“As an American Jew, you are safer now in Saudi Arabia than you are on a college campus like Columbia University.” This is the opinion of Jared Kushner, senior advisor to former Pres. Trump and one of the architects of the Abraham Accords. Sadly, his view is all too true.
When the war began, there was a great deal of sympathy and support for Israel. The world learned about the atrocities committed by the Hamas barbarians and supported retaliation.
Then something strange happened. Public sentiment shifted. Hamas, which had unleashed the unprovoked attacks, started being perceived as the victim and Israel the villain. Support for a decisive response began eroding quickly. Somehow the world was confusing what clearly was a “Right vs. Wrong” situation. Nevertheless, this altered reality was becoming mainstream.
A Change From The Past
Anti-Semitism is not new. It is probably the oldest form of hatred, as it dates back to Biblical times. A great deal of anti-Semitism is rooted in ignorance and stereotypes and handed down from generation to generation.
But the latest strain is different. It is prevalent at respected colleges and universities, and enthusiastically supported by noted professors and their students. Unfortunately, the media is adding to the problem by spreading the lies and inflaming the hate.
A few weeks ago, the world was shocked by a report that Israel had bombed a hospital in Gaza. The report claimed that the bombing caused hundreds of deaths and many injuries.
Although targeting civilians has never been Israel’s modus operandi, the haters welcomed the report. At last, the world had proof that Israel uses Nazi tactics. And that, in their minds, meant that Hamas is actually a group of anti-Nazi freedom fighters. This story was repeated countless times and printed by many news outlets.
But the report shouldn’t have been printed at all - because it was false! The rocket was a poorly manufactured one fired by Islamic Jihad and went off course as a result of a technical malfunction. Careful analysis of this incident by both Israeli and US experts confirmed that the rocket was fired by the terror group – not Israel. A video showing the rocket going off course was released by Israeli intelligence. They also released an audio recording of terrorists shouting their disappointment that the rocket didn’t hit Israel.
So this was just another example of fake news. But The New York Times, never one to let an opportunity to slander Israel be wasted, ran with the story. In this case, the lie made a bad situation worse because it put Jews in Israel and on college campuses all over in increased danger.
Journalists are not perfect and, like everyone else, sometimes make honest mistakes. When this happens, reputable journalists correct them immediately. But The Times, in a class of their own, did not do that. It took them days to correct the headline and even then, left erroneous data about the number of people dead and injured by the “Israeli” missile intact.
A Real Education
Kushner expressed his concern for the safety of Jewish students at Columbia, but he could just as easily have been talking about Yale, Cooper Union, Brooklyn College, Northwestern, and many other well-known institutions. At Cornell, graphic anti-Semitic posts were made on a university forum threatening to kill, rape, and behead Jewish students. Although denounced by the school president, Jewish students were left shaken.
One Jewish student told Fox News that she had received messages on her phone that people want to kill her, and bomb her home and the homes of other Jews in her community. “It’s terrifying,” she said. Another Jewish student said he was shocked that this could happen in America.
Jewish students are being subjected to threats and attacks. At Harvard, one was surrounded, verbally assaulted, and pushed by a mob of pro-Palestine students; others at several universities were threatened and attacked. On November 1, a Cornell student threatened Jewish students with rape and murder and said he would “bring an assault rifle to campus and shoot Jews.”
The Wall Street Journal called this new wave of anti-Semitism a global war on Jews. Former Harvard Professor Alan Dershowitz referred to the mobs terrorizing Jewish students on college campuses as modern-day Hitler youth. One Survivor said the explosion of hate across the country reminded her of how the Holocaust began.
On Second Thought
Physical danger is just one of the issues parents and students should be concerned about. Another is the culture that admires very-far-left professors and their ideas and the possibility that such thinking is likely to “rub off” and negatively impact students’ behavior. Even if it doesn’t, withstanding the onslaught of extreme ideas coming from all sides must be extremely challenging and unpleasant.
One person who got semichah from a very prestigious yeshiva subsequently attended Columbia; when he graduated, his thinking had changed so drastically that he was essentially a different person. Elon Musk sent one of his daughters to an Ivy League college but lamented the decision because “she became a communist” there.
In addition, there’s a risk of becoming involved with groups that use illegal drugs, are involved in immorality, and completely reject religious and traditional values.
There are jobs, even today, that do not require a college degree. Those hired to fill them typically earn very low salaries. Tuition runs well into the tens of thousands of dollars (or more) and students usually require loans that are very difficult to pay back given their low earnings. That makes taking out a mortgage more difficult both to get and to pay.
Is a degree really worth the effort, cost, and physical and spiritual risks? Students and their families need to ask this question of themselves. By the way, on a related note, some major companies are waiving their college degree requirements.
One More Point
There’s a related issue that needs to be considered. The pro-Hamas demonstrations erupted in not just one school or one city or state; they happened across the country, were very well attended, with protest signs at the ready. And these scenes were duplicated around the world. We’re even seeing open anti-Semitism in the halls of Congress!
These make one wonder whether these were really spontaneous or carefully planned, funded, and coordinated with help from wealthy and influential parties.
All of this may sound conspiratorial. But the Jewish community needs to know what it’s up against, whether the events unfolding are more of what we’ve seen in the past or ch”v something unprecedented and the start of an even bigger, more sinister plot.
This is not the only time our community has faced very worrisome situations and Hashem has rescued us from them in the past. Let’s pray we’ll continue to be blessed with the Divine help we so desperately need.
Sources: abcnews.com; foxnews.com; matzav.com; uae-embassy.org; zerohedge.com
Gerald Harris is a financial and feature writer. Gerald can be reached at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
