22 | JUNE 13 • 2024 

OUR COMMUNITY

disrupt operations, damage 
or remove property or other 
impermissible conduct.” 
In-person classes resumed at 
6 a.m. on May 31. A statement 
released that day said that 
WSU’s Office of Multicultural 
Engagement would offer 
several listening sessions 
throughout June where 
students could voice their 
concerns. 

LETTER-WRITING 
CAMPAIGN
Adar Rubin, Michigan director 
of #EndJewHatred, attributed 
the swift shutdown of the 
encampment in part to a letter-
writing campaign 
that sent 2,500 
emails into Espy’s 
inbox. 
The letter 
expressed 
concerns 
that the same 
agitators who occupied the 
encampment on the campus 
of the University of Michigan 
had migrated to the campus of 
WSU. If the encampment were 
to remain, it would serve as “a 
central hub for Jew hatred” in 
Michigan for the duration of 
the summer. 
According to the letter, the 
encampment zone included 
incidents of “blatant Jew- 
hatred” including chants of 
“from the river to the sea” and 
featured anti-Zionist speakers 
who, following the Oct. 7 
massacre, refused to condemn 
Hamas. 
The letter also pointed out 
that Congresswoman Rashida 
Tlaib was a participant in 
the encampment. As an 
elected official, her push for 
divestment demands on WSU 
may violate Michigan’s anti-
boycott, divest and sanctions 
laws, the letter stated. 
On the morning of the 
encampment breakdown, 

Tlaib was filmed on Instagram 
locking arms with protesters 
to block the approach of WSU 
Police cars.
Rubin said despite the 
challenges it may face in the 
fall, WSU administrators sent 
a very clear message to the 
protesters that it would protect 
all students by dismantling the 
encampment. 
“Wayne State set a positive 
precedent in terms of how to 
navigate and handle escalations 
of Jew-hatred,” Rubin said. “It 
comes at a time where most 
[Jewish] activists do not trust 
university administrations, 
as evidenced by documented 
failures to address antisemitism 
on campuses across the 
country. Wayne State is an 
incredibly prestigious school 
with so much Jewish history, 
so we are grateful for President 
Espy’s actions.” 

MOBILIZING EFFORTS
#EndJewHatred mobilized 
efforts with several WSU 
Jewish student organizations, 
including the newly revital-
ized Jewish Student Law 
Association (JSLA). 
Cole Levine is 
an active leader 
in the JSLA but 
spoke to the JN on 
his own behalf. 
When Levine 
began law school 
at WSU in the fall 
of 2023, there was little Jewish 
life compared to the resources 
he had as an undergraduate 
at Michigan State University. 
This did not sit well with 
him, considering there is a 
large representation of anti-
Israel law students who hold 
leadership positions within the 
law school’s Student Board of 
Governors.
“They are, across the 
board, all anti-Israel,” Levine 
said. “I don’t want to say 

pro-Palestinian because they 
are anti-Israel more than 
anything.”
Levine, with other Jewish 
students and the help of a 
supportive faculty, helped 
revive the organization. 
Outside of confronting 
antisemitism on campus, 
graduate students like Levine 
want to demonstrate to 
current and prospective Jewish 
undergraduate and graduate 
students that there are Jewish 
connections at WSU. 
“I saw the encampment 
unfold,” Levine said. “I saw 
[how it started] on one 
corner of campus. And then 
[agitators] grabbed barriers 
around campus to create their 
encampment. They are not all 
students. But with such a large 
local anti-Israel demographic 
in Michigan, it is not hard for 
them to find support.”
For example, Levine said 
after the encampment was 
disbanded, the law school 
Student Board of Governors 
and the WSU Student 
Senate put out a statement 
in solidarity with students 
demanding public access to 
the university’s investment 
portfolio and a cessation of 
investment in companies that 
profit from supplying military 
supplies to Israel. The student 
board also claimed that WSU 
used excessive force and that 
all charges should be dropped. 
“Not only are they trying to 
get charges dropped, there is 
also now a movement to get 
Espy fired or to step down.”
Levine echoed Rubin’s 
statement and remarked 
just how receptive the 
administration has been to 
Jewish students and faculty on 
campus.
“I know that down the line, 
there is going to be anti-Israel 
rhetoric on campus, and that 
cannot be controlled,” Levine 

admitted. “But the school 
administrators have been a 
pleasure to work with and 
are making sure that Jewish 
campus life will continue to 
exist.” 

CONCERNS ABOUT 
THE FALL SEMESTER
The JN spoke with Hillel of 
Metro Detroit Director Miriam 
Starkman on May 
30. 
“It is a scary 
time to be a Jewish 
university student,” 
Starkman said. 
“This encampment 
was another 
example of the antisemitism 
that has permeated the protest 
culture. The sign saying, 
‘Zionists are not welcome in 
Detroit’ showed how exclusive 
and hateful this movement is.”
Starkman said Hillel is 
grateful for President Espy and 
the WSU leadership, including 
WSU Police Chief Anthony 
Holt, for taking swift action. 
“Holt and his team keep 
our campus community safe, 
and we are lucky to have him,” 
Starkman said. “President Espy 
handled the situation with 
absolute thoughtfulness. She 
listened to many leaders in 
the Jewish community, from 
Hillel and Chabad to Steven 
Ingber at Federation and other 
Federation leaders and security 
officials.” 
Though Starkman is relieved 
that the encampment has come 
down for now, she still has 
trepidations about the fall. 
“I am concerned about what 
the fall will bring,” Starkman 
said. “I hope the university 
will continue to take a strong 
approach to making sure all 
students feel safe and secure on 
campus and that everyone will 
have an opportunity to learn 
and not be subject to such 
hostilities.” 

Miriam 
Starkman

Adar Rubin

Cole Levine

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