Pro-Palestinian, anti-Israel student groups at Baruch College staged a protest against the school’s Hillel on Wednesday, accusing the Jewish campus group of murdering children and supporting fascism and “genocide,” in a rally decried by a Jewish faculty group as antisemitic.
The demonstration — in which protesters scuffled with pro-Israel counter-protesters and were arrested — appeared to be the first across the City University of New York system that directly targeted Hillel, which has historically served as the main address for Jewish student life and ritual.
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Jewish students at many of America’s colleges have been targeted with antisemitic messages, almost daily demonstrations from groups like Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) and ineffective leadership in condemning the hate.
Prominent universities, particularly Harvard and the University of Pennsylvania, have lost multimillion-dollar donors because of actions deemed antisemitic or their downplaying of atrocities committed by Hamas in attacking Israeli kibbutzim and slaughtering or taking hostage innocent Israelis. Columbia University, the scene of significant anti-Israeli activity, postponed its annual Giving Day. Law students, including from Harvard, New York and Columbia Universities, who have blamed Israel for the attacks have had job offers rescinded.
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For decades, a large per-centage of City College students were Jewish—most often the children and grandchildren of Yiddish or German speaking Easternand Central European immi-grants. Starting in the 70’s, that percentage dropped a great deal. Over the past 10-15 years, more and more Jewish students are coming to City College. Hillel, the Jewish student organization, is growing and active with regular “club hour” (Tuesday and Thursdays 12:30-2) activities—social gatherings, entertainment, cultural and political talks, kosher lunches all are welcome to. Other such events are also held outside of club hours.
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Bellin, a political science, international relations and prelaw student at the William E. Macaulay Honors College at the City University of New York and graduate of SAR Academy in Riverdale, said her “brain grew like 10 times over” throughout the summer as she learned of the ways that religion, which in the U.S. is separate from state functions, plays a central role in Israelis’ lives, from marriage and divorce to legal status and citizenship.
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The recipient of this year’s Hillel International Jules and Gwen Knapp First-Generation Student Scholarship of $3,000 per year for up to four years is Lia Abuhsira, an incoming undergraduate student at Fordham University, of Clarksburg, Maryland.
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In a wide-ranging interview, Adam Lehman, Hillel International's president and CEO, discussed how Hillel deals with rising hate against Jews, controversy over Israel and the growing presence of rival groups.
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Now, the charged political climate, with hate crimes against Jews, Muslims and other minority groups on the rise nationwide in the wake of the Trump victory, provides an opportunity to unite in solidarity and focus on similarities rather than differences, said Rabbi Sarna.
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Rabbi Yehuda Sarna, the Skirball Executive Director of the NYU Bronfman Center, said that the Interfaith Entrepreneur Fellowship, which was launched in September at four City University of New York (CUNY) colleges — Queens, Hunter, Baruch and John Jay — seeks to enhance collaboration and cultivate personal relationships between Jewish students and non-Jewish peers who have tended to view the religion and the state of the Jews in a negative light.
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Hillel International, the largest Jewish campus organization in the world, announced today the 20 members of the 2021-2022 Hillel International Student Cabinet, including Jessica Yeroshalmi (Baruch College, ‘23) and Jacqueline Blyudoy (The City College of New York, ‘22). The cabinet shares their advice, opinions and perspectives with Hillel International’s leadership to help Hillels engage Jewish college students everywhere.
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The City University of New York’s (CUNY) University Student Senate (USS) voted down a resolution endorsing the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) definition of anti-Semitism and another resolution supporting a watered-down definition of anti-Semitism after a five-hour debate.
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The coronavirus has forced Hillel to rethink its programming and services to adapt to the new reality of remote learning and provide for the well-being, both physically and mentally, of the students it serves. It hopes to carry these lessons forward when life returns to normal.
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By luck, the Hillel office was in a location on campus that I passed by every day. Yet, I avoided it for the first month of college out of pure fear. I eventually made a Jewish friend who, when she heard I wasn’t involved in Hillel, dragged me into the office. From that day on, my life changed; I learned more about my Jewish identity in three semesters of college than I had in 18 years...Hillel welcomed me with open arms and taught me more than I could have ever imagined.
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The COVID-19 pandemic has been going on for almost a year. Vaccine distribution hints at a light at the end of the tunnel, something that citizens have become desperate for. However, this light is dimmed by the slowness of vaccine distribution in the U.S.
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“Being a Sephardi House Fellow will help me dive deep into my culture and discover more about many other diverse Sephardi backgrounds…It will also connect me to a passionate community of like-minded and driven individuals…I hope to use this opportunity to better serve our fellow Sephardic students from many different communities on campus. I am honored to learn from the program participants, work with them, and contribute to the amazing mission of helping fellow Jews achieve success and take pride in their culture at the same time.”
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“But those of us living with disabilities have wondered, even whispered the thesis to each other: Has living with a disability somehow uniquely prepared us to lead in this moment?"
Check out this article published by our very own Executive Director, Ilya Bratman, and Hannah Henschel at Hillel International
Disability inclusion has never been more important in our work at Hillel!
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Ilya Bratman, Executive Director at Hillel at Baruch addresses how the Covid-19 pandemic has altered the ways we cater to Jewish life on campus and reaffirms Hillel’s commitment to continued outreach within our community in this time of need. Check out this insightful piece to learn more about Hillel at Baruch’s efforts and new programs that have developed since last March.
Check out this new piece by Michael Yadov, a Director at the American Forum for Israel and Hillel at Pace graduate to learn how the defense system of Krav Maga is being translated into effective Pro Israel marketing.
Has a trip to Israel ever changed your life? Check out this piece by Baruch’s 2020 Valedictorian Annmarie Gajdos to read about her connection to the Jewish state and how it changed her own relationship with the Jewish state.