycott-Divest-Sanction (BDS) movement) is the desire to subvert any inclusion of Jews. The intent is to exclude Jews from the conversation, to force Jews underground, to force them out of the university, and out of the professions.

The goal is to disappear Jews from the public sphere. Like the Nazis before them, modern antisemites want to make Jews radioactive and untouchable. Sadly, every tepid statement from a university administrator that fails to use the word “Jew” advances the antisemite’s campaign. It helps to disappear Jews.

Second, do employ the word “value.” As in, “we value the Jews in our community.” We value their cultural affinity for learning and teaching, which is our core mission as an educational institution. We value their contributions to science, law, and the arts. We value their uniquely Jewish humor. Our academic family would be incomplete without Jews. Jews are an essential element of the rich mosaic that comprises our campus community.

Even a term such as “mosaic,” whose meaning when capitalized is, “relating to Moses,” cannot be invoked without a nod to the Jews. Moses, our greatest Biblical leader was not celebrated as a king, a politician, or a warrior, but rather as Moses Our Teacher — “Moshe Rabenu” in the Hebrew. Each of us aspires to that honorific. Jewish teachers add value to universities.

Third, when responding to an anti-Semitic incident, don’t say, “and all types of hate.” As history shows, antisemitism is not “all types of hate.” It is unique. If one is unwilling to admit that fact, one is utterly incapable of addressing the problem.

There are no religions that have preached hatred of others like major religions have preached hatred of Jews. There are no hermetically sealed conspiracy theories that savage others as they savage Jews. Alfred Dreyfus was accused and convicted because he was a Jew, Leo Frank was lynched because he was a Jew. The Rothschilds have been demonized throughout history because they are Jews. One must acknowledge and understand the