Editor's Note: The following letter was sent yesterday by JewHatredonCampus.org founder David Horowitz to Temple University President Neal Theobald explaining the reasons why Temple was ranked among the 10 Most Anti-Semitic College Campuses in America and to offer our assistance in rectifying this dismal rating. In this letter, Horowitz argues that the actions of the student group Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) on Temple's campus violate campus policy and so the group should be investigated and be stripped of campus privileges and funding.

Dr. Neil D. Theobald
President
Temple University

Dear President Theobald,

My organization, “JewHatredonCampus.org,” has published a list of the 10 Most Anti-Semitic college campuses, which includes Temple University. Our list has been published on websites that reach more than 100 million viewers.

The specific events meriting the inclusion of Temple on this list include:

• Temple’s holding of an “Israel Apartheid Week” on campus designed to portray Israel, the only liberal democracy in the Middle East, as an apartheid state. This event is part of an international genocidal campaign to delegitimize and destroy the state of Israel.
• The physical and verbal assault of a pro-Israel student. During welcome week on campus, when a Jewish student approached the Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) table to begin a dialogue, students behind the table laughed at and verbally attacked the Jewish student, calling him a “Zionist, racist, baby killer.” A student struck the Jewish pro-Israel student in the face as SJP members reportedly yelled “Zionist pig!” and “Kike!” at him.
• A protest titled “In Support of Rasmea.” Rasmea Odeh is a convicted terrorist who was directly involved in the murder of two innocent Israelis and was recently convicted of immigration fraud in federal court for lying about her crimes on her U.S. citizenship application.
• An event featuring David Sheen titled “Racism Against Africans in Israel.” Sheen is an independent journalist and filmmaker who falsely claims that Israel discriminates against Africans. One false quote he publicized on his Twitter feed states that “Just as Nazis compared Jews to vermin to incite racism against them, Netanyahu compares non-Jewish Africans to Ebola.”
• A panel supporting the Palestinian Children’s Relief Fund (PCRF). PCRF is headed by Stephen Sosebee, who depicts Israelis as murderous Zionist terrorists whom Palestinians must resist by means of “armed struggle” (i.e., suicide bombings). Sosebee charges that the U.S. government, citizenry, and media are manipulated by a “Zionist lobby” and “Zionist influence.” The NGO Monitor has reported: “PCRF received assistance from [t]he Holy Land Foundation for Relief and Development, Global Relief Foundation, and [t]he International [Islamic] Relief Organization” -- all of which were closed down by the U.S. government for funding terrorist groups.
• An event featuring Josh Ruebner, the founder of “Jews for Peace in Palestine and Israel.” Ruebner believes that Palestinians have the “right of return” and that suicide bombings can be explained by Israel’s subjugation of the Palestinians.
• An event with Saed Atshan on “pinkwashing” the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. “Pinkwashing” is a term used by anti-Israel activists to claim that pro-Israel forces highlight Israel’s strong support of gay rights—Israel is the only nation in the Middle East which fully protects the rights of gays and women— in order to obscure their supposed mistreatment of the Palestinians. Atshan is a Tufts professor and an anti-Israel activist who has demanded that Israel be “decolonized” for its racist policies and has said, “We all know Israel is an apartheid state and should be boycotted.”  

 We believe that these activities violate Temple University’s “Student Code of Conduct” which states that:

Temple University is a community of scholars in which freedom of inquiry and freedom of expression are valued. Important aspects of attending the university as a student are having respect for the rights of others in the community, conducting one’s self in a manner that is compatible with the university’s mission and taking responsibility for one’s actions. To fulfill its functions of promoting and disseminating knowledge, the university has authority and responsibility for maintaining order and for taking appropriate action, including, without limitation, exclusion of those who disrupt the educational process. University authority should not be used merely to duplicate the function of general laws. Only when the university’s interests as an academic community are substantially involved should the special authority of the university be asserted. Responsibility for the enforcement of the rules of the university rests with all the members of the Temple community. University rules should serve as a guide for high personal standards. It is the student’s responsibility to:

1. Foster an environment conducive to continued intellectual and educational stimulation within the university free from unlawful harassment by other members of the community; and

2. Foster the maintenance of physical and mental health, the safety and welfare of each member of the community; and

3. Respect the rights of others. These general behavioral expectations and the university Student Conduct Code (“Student Code”) represent a reasonable regulation of student conduct, but the student should be as free as possible from imposed limitations that have no direct relevance to his/her education and to his/her obligations and responsibilities as a member of the university community….

Additionally, Temple University’s policy on “Preventing and Addressing Discrimination and Harassment” holds that:

The university will not tolerate unlawful discrimination or harassment in the workplace, academic setting or its programs or activities based on individual’s age, color, disability, marital status, national or ethnic origin, race, religion, sex (including pregnancy), sexual orientation, gender identity, genetic information or veteran status. This policy is intended to be consistent with applicable federal, state and local laws and other university policies. This policy does not allow curtailment or censorship of constitutionally protected expression and will not be applied in a way that infringes upon an individual’s constitutional rights of freedom of expression.

References: https://policies.temple.edu/PDF/294.pdf; https://policies.temple.edu/PDF/221.pdf

Evidently, in the eyes of the Temple University administration, Jewish students are not protected under these policies. This is the primary reason for Temple’s inclusion in the list of the 10 Most Anti-Semitic campuses, and one we would like you to remedy.

These actions, which have been led by Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) on your campus, violate Temple University’s Student Code of Conduct and anti-discrimination policy and create a hostile environment for Jewish and pro-Israel students on your campus. Why is Students for Justice in Palestine receiving funding and other campus privileges from Temple University, when its very purpose violates Temple University policy?

As an organization dedicated to combating campus anti-Semitism, we offer our assistance in rectifying this disturbing situation on your campus and ensuring that Jewish students at Temple University can live and study in an environment free from fear and harassment.

I would recommend that your first step be to conduct an immediate inquiry into whether the organization Students for Justice in Palestine, which is responsible for these actions, is violating your “Student Code of Conduct” and your policy on “Preventing and Addressing Discrimination and Harassment.” If you conclude this is the case, then you should remove their campus privileges and funding. This will send a strong message that harassment and intimidation of any minority, including Jews, will not be tolerated at Temple.

Please contact me at the address below to let me know your plan of action, or if there is any way we can assist you to ensure that Temple University once again becomes a safe and welcoming environment for Jewish students.

Respectfully,

David Horowitz
www.jewhatredoncampus.org