Elite Universities Hold Anti-Israel Rallies Without the 1960s Love-In Vibe
Amid the disruptions at top universities nationwide, it’s tempting to draw parallels between student protests over Gaza and the uprisings during the Vietnam War.
Five decades after Columbia, Berkeley, and other schools experienced student riots, police raids, and chants of “Hell No, We Won’t Go,” tent cities and mass “teach-ins” are once again appearing on some of these campuses.
Like before, administrators are hesitant to enforce rules, and radical faculty members are encouraging the bullhorn bullies.
Students seeking the education their parents paid for are being neglected as classes are either canceled or moved to remote-only formats.
However, the motivation this time around is fundamentally different from the past.
The previous uprising was driven by opposition to a war in Asia that resulted in a televised stream of American body bags and the fear of young men facing the military draft.
Today’s protests, on the other hand, are fueled by something more insidious: anti-semitism.
Across the country, Jews are now portrayed as villains while Hamas terrorists are portrayed as heroes.
The narrative is ancient, with only modern locations and storylines updated. Otherwise, it reflects Germany in the 1930s and echoes from centuries past.
While many historically uninformed students accuse Israel of committing genocide in a conflict instigated by Hamas, they ignorantly chant “from the river to the sea, Palestine will be free”, which is a call for the eradication of Israel.
So who truly supports genocide?
Cheering for Israel’s downfall
The level of allegiance is despicable.
Students and professors who celebrate individuals aiming to annihilate Israel make Hanoi Jane Fonda look like a patriot.
Outside Israel, the United States has been the one nation where Jews have felt secure.
They have responded with gratitude, patriotism, and significant contributions to various fields like arts and science.
Many are now deeply concerned about the current situation, including New York, housing over one-fifth of American Jews, proving to be an unreliable sanctuary.
As usual, Mayor Adams and Gov. Hochul make promises but fail to take concrete action to address the issues.
They could start by demanding the resignation of college presidents lacking the required courage for their position.
Columbia’s Minouche Shafik is the prime example as her campus, and my alma mater, transforms into a den of anti-semites.
Despite providing reasonable responses in congressional testimony and inviting police to remove those occupying a central part of the quad, Shafik disappeared when the squatters returned in larger numbers.
She has resorted to vague statements about ensuring all students feel safe, as if acknowledging that only Jews are under attack would be unfair.
Reports from The Post and others indicate that some students initially suspended for the encampment have been reinstated, with all arrested individuals released without a criminal record.
Shafik can’t hide behind the First Amendment, which does not protect threatening speech and harassment found abundantly at Columbia.
She is also obligated to protect students from racial and religious minority groups under civil rights laws.
Her failures are emboldening activists motivated by anti-semitism and a fascination with terrorists.
These individuals represent a dangerous faction in American society, reminiscent of the pro-Hitler movement in New York before World War II.
Awakening dark memories
An infamous rally of the German American Bund in 1939 at Madison Square Garden, attended by 20,000 members, stands out as a prime example of this movement.
It featured Nazi sympathizers denouncing Jews, with one Bund leader suggesting George Washington would be friends with Hitler if alive.
Documentary film “A Night at the Garden” released in 2017 captured parts of this rally, showcasing the largest Nazi gathering on American soil.
The film uses old news footage considered too inflammatory for public viewing in prewar days due to negative reactions towards Hitler and Nazism.
The documentary shows attempts to blend Hitlerian grandeur with American symbols, featuring military uniforms, swastikas, and sieg-heil salutes alongside American patriotic elements.
The main speaker, Fritz Julius Kuhn, head of the Bund, rants against his portrayal in the “Jewish-controlled press” and demands Gentile-controlled labor unions free from Jewish-Moscow influence.
The film ends with a mention that the rally took place as Hitler was finalizing a concentration camp and months before invading Poland.
These historical facts underscore the importance of not staying silent and assuming the current turmoil will resolve on its own.
Similar echoes of that dark era reverberate on the campuses and streets of New York and America.
Antisemitism at its peak
Even before the campus takeovers, attacks on Jews in public spaces were escalating, with a vast majority of hate crimes in New York targeting Jewish individuals.
Last October, FBI director Christopher Wray highlighted that attacks on Jews were reaching “historic levels”, with Jews representing a small percentage but accounting for a significant portion of religious-based hate crimes.
Groups like the “NYU Palestine Solidarity Coalition” demonstrate this trend, advocating for various anti-Israel measures including a complete academic boycott of Israel.
Is there anyone with the courage to say no to these demands?
