Opinion

A MIX OF IDEAS

Editorials are posted and archived on JNonline.us.

Dry Bones

WORD QUIZ 20/0

Editorial

Protect Jewish Students

S

upport is building for an alliance
of Jewish organizations that has
asked the U.S. secretary of educa-
tion to review a policy that appears to say
his department won't consider discrimina-
tion complaints based on religion.
With students returning to U.S. cam-
puses of higher education amid growing
anti-Israel — and thus anti-Jewish —
sentiment in the world, that policy must
be overturned.
The University of California, Irvine,
has generated headlines over aggressive
anti-Israel activism by the Muslim student
group; but the school is not the only one
prompting religious discrimination cases
that the U.S. Department of Education's
Office for Civil Rights (OCR) should be
hearing.
The department indeed should preside
over complaints of significant cam-
pus anti-Semitism, just as it did under
Kenneth Marcus' tenure as OCR head from
2003 to 2004.
We urge Secretary Arne Duncan to
adopt Marcus' policy, requested once more
by a key group, this time 38 members of
Congress, including Sander Levin, D-Royal
Oak, and Gary Peters, D-Bloomfield
Township.
A July 8 congressional letter states,
"According to Anti-Defamation League

surveys, while anti-Semitic incidents are
generally decreasing in the United States,
anti-Semitic incidents on college cam-
puses have been on the rise."
The letter acknowledges "the OCR has
played a critical role in reducing intoler-
ance, harassment and discrimination
against students on college campuses
across the country." In 2004, for example,
the OCR affirmed it would enforce Title
VI in instances of discrimination against
groups exhibiting religious as well as
ethnic/racial characteristics, such as Jews,
Arab Muslims and Sikhs.
Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964
bars federal funding of institutions that
discriminate on the basis of race, color or
national origin. The OCR today apparently
interprets that statute to exclude incidents
of religious discrimination, including anti-
Semitism.
We don't get that.
The OCR at least should hear com-
plaints from students who fear for their
safety just because they are Jewish. The
office then can rule on the presence of
actionable conduct, be it a threat, harass-
ment or intimidation, in the wake of hate-
ful speakers and programs that demonize
Jews and Israel.
Yes, there's a fine line between anti-
Israel chants protected by free speech and
anti-Semitic canards that strike fear in

Jewish students and
impair their ability
to join in and benefit
from campus life. But
what's the recourse for
Jewish students sub-
jected to high-grade
anti-Semitism?
The congressional
letter tells it straight:
"We believe that
enforcing Title VI to
protect Jewish stu-
dents who, in rare, but
highly significant situ-
ations, face harass-
ment, intimidation or
discrimination based
on their ancestral or
ethnic characteristics
— including when it
is manifested as anti-Israel or anti-Zionist
sentiment that crosses the line into anti-
Semitism — would help ensure that we're
preserving the integrity of our higher
education system by affording the same
protection to all ethnic and racial groups
on our college campuses:'
Given that a congressional delegation
has joined Jewish organizations led by
the Zionist Organization of America in
condemning campus anti-Semitism, we
believe the Office for Civil Rights must

DryBonesBlog.com

realign its investigations and enforcement
authority — and protect Jewish students
who are targeted strictly because of their
faith.
An Aug. 9 addendum to the congressio-
nal letter put it well: "It is critical that our
civil rights law be enforced as broadly as
possible to make sure that all students
can obtain their education in an environ-
ment that is tolerant, respectful, physi-
cally and emotionally safe, and conducive
to learning:'

❑

Palestinian Leaders Must Foster Hope

Washington/JTA

W

ith a flurry of diplomatic activ-
ity regarding direct Israeli-
Palestinian talks, a contingent
from the Israel Project (TIP) including
pollster Stanley Greenberg met in the
West Bank with Palestinian Authority
Prime Minister Salam Fayyad and chief
Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat.
Our goal in the August meeting with
the Palestinian leaders was to help pro-
tect Israel, Jews and a peaceful future for
Palestinians and Israelis by reducing the
culture of hate that teaches Palestinian
children and others to hate and deny
Israel. We provided the leaders with stud-
ies demonstrating that ending the culture
of hate is not only in Israel's interest, but
also theirs.
We shared key findings from a poll done
for TIP by Greenberg and carried out
by Arabs in the West Bank and Gaza. It
showed that 69 percent of West Bank resi-

Israeli and American leaders for
dents polled said they believed
his commitment to a two-state
in a two-state solution.
solution, focus on improving
Furthermore, 56 percent said
security for both sides and for
they regretted Yasser Arafat's
improving the quality of life of
failure to accept the peace deal
the Palestinian people, seemed
offered by President Clinton at
pleased by the poll numbers. He
Camp David in 2000.
indicated that he was disturbed
We also shared a report by
by the report on the culture of
Palestinian Media Watch show-
hate and went through events
ing that even during proximity
Jennifer
in which he was personally
talks, Palestinian Authority
Laszlo Mizrahi
involved, giving us his explana-
leaders' statements, official
Special
tions.
media, children's programs and
Commentary
Fayyad expressed interest in
events undermine peace for
doing things differently in the
both sides.
future. He told us he is focusing on how
To their own people, in Arabic, the
many Palestinians think a two-state solu-
Palestinian Authority, Fatah leaders and
tion will actually happen. "We need to
official P.A. news media continue to use
defeat rejectionism," he told us, by creating
American tax dollars to deny Israel's exis-
facts on the ground that make daily life
tence and glorify terror.
The responses to these studies and com- better under moderate leadership tha-
nunder
ments by the two key Palestinian leaders
In Ramallah, we saw examples of these
were enlightening.
facts: significant new construction, beauti-
Fayyad, who is highly regarded by many

ful restaurants and shops, new roads and
more. Fayyad spoke excitedly about the
restoration and opening of a movie house
in Jenin, once a hotbed of Palestinian mili-
tancy and now a city where Palestinian
security forces are in control and the
economy is growing.
Fayyad explained that in his vision of a
Palestinian state, Jews and others would
be welcome to become citizens and visit
holy sites. However, Fayyad is not a part
of the negotiating team because he is not
a member of the Fatah Party and there is
political friction between him and Fatah.
Our TIP contingent then met with Saeb
Erekat, who heads the Palestinian negoti-
ating team and is a member of Fatah. We
shared the same poll numbers and overall
Palestinian Media Watch report with him.
I explained that I had heard person-
ally from Sandy Berger, who was part of
President Clinton's negotiating team, and

Palestinian Leaders on page 38

August 26 2010

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