Hillel urging universities to make campuses safe for Jews this September

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OTTAWA — Promises by anti-Israel extremists to continue disrupting campuses once classes resume in September has Ontario’s largest Jewish students association asking schools to take action.

In an open letter to university administrators, Hillel Ontario is pleading with school officials across the province to not only stand up for Jewish students, but ensure campuses are safe spaces for everyone.

“It’s a call to university leadership to really be prepared for the upcoming school year,” Hillel Ontario’s Jay Solomon told the Toronto Sun.

He said the letter urges administrators to enforce school rules, standards and policies, as well as to support their Jewish students and faculty.

Universities across Canada hosted disruptive anti-Israel encampments over the summer, featuring compounds guarded by extremists preventing access to Jewish and non-aligned students, as well as problematic and hateful signs targeting the Jewish community.

“We’re doing this because Jewish students, over the course of the past year, have really been suffering,” Solomon said.

Over the past six years, he said Hillel typically receives around 50 reports of antisemitic incidents across all Ontario universities.

Since the Oct. 7 terror attacks, which saw Hamas terrorists conduct a brutal campaign of murder, kidnappings and sexual assault against Israeli civilians, that number skyrocketed to 500.

Among the requests in the letter include preparing for the upcoming anniversary of Oct. 7, as pro-Hamas activists are already planning events to celebrate the terror attack that killed 1,139 Israelis and abducted 251 people from their homes.

“With the one-year mark of the Hamas attack on Israel approaching, we urge you to anticipate and mitigate any disruptions to programs, events, and gatherings,” the letter read.

“Any protest activities must not interfere with campus operations or the right of students to attend their classes and activities free from intimidation.”

Social media posts suggest anti-Israel activists are already planning on disrupting the upcoming school year, with walkouts, mass protests and other actions planned — something which Solomon says should be concerning.

“There’s anxiety and trepidation about what is in store,” Solomon said.

“We are firm believers in freedom of speech and academic freedom, but someone’s freedom stops when it infringes on the rights of others. If you start intimidating and harassing and discriminating against Jewish students based on their faith, place of origin or political beliefs, that’s problematic.”

bpassifiume@postmedia.com
X: @bryanpassifiume

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