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| Brandeis University began in 1948 as a haven for smart Jewish students excluded from top universities. The adjective 'smart' may no longer describe Brandeis students. |
Ideology poses as scholarship at Brandeis U. -Richard Cravatts
Seeming to confirm a world view that the brilliant British commentator Melanie Phillips describes in her new book as "a world turned upside down," Brandeis University is hosting a troubling series of events in the tellingly-named "Israeli Occupation Awareness Week," being held from Nov. 8-11.
[T]he events once again demonstrate the moral incoherence seen on college campuses whenever there is debate about the Israeli/Palestinian conflict.
Brandeis University, of course, was named for Justice Louis Brandeis, who believe[d] that "Zionism finds in it, for the Jews, a reason to raise their heads, and, taking their stand upon the past, to gaze straightforwardly into the future," a notion that might well have informed the thinking on the University's campuses for much of the 20th century.
But that was before campus ideology was hijacked by the Left's obsessive reverence something that came to be known as "social justice," an ideological pathology that informs the very educational mission of Brandeis today...
[I]f the Brandeis community wants to make itself collectively feel better by seeking to bring "social justice" to the long-suffering Palestinians by demonizing, delegitimizing and libeling Israel, they will have achieved that objective with the noxious, Israel-hating event.
But the only awareness that such events create is the realization that much of what tries to pass as scholarly debate on campuses today is nothing more than propaganda and ideology dressed up as true intellectual inquiry.
[Daily Targum/Rutgers University]
[Hat Tip: NancyV]
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2 comments:
While I share your frustration at some people's vocal anti-Israel sentiment, it is important to contextualize this instance. I am a student at Brandeis University who is extremely active in Israel advocacy. The students who ran this week are a small handful of students (about 15), half of which are leftist Israelis. Most Brandeis students think positively about Israel- the only reason why this "Occupation Week" is so jolting is because it is at Brandeis, a Jewish University. But if you look at campuses across America, plenty of anti-Israel student groups are ran by Jews. Yes it is a problem, but I would avoid generalizing and giving the wrong impression that most of Brandeis is throbbing with anti-Israel sentiment.
Thanks for sharing your comments. From the outside, it does appear that Brandeis is a hotbed of anti-Israel sentiment:
Shouting down pro-Israel speakers; warm greetings for anti-Israel speakers.
My youngest visited Brandeis, which she was considered attending. I'm told she found a highly visable anti-Israel vibe via posted flyers.
But you point out that a small group could make such an impression if they have big mouths. Perhaps my title should have been "Some Jewish Students."
Bruce :}
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