American Jewish Committee (AJC) called on the chancellor of the City University of New York (CUNY) to take action after two Jewish professors allegedly faced retaliatory measures after speaking out against an exhibit featuring anti-Jewish content.
AJC demanded that Chancellor Felix Matos Rodriguez send a “strong, unequivocal message” that antisemitism will not be tolerated at CUNY.
In a letter to Rodriguez, ACJ noted that the two math professors at Borough of Manhattan Community College (BMCC) were subjected to defamatory online reviews that falsely accused them of racist discrimination towards Muslim and Palestinian Arab students.
AJC Director of Academic Affairs Sara Coodin wrote in the letter that CUNY risked being seen as “weaponizing” diversity and equity initiatives against groups it is designed to protect.
“We at AJC are deeply concerned about the message this sends that at CUNY, Jews are excluded from the protections afforded to other minority groups or that they are simply expected to endure bias, discrimination, and persecution without recourse,” Coodin said.
According to AJC, the faculty members had complained about a recent exhibit at BMCC that featured antisemitic content and also offered students the opportunity to earn course credit by watching a film with antisemitic content. Both were sponsored by the college”s Social Justice and Equity Center.
The center was contacted by the professors, who objected to the content and suggested more balanced programming about the Middle East. Within a day, however, negative reviews of the professors appeared on the website ratemyprofessors.com, which Coodin wrote indicated the center likely leaked what was supposed to be confidential communication.
“If CUNY faculty, students and staff cannot report incidents of bias without fear of retaliation, CUNY is not a place where minorities are safe to pursue their education,” the letter said.
AJC pointed out that while CUNY recently launched an online portal for students and faculty to report bias and hate incidents, including antisemitism, and also distributed $600,000 to 24 CUNY colleges for programs, training, and events to address antisemitism and other forms of bias, Rodriguez needed to better oversee the enforcement of the programs.
Coding also accused BMCC of appearing to be “operating outside every legal and moral norm” without any consequences.
“It is crucial that the CUNY administration communicate a strong, unequivocal message to the members of its community that its schools are not places where antisemitic bias is tolerated and that complaints about antisemitism are handled with seriousness and integrity,” Coodin said.
(Israel National News’ North American desk is keeping you updated until the start of the Seventh Day of Passover in New York. The time posted automatically on all Israel National News articles, however, is Israeli time.
