MSU Reorganized?

(Forwarded to OCITF by former UCI student)

www.alkalimauci.wordpress.com

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Christians United for Israel petition calls for the indictment of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad for incitement to genocide. Eli Wiesel joins in call for indictment.

“Incitement to genocide is a crime under international law”

CUFI gets 133,000 to urge Ahmadinejad indictment

By Ron Kampeas · September 29, 2010

WASHINGTON (JTA) — Christians United for Israel has garnered more than 130,000 signatures on a petition calling for the indictment of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad for incitement to genocide.

The petition makes its appeal to the United Nations and the United States. It is to be presented to U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and Susan Rice, the U.S. envoy to the United Nations.

Another “training” session for California anti-Israel divestment petition. This time at UC Berkeley

BDS (Boycott Divest Sanction) Movement. Is there any difference?

(Thanks to Tammi Benjamin for forwarding the following  information to OCITF)

Training for CA Divestment Petition Signature Collection Wed 9/29 at 7:00 PM to 8:00 PM 78 Barrows Hall, UC Berkeley

We will be conducting training for petition circulators to collect signatures on the CA citizen’s initiative 10-0020, divesting state pension funds from companies enabling Israeli apartheid.

Sen. Arlen Specter (D-Pa.) and Rep. Brad Sherman (D-Calif.) introduced legislation to amend the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Title VI

Legislation would protect students from religious bias

Jewish Telegraphic Agency

(JTA) — Two Jewish U.S. lawmakers have introduced legislation to protect students from religious discrimination.

Sen. Arlen Specter (D-Pa.) and Rep. Brad Sherman (D-Calif.) last Friday announced the introduction of legislation that would amend the Civil Rights Act of 1964, whose Title VI prohibits discrimination based on “race, color, or national origin,” to include religion as well.

“All students should be protected from discrimination and harassment on the basis of their religion as well as their race, color, and national origin,” Specter said in a statement. “We need to close the loophole that allows students to be harassed and threatened because of their religion.

UN Diplomat:”Mr. Ahmadinejad has yet again chosen to spout vile conspiracy theories and anti-Semitic slurs that are as abhorrent and delusional as they are predictable.”

US walks out on Ahmadinejad’s UN speech

Reuters – Iran’s President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad addresses the 65th United Nations General Assembly at U.N. headquarters …

UNITED NATIONS – Iran’s hardline President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad provoked yet another controversy Thursday saying a majority of people in the United States and around the world believe the American government staged the Sept. 11 terror attacks in an attempt to assure Israel’s survival.

Anti-Israel Boycott Defeated in Washington State

As 175 watch, Port Townsend Co-op rejects request to boycott Israeli products over Gaza issues

PORT TOWNSEND — The Port Townsend Co-op board rejected a proposal to boycott Israeli products after much discussion Tuesday night.

Quilcene peace activist Kit Kittredge speaks to the Port Townsend Co-op board while others wait in line for the microphone. — Photo by Charlie Bermant/Peninsula Daily News

The six-member board voted 4-2 against the proposal, saying that it was not consistent with its boycott policies.

An estimated 175 people attended the board meeting at the Quimper Universalist Unitarian Fellowship hall in Port Townsend.

Event at USC (Sunday 9/19) to train students to collect signatures for the Israel divestment petition to qualify for the California ballot

Courtesy of Tammi Benjamin:

http://uscsjp.wordpress.com/2010/09/18/sunday-los-angeles-campaign-kick-off-and-petition-circulator-training-to-qualify-the-israel-divestment-initiative-for-the-california-ballot/

BDS (Boycott Divest Sanction) Movement. Is there any difference?

European Union Fundamental Rights Agency’s (FRA) working definition of anti-Semitism

Click Here

Washington States only Jewish High School defaced with anti-Semitic graffiti, swastikas and references to gas chambers.

Hebrew high school on Mercer Island defaced with anti-semitic graffiti

By Sandi Doughton

Seattle Times staff reporter

KEN LAMBERT / THE SEATTLE TIMES

Kevin Franke, who lives in the neighborhood, helps clean up after vandals hit Northwest Yeshiva High School on Mercer Island early Friday morning.

Washington’s only Jewish high school was defaced Thursday night by anti-semitic graffiti, including swastikas and references to gas chambers.

Members of a congregation that meets at Northwest Yeshiva High School on Mercer Island discovered the vandalism Friday morning, said Rabbi Bernie Fox, head of the school.

“It is quite substantial,” he said.

JTA Quotes Task Force Release on MSU Sanctions

Sanctions shortened for Muslim student group

September 8, 2010

SAN FRANCISCO (JTA) — A Muslim student group at the University of California, Irvine, had a yearlong suspension shortened to four months.

OC Task Force Strongly Condems planned Burning of Quran

The Orange County Independent Task Force on anti-Semitism strongly denounces and condemns the planned burning of copies of the Quran by Pastor Terry Jones and members of the Dove World Outreach Center in Gainesville, Florida  The deliberate act of destroying  the Quran purportedly in commemoration of the September 11 attacks on the World Trade Center in New York  is  hateful, destructive and divisive and should be condemned by all civilized people.

