Dear President Napolitano and the Board of Regents,
We are XX rabbis who are deeply concerned about the safety and well being of Jewish students at the University of California. We hail from across the State of California and represent diverse streams of Judaism. Many of us, and many of our congregational members, send our children to UC schools and/or are alumni of the UC system, and we are all California taxpayers.
We echo the concerns of the AMCHA Initiative-led coalition of 23 organizations who have written to you recently regarding antisemitism on UC campuses. We, too, commend you for your statement against antisemitism, and we applaud the students at UCLA, UC Berkeley and UC Santa Barbara for their resolutions condemning antisemitism.
We agree with the 23 organizations that in order to fully meet the needs of Jewish students facing antisemitsm and to address the root causes of antisemitism in the UC system, the University of California must, first and foremost, formally adopt the U.S. State Department’s definition of antisemitism as a means of accurately identifying all forms of antisemitic expression on UC campuses.
In addition, we, too, believe that it is essential for campus administrators and staff to be trained in using the State Department definition to identify antisemitic behavior and to address it with the same promptness and vigor as they do other forms of racial, ethnic, and gender bigotry and discrimination. It is also important to educate the entire campus community about anti-Semitism and anti-Jewish discrimination.
Defining antisemitism formally and educating administrators and the student body about anti-Jewish discrimination are critical steps to ensuring antisemitism will be appropriately addressed both now and in the future, throughout the entire UC system.
Thank you for your prompt attention to this important matter. We appreciate your actions to protect Jewish students at the University of California.
Sincerely,
[The Undersigned Rabbis]
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The above letter is a project of the AMCHA Initiative.
AMCHA Initiative is a non-profit organization, based in California, dedicated to monitoring, investigating and combating antisemitism at institutions of higher education in America. AMCHA Initiative’s efforts are bolstered by a network of more than 5,000 members and supporters of the Jewish community — including university alumni, parents and grandparents, rabbis, religious school principals and synagogue members — who have joined together to speak in one voice to ensure the safety and well-being of Jewish students on college and university campuses across the country.
For more information, please contact:
Administrator@AMCHAinitiative.org
Thank you!