I asked my university's political science department to adopt the IHRA working definition of antisemitism. What I got back was shocking.

Y'all I'm speechless. <br>I reached out to the political science department at my top 30 ranked US university, explaining to them the harm that I have experienced as a Jewish student and the harm that Jewish students across the world are facing. My professor's response was shocking. He explained to me that they will not adopt the IHRA working definition of antisemitism because it may upset some of the pro-Palestinian students. He explained that he would not want to "stifle academic discourse" by defining what antisemitism is. <br><br>I asked him to explain what he considers to be more harmful, Jewish students being uncomfortable or pro-Palestinian students being told not to spew antisemitic rhetoric, and he explained that he would prefer a "middle ground" approach. I asked him to explain what he meant by a "middle ground" approach, and he explained that instead of defining what antisemitism is, the university will "stipulate that it's not okay to say antisemitic things, but you can talk about Israel and still not cross that line". He would not clarify what it means to "cross that line" when it comes to discussing Israel. <br><br>Further, he explained to me that while he understands what it's like to be Jewish and on campus, he believes that pro-Palestinian views are becoming a minority on campus. He told me that when he first joined the university, pro-Palestinian views were very common, but today, they are almost a minority. He ended the email by telling me that university policies are not changed "just because someone wants it to be changed". I think it's important to note that while pro-Palestinian views may be a minority, the pro-Palestinian students on campus are almost always given center stage to express their views while Jewish students like myself are shamed for expressing our views. I think it's important to note that when students like myself speak up, we are slammed on social media with accusations of being "fascist", "colonizer", "baby killer", etc. <br><br>I have included a copy of the email below: <br><br>Subject Line: Re: Concerns about Jewish Life on Campus <br>From: political science professor <br>To: me <br>CC: department head <br><br>Dear \[My Name\], <br><br>Thank you for reaching out! I’m glad that we had the chance to chat yesterday. I know that this was a hard conversation to have, but I really appreciate your willingness to share your honest thoughts and feelings with me. <br><br>At our university, there is a history of students expressing pro-Palestinian views, but I understand that it can be very difficult to be Jewish on campus. I understand that what you have experienced is hurtful, it’s not right, and nobody should have to go through that. I am very sorry that you have experienced this. <br><br>I will admit that when I first joined the university, it was very common to hear pro-Palestinian views, but today, it's less common. I understand that it can be frustrating to see this, but I think it’s important to remember that while it is frustrating to see people expressing pro-Palestinian views, it’s not as common today as it was in the past. <br><br>I know that you have asked me to adopt the IHRA working definition of antisemitism, but that’s not something that we will be doing. When you put a definition on something like antisemitism, you put parameters on academic discourse. By adopting the IHRA working definition of antisemitism, we are stifling what students can say and limiting what they can express. <br><br>I would be most comfortable with a more middle-ground approach. I think that we can stipulate that it's not okay to say antisemitic things, but you can still talk about Israel and not cross the line. The university can make it known that it's not okay to say antisemitic things, but we don't need to define what that means. <br><br>I understand that you think that Jewish students would be better off if the university defined what antisemitism is, but I don't think it's that simple. I think that if we define what antisemitism is, we will have a lot of pushback from students. I think it's better to let students say what they want to say, and then if they cross that line, we will take care of it. <br><br>In terms of if someone says something antisemitic, I can't say whether they will be disciplined for saying it or not. I would need to hear exactly what they said in order to be able to explain what will happen. <br><br>In terms of whether Jewish students are experiencing the most amount of hate on campus, I'm not sure. I think that it's possible that Jewish students are experiencing more hate than any other group on campus, I just don't know for sure. <br><br>Lastly, in terms of adopting the IHRA definition of antisemitism, I understand why you want the university to do this, but I really don't think that it's a great idea. University policies aren't changed just because someone wants it to be changed. This is more complicated than just sending the university board an email and having them adopt a policy. <br><br>Please feel free to reach out to me if you have any further questions or if you'd like to continue this conversation. <br><br>Thank you. <br>\[Professor's Name\] <br><br><br>Has anyone else here faced this sort of resistance when trying to push for the IHRA definition of antisemitism? Any thoughts on what I should do next? <br><br>TL;DR: My university political science department refuses to adopt the IHRA working definition of antisemitism because it "stifles academic discourse"