LA Jewish Journal on MSU Suspension: Quotes Statement from OC Task Force

September 7, 2010

UCI upholds sanction on Muslim Student Union

Decision cuts group’s yearlong suspension to four months.

by Lisa Armony, Contributing Writer

The University of California, Irvine (UCI) has upheld its decision to sanction its Muslim Student Union (MSU), though it cut short the group’s yearlong suspension to four months. The group may not officially use university facilities during the fall 2010 quarter, recruit new members or raise funds, all part of the fallout for what school officials deemed the MSU’s violation of university codes of conduct related to the repeated disruption of a speech on campus in February by Michael Oren, Israel’s ambassador to the United States.

Task Force Statement on MSU Suspension

The Orange County Independent Task Force on Anti-Semitism expresses disappointment in UC Irvine’s decision to reduce the recommended suspension of the  Muslim Student Union (MSU) from one year to ten weeks.  The reduction in the suspension seems to ignore what UCI said in its initial one year suspension that: Based on emails from members of the MSU, the disruption of Ambassador Michael Oren’s speech was planned.

The Task Force Report issued on February 12, 2008 exposed the long standing physical and verbal harassment of Jewish students at UCI.  That harassment recently culminated in the actions that occurred at Ambassador Oren’s speech.

While the Task Force appreciates that UCI seems to be recognizing that Anti-Semitism is a major problem at UCI by maintaining the suspension of the MSU,  there clearly exists a lack of courage and moral conviction to fight hatred on campus by the UCI administration.  The failure of UCI to suspend the MSU for one year will allow that organization to continue its annual “hate week” activities that occur in the Spring.  Therefore, the sanction issued by the University is merely a “slap on the wrist” and is unlikely to quell future Anti-Semitic harassment and hatred on the UCI campus.

Anti-Semitic Cartoons

(Hat tip to Richard Cravats)

Anti-Semitic Cartoons on Progressive Blogs

Adam Levick

Published September 2010

Institute for Global Jewish Affairs

• Political cartoons often have more of an immediate impact in reinforcing negative stereotypes about Jews than a lengthy essay. By far the largest output of anti-Semitic cartoons nowadays comes from the Arab and Muslim world. A yet uncharted field of hate cartoons against Jews is that in progressive blogs.

Elcott: Federation was at the “forefront”… Thanks “generous investors”

It should be pointed out that had it not been for the  highly publicized disruption of the Ambassador Oren event, it is unlikely that community members would have been made aware of the depth of  anti-Semitism and harassment of pro Israel students which existed at U C Irvine for nearly 10 years.  In our opinion,  those problems were persistently downplayed by the Jewish Federation of Orange County. (OCITF)

UCI Upholds Suspension of Muslim Student Union

A Special Message from President and CEO, Shalom C. Elcott

Earlier today, Jewish Federation & Family Services received notice that UC Irvine has rejected the Muslim Student Union’s appeal, and has followed through on its initial decision to suspend the MSU.

UCI “upholds” MSU one year suspension by lessening it to one quarter

(Is the UCI administration invoking the rarely  used “double-secret probation”?)

CA university upholds suspension of Muslim group

IRVINE, Calif. — The University of California, Irvine has upheld its decision to suspend a campus Muslim group after some of its members disrupted a speech by the Israeli ambassador at a campus event.

However, the university said Friday it would lift the suspension of the Muslim Student Union on Dec. 31 instead of enforcing it for a full year.

“If the OCR’s regional office had not been overruled, it likely would have formed the basis for a finding of discrimination against Irvine in 2006, 2007, or 2008, when continuing problems revealed the depth of the problem there.”

Special thanks to Ken  Marcus for sending this article to the OCITF and for mentioning the OCITF in his upcoming new book.

Jewish Identity and Civil Rights in America:  Adapted from Upcoming New Book Published by Cambridge University Press

By Kenneth L. Marcus IJCR Quad

Director, Initiative to Combat Anti-Semitism and Anti-Israelism in America’s Educational Systems

When the U.S. Office for Civil Rights closed its landmark anti-Semitism investigation of the University of California at Irvine, Irvine officials proclaimed that their institution had been fully exonerated. For example, Irvine’s law school dean, Erwin Chemerinsky, insisted that “The Office for Civil Rights of the United States Department of Education did a thorough investigation and concluded that there was no basis for finding that there was a hostile or intimidating environment for Jewish students on campus at the University of California, Irvine.” It should have been clear to Chemerinsky that he was, at the least, overstating his case because OCR had dismissed several of the Zionist Organization of America’s claims on technical grounds such as the statute of limitations. In fairness to Chemerinsky, however, he may not have understood just how misleading his characterization turns out to have been.

Anti-Semitism at the OCR?

Kenneth L. Marcus, is the former staff director of the United States Commission on Civil Rights

A Blind Eye to Campus Anti-Semitism?

Kenneth L. Marcus

Commentary Magazine

During the first years of the 21st century, the virus of anti-Semitism was unleashed with a vengeance in Irvine, California. There, on the campus of the University of California at Irvine, Jewish students were physically and verbally harassed, threatened, shoved, stalked, and targeted by rock-throwing groups and individuals. Jewish property was defaced with swastikas, and a Holocaust memorial was vandalized. Signs were posted on campus showing a Star of David dripping with blood. Jews were chastised for arrogance by public speakers whose appearance at the institution was subsidized by the university. They were called “dirty Jew” and “fucking Jew,” told to “go back to Russia” and “burn in hell,” and heard other students and visitors to the campus urge one another to “slaughter the Jews.” One Jewish student who wore a pin bearing the flags of the United States and Israel was told to “take off that pin or we’ll beat your ass.” Another was told, “Jewish students are the plague of mankind” and “Jews should be finished off in the ovens.”