A Resolution Condemning Anti-Semitism
Sponsored by Members of UCLA Student Government: Avinoam Baral, Heather Rosen, Fabienne Roth, Sophia Haq, Manjot Singh, and Negeen Sadeghi-Movahed
Student Organization Sponsors: Hillel at UCLA, Alpha Epsilon Pi, Zeta Beta Tau, Sigma Alpha Epsilon Pi, Chabad at UCLA, JAM at UCLA, Ha’am Newsmagazine, Persian Community at Hillel, Hope of Los Angeles (HOLA), Jewish Law Students Association at UCLA, Persian Community at Hillel (PCH), Jewish Unity Network (JUN), Jewish Learning Initiative at UCLA (JLIC), The Bayit, Center for Jewish Studies Student Association, Transfer Undergraduate Students at Hillel (TUSH), First Year Students at Hillel (FYSH), IMPACT LA.
WHEREAS, the U.S. Department of State defines anti-Semitism as: "a certain perception of Jews, which may be expressed as hatred toward Jews. Rhetorical and physical manifestations of anti-Semitism are directed toward Jewish or non-Jewish individuals and/or their property, toward Jewish community institutions and religious facilities”[1],
WHEREAS, the U.S. Department of State outlines the following contemporary examples:
-- “Calling for, aiding, or justifying the killing or harming of Jews (often in the name of a radical ideology or an extremist view of religion).
-- Making mendacious, dehumanizing, demonizing, or stereotypical allegations about Jews as such or the power of Jews as a collective—especially but not exclusively, the myth about a world Jewish conspiracy or of Jews controlling the media, economy, government or other societal institutions.
-- Accusing Jews as a people of being responsible for real or imagined wrongdoing committed by a single Jewish person or group, the state of Israel, or even for acts committed by non-Jews.
-- Accusing the Jews as a people, or Israel as a state, of inventing or exaggerating the Holocaust.
-- Accusing Jewish citizens of being more loyal to Israel, or to the alleged priorities of Jews worldwide, than to the interest of their own nations”[2],
-- Demonizing Israel:
WHEREAS, the U.S. Department of State acknowledges that “anti-Semitism manifests itself with regard to the state of Israel, taking into account the overall context could include:
-- Using the symbols and images associated with classic anti-Semitism to characterize Israel or Israelis
-- Drawing comparisons of contemporary Israeli policy to that of the Nazis
-- Blaming Israel for all inter-religious or political tensions
-- Double standards towards Israel:
-- Applying double standards by requiring of it a behavior not expected or demanded of any other democratic nation
-- Multilateral organizations focusing on Israel only for peace or human rights investigations
-- Delegitimizing Israel:
-- Denying the Jewish people their right to self-determination, and denying Israel the right to exist”[3],
WHEREAS, “criticism of Israel similar to that leveled against any other country cannot be regarded as anti-Semitic,”[4]
WHEREAS, appropriate and acceptable criticism of Israel must only be directed at specific actions of its government or individual representatives,
WHEREAS, while we acknowledge the valid opinions of a minority of Jews to disagree with aspects of the above definition, it still does not render this definition invalid, as an accepted definition of racism against any community would be nearly impossible to create if it required the agreement of every single member of that community,
WHEREAS, Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibits discrimination on the
basis of race, color and national origin in programs and activities receiving federal financial assistance which extended to protect Jewish students in 2004 on the basis that Judaism is both a religion and an ethnicity[5],
WHEREAS, many incidents of anti-Semitism occur both inside and outside of the classroom,
WHEREAS, on January 31st, 2015, the house of the Jewish fraternity Alpha Epsilon Pi at University of California, Davis was targeted and vandalized with anti-Semitic graffiti, notably two large swastikas[6],
WHEREAS, the swastika is a symbol of terror meant to evoke a similar sentiment as those atrocities committed in the Holocaust, and to this day remains a symbol used by Neo-Nazis who wish to exterminate the Jewish people,
WHEREAS, a student senator from UC Davis endorsed the destruction of the State of Israel, writing “Israel will fall” on social media[7], after a divestment resolution was passed by the Associated Students, University of California, Davis on January 30th, 2015,
WHEREAS, during the UC Student Association Board of Directors meeting on February 8th, 2015, a board member distorted the meaning of the term “anti-Semitism” which has always specifically meant hatred against Jews, and using semantics to distort this fact minimizes the millennia of oppression Jews faced across Europe and the Middle East[8],
WHEREAS, on February 10th, 2015, a Jewish candidate for the position of Undergraduate Students Association Judicial Board Justice at UCLA was inappropriately questioned, not about her qualifications, but about whether or not her identity and affiliation with the Jewish community created a unique conflict of interest[9],
WHEREAS, this debate was later denounced by the Daily Bruin Editorial Board as “discriminatory”[10],
WHEREAS, students at UCLA have consistently taken a stance against anti-Semitism and hatred, most recently after the devastating attacks at a Kosher supermarket in France[11],
WHEREAS, campus anti-Semitism is a global problem, as demonstrated by the fact that in February 2015, the student council at the Durban University of Technology in South Africa called for Jewish students to be expelled[12],
WHEREAS, anti-Semitism also encompasses the use of double standards by requiring of Jews and/or the Jewish state of Israel a standard of behavior not expected or demanded from others,
WHEREAS, the Undergraduate Students Association Council has historically taken a stance against specific instances of prejudice[13],
WHEREAS, the past response to anti-Semitism has not started important conversations about hate speech and campus climate for Jewish students that need to happen in order to ensure that they receive the protections they deserve,
WHEREAS, anti-Semitism is the bigoted targeting of a historically oppressed minority and should be taken as seriously as bigotry against all other historically oppressed minorities.
