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Professors stress the need for policy changes and stronger for Jewish students on and off campus.
A submission by Professors Oded Haklai and Michael Greenspan of the Queen’s Coalition Against Anti-Semitism (QCAAS) to the House of Commons Standing Committee on Justice and Human Rights (JUST) in May details rising antisemitism and specific incidents experienced by Jewish students in recent years. The submission focuses on two main issues: the growing normalization of overt antisemitism, and Queen’s istration’s inaction in response to these incidents.
In the aftermath of Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas-led attacks on Israel, the submission was sent in after numerous Jewish students, staff, and faculty shared personal s of rising antisemitism at Queen’s. These testimonies, which mirrored their own experiences, prompted Greenspan and Haklai to speak out.
“The current climate is distressing. Although most people on campus are unaffected by this and go about their lives without any hate for anyone, there is a pervasive culture, enabled and advanced by a small but vocal group that views hostility toward Jews as legitimate,” Greenspan wrote in a statement to The Journal.
According to both Greenspan and Haklai, numerous antisemitic incidents have occurred on campus since Oct. 7, 2023. These include vandalism, offensive social media posts, and harassment of Jewish students both on and off campus. In one notable example, there were five instances of Mezuzahs being ripped off dormitory doorways, despite the installation of cameras.
READ MORE: Antisemitic incidents occur on and off Queen’s campus
Greenspan and Haklai mentioned in their t statement to The Journal that an unnamed group has exploited the University’s commitment to free speech and academic freedom to promote anti-Jewish animus.
“Antisemitism has actually increased this Fall term and has also expanded off campus and into the larger Kingston community, to now include illegal hateful marches through downtown Kingston that require police presence,” they said.
The professors expressed frustration with Queen’s istration’s slow response in addressing antisemitism on campus. In their letter, Greenspan and Haklai called for immediate and long-term changes to address antisemitism.
“Harassment of the type that Jews have been experiencing is against Queen’s policy and shouldn’t be permitted,” Haklai said in a statement to The Journal.
“At the time that we wrote our deputation, other universities were creating taskforces, hiring advisors, and taking other steps to address antisemitism on their campuses, whereas the Queen’s istration had taken a very lax approach and seemed reluctant to study the problem or even invoke their own existing policies,” Haklai added.
Currently on sabbatical at Harvard University, Haklai highlighted clear contrast between the responses at the two universities.
“Despite the negative coverage Harvard has received, their istration seems to be taking the crisis much more seriously than the istration at Queen’s. Unlike at Queen’s,” Haklai said. “The Harvard istration is enforcing its policies and shows zero tolerance toward anti-Jewish hate; disciplinary action is taken against violators, and a task force of serious experts with background in addressing antisemitism has been at work and will release its findings soon.”
In a statement to The Journal, Queen’s University said they have been closely engaged with Hillel Queen’s, an organization that advocates for Jewish students, meeting to address student concerns, while ensuring services are available and accessible.
Haklai believes the creation of a special advisor on antisemitism, who would report directly to Principal Patrick Deane, is needed. Jews, a minority group, are excluded from the Yellow House, a student centre for equity and inclusion, which is a situation that Haklai feels must change.
Antisemitism at Queen’s, Haklai argues requires thorough study, similar to the Henry Report—a report which examined the experiences of Black and Indigenous faculty at Queen’s, commissioned in 2004 by s Henry.
Since the publication of their letter, Greenspan and Haklai have received significant , with around 150 ing QCAAS, including faculty, students, staff, parents, and alumni. The group aims to provide to those affected by antisemitism while working with istration to amend policies.
Greenspan and Haklai fundamentally believe antisemitism and anti-Jewish sentiments are antithetical to any university’s—Queen’s included—mission and mandate.
“We can definitely say that academic institutions have an important educational mission. We aspire to make students into better citizens while endowing them with analytical thinking skills,” Haklai said.
Their ultimate hope is for Queen’s to become a place where antisemitism has no place, and where the University’s reputation as an inclusive, respectful institution is upheld.
“Jews have been an integral part of the Queen’s community for a very long time,” Greenspan said. “We’re your classmates, your colleagues, and your friends. Let’s not let a small group of anti-academic haters spoil the campus spirit and tarnish the reputation of our University.”
As the professors continue to push for action, they remain hopeful the Queen’s community will rally together to combat antisemitism
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Concerned Jew
Queen’s istration doesn’t care about antisemitism. It is particularly bad in the Faculty of Health Sciences under the leadership of Jane Philpott and the Department of Family Medicine. Many Jews are afraid to get care at Queen’s Family Health Team at this point.