We're an independent, student-run newsroom.

As an independent student newspaper and the paper of record for the city of Berkeley, the Daily Cal has been communicating important updates during this pandemic. Your support is essential to maintaining this coverage.

donate here

Berkeley's News | The Daily Californian

Wednesday, March 3, 2021

News

  • News
    • Campus
    • City
    • County
    • UC
    • State
    • National
    • ASUC
    • Obituaries
    • Research & Ideas
    • Elections 2020
    • COVID-19
    • Notes from the Field
  • Sports
    • Football
    • M. Hoops
    • W. Hoops
    • Baseball
    • Rugby
    • M. Soccer
    • W. Soccer
    • Volleyball
    • Softball
    • M. Tennis
    • W. Tennis
    • M. Swim
    • W. Swim
    • Track & Field
    • Cross Country
  • Arts
    • Music
    • Film & Television
    • Fashion
    • Theater
    • Visual Art
    • Video Games
    • Comedy
    • Literature
    • Voices
    • Best of Berkeley
    • Columns
    • Local Event
    • Culture Shot
  • Opinion
    • Editorials
    • Op-Eds
    • Letters to the Editor
    • Columns
    • The Soapbox
    • Editorial Cartoons
    • Submit a Letter to the Editor
    • Submit an Op-Ed
    • Submit to the Soapbox
    • Podcasts
  • Blogs
    • Daily Clog
    • Eating Berkeley
    • Travel
    • Strikeout
    • Photo
  • Multimedia
    • Photo Essays
    • Insider
    • News: City
    • News: Campus
    • Arts
    • Culture
    • Entertainment
    • Sports
    • Podcasts
    • Projects
    • Archives
  • Weekender
  • Featured
  • About
  • Sponsorships
  • Apply
  • Classifieds
  • Advertise

Campus

Monday, September 14, 2020

UC Berkeley pilot program aims to address anti-Semitism on campus, receives grant

Sather Gate
Stephanie Li/File
According to UC Berkeley history and Jewish studies associate professor Ethan Katz, the Antisemitism Education Initiative aims to create a larger awareness of anti-Semitism as a contemporary issue on campus.

By Maria Young | Senior Staff

Last Updated September 15, 2020
Tweet Comment0

Related Posts

Campanile Koret Foundation gives $2M in scholarships for UC Berkeley students
Chancellor Carol Christ to be awarded for speaking out against anti-Semitism
ASUC committee votes ‘no’ on resolution that would condemn Bears for Palestine

The Antisemitism Education Initiative, a pilot program at UC Berkeley, received a $25,000 grant from the national nonprofit Academic Engagement Network, or AEN, on Sept. 10.

The initiative was started in spring 2019 by campus history and Jewish studies associate professor Ethan Katz, campus law professor Steven Davidoff Solomon and Rabbi Adam Naftalin-Kelman, executive director of Berkeley Hillel. The program aims to bring together campus stakeholders for training and speaker series to create a larger awareness of anti-Semitism as a contemporary issue, Katz said.

“As leaders in the Jewish community, like any other isms that exist, we feel it is critical to call out any kind of hatred,” Naftalin-Kelman said. “That requires seeing and understanding so we can call it out. So the basic idea is to educate.”

The program began as a series of conversations in spring 2019, Katz said. By fall 2019, the initiative had created a training module for staff from the equity and inclusion and student affairs divisions, as well as for incoming students. Katz said despite the challenges presented by the COVID-19 pandemic, the program was also able to complete a set of six well-received speaker events from 2019 to 2020.

According to Katz, one of the goals of the initiative is to create a safer campus environment for all students.

“We’re all better off when everyone feels safe and better acknowledged and respected,” Katz said. “When those vicious hatreds are talked about and confronted directly — and to the degree possible, rooted out — everyone benefits.”

According to AEN spokesperson Raeefa Shams, anti-Semitism is increasing on many college campuses as Jewish students feel uncomfortable expressing their identities. She added that she hopes initiatives such as UC Berkeley’s Antisemitism Education Initiative can be effective models for other campuses.

One example of anti-Semitism as an issue on campus was a spring ASUC meeting in 2019, during which anti-Semitic remarks resulted in backlash from the Jewish community. Though the remarks, predominantly about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, prompted the initiative, Katz emphasized that the initiative is not fundamentally about that issue.

Instead, Katz said the initiative is a more “sustained, systematic and holistic” set of programs aimed at helping Jewish students feel free to express attachment to Israel or Zionism without fear of verbal or physical attacks.

“Legitimate disagreements about Israeli government policies have devolved into demonization and personal attacks, some of which have only intensified as campuses transitioned to online platforms as a result of COVID-19,” Shams said in an email.

According to Katz, discussion about anti-Semitism needs to happen independently of one’s position on the conflict.