LET IT BE RESOLVED, that the Undergraduate Students Association Council unequivocally and publicly condemns the hateful incidents at UC Davis, UCSA, UCLA, and at the Durban University of Technology,
LET IT BE FURTHER RESOLVED, that the Undergraduate Students Association Council be conscious of the intentional and unintentional effects of their words and actions,
LET IT BE FURTHER RESOLVED, that the Undergraduate Students Association Council will actively fight against anti-Semitism in the future,
LET IT BE FURTHER RESOLVED, that the Undergraduate Students Association Council will respect the right of the organized Jewish Community at UCLA to define, within the guidelines of the national definition, what is and is not anti-Semitic just as other communities are granted that right,
LET IT BE FURTHER RESOLVED, that the Undergraduate Students Association Council recognizes that the Jewish people, like all peoples, have a collective right to self-determination, and considers attempts to undermine these rights to be forms of bigotry,
LET IT BE FURTHER RESOLVED, that the Undergraduate Students Association Council does not tolerate or accept the behaviors of students, staff, faculty, or administration that infringe upon the safety of another person and/or develop a hostile and unsafe environment,
LET IT BE FURTHER RESOLVED, that the Undergraduate Students Association Council supports efforts against any form of hatred based on religion, race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, ability, citizenship status, class, or identity on our campus community.
LET IT BE FURTHER RESOLVED, that the Undergraduate Students Association Council supports the efforts of the present work between students and respective faculty to help foster a better understanding of Judaism and American-Jewish identity,
LET IT BE FURTHER RESOLVED, that the Undergraduate Students Association Council urges the Academic Senate and faculty to support the diversity requirement, a general education requirement grounded in the UCLA Principles of Community, and that the Academic Senate should ensure that any proposed diversity requirement include classes about Jewish history and current events,
LET IT BE FURTHER RESOLVED that the Undergraduate Students Association Council participate in diversity training pertaining to the history of anti-Semitism and how it manifests today,
LET IT FINALLY BE RESOLVED, that the Undergraduate Students Association Council, as officials elected to represent all students on campus, strive to be active allies of the Jewish community and pledge to actively seek open lines of communication with the leaders of the organized Jewish community on issues pertaining to their constituency.
[1] http://www.state.gov/j/drl/rls/fs/2010/122352.htm
[2] http://www.state.gov/j/drl/rls/fs/2010/122352.htm
[3] http://www.state.gov/j/drl/rls/fs/2010/122352.htm
[4] http://www.state.gov/j/drl/rls/fs/2010/122352.htm
[5]http://scholarship.law.wm.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1152&context=wmborj&sei-redir=1&referer=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.google.com%2Furl%3Fq%3Dhttp%253A%252F%252Fscholarship.law.wm.edu%252Fcgi%252Fviewcontent.cgi%253Farticle%253D1152%2526context%253Dwmborj%26sa%3DD%26sntz%3D1%26usg%3DAFQjCNGox17YRlM7Vv16jlyvGOjQxOd-WA#search=%22http%3A%2F%2Fscholarship.law.wm.edu%2Fcgi%2Fviewcontent.cgi%3Farticle%3D1152%26context%3Dwmborj%22
[6] http://www.theaggie.org/2015/01/31/swastikas-spraypainted-on-aepi-fraternity-house/
[7]http://www.algemeiner.com/2015/02/12/jewish-and-human-rights-groups-demand-investigation-into-uc-davis-antisemitic-incidents/
[8] https://twitter.com/jalhurra/status/564518772996726784
[9] https://www.dropbox.com/s/r9ge7ja1c7ocb22/USAC%20Live%21%20Council%20Meeting%202_10.mp4?dl=0
[10] http://dailybruin.com/2015/02/12/editorial-objections-to-usac-judicial-board-appointment-discriminatory/
[11] http://dailybruin.com/2015/01/13/ucla-student-groups-hold-vigil-for-victims-of-charlie-hebdo-attack/
[12] http://www.timesofisrael.com/durban-university-students-seek-to-expel-jews/