Sheffield and the weaponization of antisemitism.
Those of us who have opposed South African Apartheid, the various Nazi and fascist groups all our lives take an accusation of racism very seriously. Three cases have come up recently that highlight how accusations of antisemitism are used not to counter racism but to silence expressions of sympathy and support for the Palestinians and to restrict criticism of Israel.\u00a0 <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Case one:<\/strong> Sheffield University Palsoc used the word Holocaust.\u00a0 They did not claim that it didn\u2019t happen.\u00a0 They did not state that it was not a crime, both of which would be grounds for an accusation of antisemitism.\u00a0 Palsoc\u2019s position is that it was a terrible thing and that they did not want genocide to be inflicted the on the Palestinians.\u00a0 The placard was, in fact, not displayed but a complaint was made by a student. The Students Union’s disciplinary panel accepted that the placard did not intend hostility to Jews but, nevertheless, instructed Palsoc\u00a0to make a public apology for it and for Palsoc members to\u00a0go on an antisemitic awareness course. 1.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Shahd was accused of antisemitism and was found not guilty in February. She was subsequently, given a job as associate lecturer.. 3.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0The article does not\u00a0reveal\u00a0the outcome of the investigation, but tells us that Sheffield Hallam\u2019s deputy vice chancellor, Richard Calvert said \u201cShe is no longer an employee of the university. She\u2019s not worked for us for a number of months.\u201d\u00a0 Calvert and the paper did not mention the fact that she was\u00a0cleared\u00a0of antisemitism.\u00a0\u00a0Thus, two\u00a0failed accusations of antisemitism ended with her not having a job and a gagging clause. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Sheffield and the weaponization of antisemitism.Those of us who have opposed South African Apartheid, the various Nazi and fascist groups all our lives take an accusation of racism very seriously. Three cases have come up recently that highlight how accusations of antisemitism are used not to counter racism but to silence expressions of sympathy and … Continue reading Opposition to Israeli Apartheid is not opposition to Jews<\/span>
Case two<\/strong>:\u00a0 Shahd Abusalama was a PhD student at Sheffield Hallam.\u00a0 We cannot go into the full details due to a non disclosure agreement. Three issues are in the public domain mainly as a result of a scurrilous article in the Jewish Chronicle. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
2.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cHowever, shortly afterwards she became the subject of a\u00a0fresh complaint\u00a0by a Jewish student, and the university commissioned a second investigation by human rights barrister Akua Reindorf.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Case three<\/strong>:\u00a0Edward Sutherland, religious education teacher and ex-Convenor of the Confederation of Friends of Israel in Scotland (COFIS), used a pseudonym to\u00a0post antisemitic material on Facebook\u00a0in a fruitless attempt to insinuate that they came from\u00a0 Scottish Palestine Solidarity Campaign (SPSC). At Sutherland’s disciplinary hearing in front of the Scottish Teaching Council, Hallam law lecturer Lesley Klaff defended him circulating blatantly antisemitic material .\u00a0 Clearly protecting a fellow Zionist was more important for Klaff than opposing antisemitism and she has not
been censured by Hallam for bringing the university into disrepute.<\/p>\n\n\n\n