Afternoon all. I’m excited to share a conversation I just finished up with Amy Spitalnick, CEO of the Jewish Council for Public Affairs. You can find a recording and transcript above.
I asked Amy to come talk to our community about a powerful new statement the JCPA and other leading Jewish organizations released last week “rejecting the false choice between Jewish safety and democracy.” Here is a portion of the statement:
“In recent weeks, escalating federal actions have used the guise of fighting antisemitism to justify stripping students of due process rights when they face arrest and/or deportation, as well as to threaten billions in academic research and education funding. Students have been arrested at home and on the street with no transparency as to why they are being held or deported, and in certain cases with the implication that they are being punished for their constitutionally-protected speech. Universities have an obligation to protect Jewish students, and the federal government has an important role to play in that effort; however, sweeping draconian funding cuts will weaken the free academic inquiry that strengthens democracy and society, rather than productively counter antisemitism on campus.
“These actions do not make Jews—or any community—safer. Rather, they only make us less safe.
“We reject any policies or actions that foment or take advantage of antisemitism and pit communities against one another; and we unequivocally condemn the exploitation of our community’s real concerns about antisemitism to undermine democratic norms and rights, including the rule of law, the right of due process, and/or the freedoms of speech, press, and peaceful protest.
“It is both possible and necessary to fight antisemitism—on campus, in our communities, and across the country—without abandoning the democratic values that have allowed Jews, and so many other vulnerable minorities, to thrive.
So sit down with our discussion when you have the time and learn more about Amy and the important work of the JCPA in fighting Trump’s ugly use of '“anti-semitism” to jail students, violate their First Amendment and due process rights and undermine higher education in America. I find that Amy speaks with such grounded clarity about the moment we now find ourselves in, and I always learn when listening to her. I think you will too.
Related readings and interviews:
Amy’s interview on NPR last week
Harvard’s Letter On The Promise Of American Higher Education
Dr. Michael Mann on The Trump Administration’s War on Science and Academia
David Leopold on Yes, People Are Disapearing in America
Lawfare’s Anna Bower on Trump’s sending people to a Salvadoran Gulag
Learn more about Amy here, follow her on Blue Sky, and consider asking Amy to come address a group you are involved in at home.
Keep working hard everyone. We are making progress but have a lot of work ahead of us - Simon
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