He added that part of the training program helps people distinguish between criticism of Israel and offensive, anti-Semitic tropes.

“When people come into a room to discuss different issues about race and privilege, they should come into the room with some depth and breadth of understanding about the nature of those challenges,” Katz said. “We can have different political views, but the conversation will be more constructive and sensitive if people come with information so we can really challenge all sides.”

Though there are currently only two to three years of concrete plans, Katz said the program requires a sustained commitment, as having one or two speakers is like “putting a bandaid on cancer.”

Katz and Naftalin-Kelman both said they are continuing to create infrastructure for the initiative through training programs and a multimedia video. They also hope to build additional coalitions with other groups on campus that are concerned with issues of hatred.

“There are no quick fixes when it comes to combating campus anti-Semitism,” said Miriam Elman, executive director of AEN, in an email. “The Berkeley model is unique and compelling because it recognizes that doing this work effectively requires a sustained, long-term commitment.”

Maria Young is a higher education reporter. Contact her at [email protected] and follow her on Twitter at @maria_myoung.

Tags Academic Engagement Network, Adam Naftalin-Kelman, Antisemitism Education Initiative, Berkeley Hillel, COVID-19, Division of Equity & Inclusion, Division of Student Affairs, Ethan Katz, Israel, Miriam Elman, Palestine, Steven Davidoff Solomon
The Daily Californian
  • Most Popular
  • Most Recent
  1. Photo of man in the desert at an archaeological dig
    Research & Ideas
    Researchers find new species, evidence of early primates during late Cretaceous Period
  2. Image of Jaylen Brown
    Bear Bytes
    Former Bear Jaylen Brown earns first NBA All-Star nod following breakout start to season
  3. Image of Ben Crawford
    Bear Bytes
    Meet track media monarch Ben Crawford
  4. Infographic about recent catalytic converter thefts in Berkeley
    Crime & Courts
    Berkeley police report increased catalytic converter thefts in Bay Area
  5. Image of Monterey
    Travel
    The Clog’s guide to a COVID-safe day in Monterey
  6. Image from Grown-ish
    Film & Television
    ‘Grown-ish’ is trying its best to finally grow up
  7. Photo of Dawn Monique Williams
    Theater
    Director of ‘The Bluest Eye’ speaks to themes of Black girlhood, triumph, storytelling
  1. Photo of Memorial Stadium
    Football
    Cal football’s 2021 schedule headlined by trips to Oregon, Washington
  2. City
    Petition calls for regulation, air pollution controls at Berkeley Asphalt
  3. Photo of Cupcakin' Shop
    Local Businesses
    Cupcakin’ Bake Shop opens location on Shattuck Avenue
  4. Image of womens basketball
    Women's Basketball
    Pac-12 tournament shootaround: Bears buckle down for upset bid
  5. Image of female track athlete
    Track & Field
    Camryn Rogers secures No. 10 spot in nation at Championships at the Peak
  6. Image of womens Soccer
    Women's Soccer
    Cal emerges victorious as season begins, defeats Oregon, Oregon State
  7. Image of women's water polo
    Women's Water Polo
    Spartans get spanked: Cal crushes San Jose State in home opener
  • News
    • ASUC
    • Campus
    • City
    • Crime & Courts
    • Obituary
    • Research & Ideas
    • State
    • UC
    • Notes from the Field
  • Sports
    • Men’s
      • Baseball
      • Basketball
      • Crew
      • Cross Country
      • Football
      • Golf
      • Gymnastics
      • Rugby
      • Swim
      • Tennis
      • Water Polo
    • Women’s
      • Basketball
      • Field Hockey
      • Golf
      • Gymnastics
      • Lacrosse
      • Softball
      • Swim
      • Tennis
      • Track & Field
      • Volleyball
      • Water Polo
  • A&E
    • Columns
    • Film & Television
    • Literature
    • Music
    • Theater
    • Visual Art
    • Comedy
  • Opinion
    • Editorials
    • Op-Eds
    • Letters to the Editor
    • Columns
    • Editorial Cartoons
    • The Soapbox
    • Sex on Tuesday
    • Cal in Color
  • Multimedia
    • Arts
    • Blog
    • News: Campus
    • Sports
  • Featured
    • Editor’s Picks
    • Awards
    • Special Issues
    • The Weekender
    • Gameday
    • Best of Berkeley
    • Daily Cal Archive
    • Editors’ Blog
  • Blogs
    • The Daily Clog
    • Eating Berkeley
    • Travel
    • A&E
    • Bear Bytes
    • Strikeout
Donate We're an independent, student-run newsroom. Make a donation to support our coverage.

Copyright © 2021 The Daily Californian, The Independent Berkeley Student Publishing Co., Inc. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy. Use desktop site by default. Mobile site.