It has been appalling to watch students on many American college campuses voicing sentiments over the Israel-Hamas conflict that are so divorced from any understanding of the history and nature of the conflict. While there is every reason to empathize with the plight of innocent Palestinians suffering under the current circumstances, many student protests have strayed recklessly into characterizing Israel as an anti-democratic occupying colonial force, engaging in war crimes and genocidal practices.
The themes that motivate this unprecedented student activism are extreme: claiming Israel is an illegitimate nation; that the much-needed homeland for the Jewish people should be eviscerated; and that all of the territory of Israel should be turned over to Palestinian control.
What makes this outburst of anti-Israel sentiment go from misguided to malevolent is its contrast with the silence that has followed two years of true war crimes in Ukraine that have played out on America's television and online screens. Maybe the anti-Israeli outburst of college sentiment would also be easier to accept if America's college students had shown anything but indifference to the rise of autocratic, anti-democratic forces domestically—especially with the resurgence of former President Donald Trump and his MAGA movement. But not so much as a peep has been heard from these students who have dedicated so much energy to their current cause.
One explanation was offered by hedge fund legend Leon Cooperman in an interview on the "Claman Countdown" on Fox Business. Speaking in the context of ending his very substantial philanthropic giving to Columbia University, he said, "These kids have shit for brains," when it comes to understanding that Israel is the United States' only democratic ally in the Mideast, a world leading innovation capitalist economy, and the only country in the region that affords equal rights to all its citizens. That includes its Arab population, as well as gay and transgender individuals.
But lack of brain power is not the problem at America's colleges.
It might be possible to ascribe some altruism to the motives behind the campus pro-Palestinian fervor if there was any evidence that student concerns were being universally applied. However, there is no evidence of that whatsoever. So, why is their fury so singularly focused on Israel?
How can they stand absolutely mute in the face of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, with months upon months of documented Russian war crimes against the Ukrainian people. Where Israel has given ample warning to civilian populations that they need to get out of harm's way, Russia has intentionally targeted civilian populations with no notion of trying to avoid atrocities. It is not as if Russia's behavior is any secret or in dispute. The kidnapping of Ukrainian children and raping of women is well known. It has been reported over and over by multitudes of credible news sources. Yet, on this issue, there is nothing but apathy coming out of American campuses.
Not only has there been silence on American campuses about Russia's effort to crush democracy and the human spirit in Ukraine, but response to Trump's anti-democracy crusade, and especially his re-ascendance, has been flagrantly apathetic. I wrote a column last year about how different American campuses were in the 1960s and 1970s. Where once there was enormous energy on campuses in the fight for civil rights for Black Americans, there is apathy about the MAGA drive to undermine key tenets of our democracy, as well as important civil society rights.
What is even more remarkable is recent polling that suggests Trump is only one point behind President Biden when it comes to the youth vote. While the abortion issue seems to have stimulated some voting turnout on the part of college-age youth, it too has not sparked the kind of vehemence seen in anti-Israeli protests. Even harder to explain, when it comes to abortion, we are talking about a rights issue that's deeply personal to many young people, analogous to the personal impact the military draft posed 50 years ago.
But this animus toward Israel comes from a very dark place. This has been despicable support for Hamas from faculty, and hate crimes aimed at students. These instances involve a small number of the broader college contingent that is out there vocally espousing angry anti-Israeli views—and this broader outpouring is what is even more disturbing, especially when there was nothing but complete indifference on the other fronts I have mentioned.
So, what is it about Israel defending itself in the face of barbaric terrorist acts that has generated so much anti-Israeli activism on college campuses? Why have the issues I have noted not sparked any kind of demonstrations, outbursts, or violent and hateful reactions?
It is very hard not to conclude that the answer here lies in deeply harbored antisemitism. This conflict in the Middle East has created a rationale allowing it to be unleashed. With such apathy and indifference to what is going on in Ukraine and the threats to our democracy posed by Trump, it is inescapable that there is something about Israel itself, beyond potential idealism toward the plight of Palestinians and democratic values, that is catalyzing such passionate campus sentiment. It leads one logically to conclude that it is not the actions of Israel that are the problem, but rather that it is the fact that it is Israel that is carrying out these actions, and—that they are the actions of a Jewish state. It doesn't take much of a student of Ukraine, Trump, or Israel to recognize the only real explanation for the different stance among these issues appears to be the presence of blatant antisemitism.
It is beyond scary and worrisome that some of America's best-educated young people, who comprise the generation most accepting of gay and transgender people, most supportive of Black Lives Matter, most embracing of inter-racial dating and marriage, have antisemitism as part of how they view the world.
Tom Rogers is executive chairman of Oorbit Gaming and Entertainment, an editor-at-large for Newsweek, the founder of CNBC and a CNBC contributor. He also established MSNBC, is the former CEO of TiVo, and a member of Keep Our Republic, an organization dedicated to preserving the nation's democracy.
The views expressed in this article are the writer's own.
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
Israel Singled Out: Apathy on Campus Over Russian Crimes, MAGA Threats
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16.11.2023
It has been appalling to watch students on many American college campuses voicing sentiments over the Israel-Hamas conflict that are so divorced from any understanding of the history and nature of the conflict. While there is every reason to empathize with the plight of innocent Palestinians suffering under the current circumstances, many student protests have strayed recklessly into characterizing Israel as an anti-democratic occupying colonial force, engaging in war crimes and genocidal practices.
The themes that motivate this unprecedented student activism are extreme: claiming Israel is an illegitimate nation; that the much-needed homeland for the Jewish people should be eviscerated; and that all of the territory of Israel should be turned over to Palestinian control.
What makes this outburst of anti-Israel sentiment go from misguided to malevolent is its contrast with the silence that has followed two years of true war crimes in Ukraine that have played out on America's television and online screens. Maybe the anti-Israeli outburst of college sentiment would also be easier to accept if America's college students had shown anything but indifference to the rise of autocratic, anti-democratic forces domestically—especially with the resurgence of former President Donald Trump and his MAGA movement. But not so much as a peep has been heard from these students who have dedicated so much energy to their current cause.
One explanation was offered by hedge fund legend Leon Cooperman in an interview on the "Claman Countdown" on Fox Business. Speaking in the context of ending his very substantial philanthropic giving to Columbia........
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