The Uncivil University

This is an extremely important book. It points to one of the most alarming trends that has been developing on American Campuses over the past decade or more. A good description of these processes has been given by Avi Beker in an oped piece in the newspaper 'Haaretz': " The book presents a sad and disturbing picture of anti-Semitism disguised as an academic debate about the Middle East. Dr. Gary Tobin, one of the book's authors and president of the Institute for Jewish & Community Research, San Francisco, explained that the main problem today does not lie in open or blatant anti-Semitism, but rather in atmospheres and teaching styles. "The academic debate on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is framed in the politics of racial discrimination, and this is why it has so much currency on campuses," says Tobin. "Jews are the white, colonialist oppressors and the Palestinians are the brown victims of colonization. So to be a white Jew in support of Israel you risk being branded as a racist. And that accusation is more insidious on a day-to-day basis than any mass rally." The study presents reports of insults and humiliations suffered by Jewish students due to their support for Israel, and describes how Jewish faculty members that support Israel are being forced out. In a corresponding debate held in the U.S. Senate last week, there was discussion of the anti-Israeli atmosphere that prevails in centers for Middle Eastern studies in American universities, some of which are funded by Arab money." In short the Israel bashing is accompanied by an effort at vitiating all debate on the Middle - East issue. The politically correct Arabists of the Middle East study's departments set the tone which undermines the first principle of university life, academic freedom. Hopefully this book will serve as an important part in braking this dangerous non- democratic process.

First and foremost, I consider myself a supporter of scholarship. I think the success of us humans as a species and the success our civilization depends on scholarship, and I consider systematic challenges to academic standards as threatening all this. And there's a threat right now, as this book shows us in some detail. The symptoms we see, namely anti-Semitism and anti-Israelism on campus are, as the authors are quick to point out, "of a much larger malaise." We won't fix the problem by seeking "balance." Tobin and his co-authors wisely point out that "universities do not" (and should not) "balance racism and sexism with positive images of blacks and women. They make it clear that racism and sexism do not belong on campus. Period." And that is what they say needs to be done with anti-Semitism and anti-Israelism. They're right. Some folks say that we need to be careful not to infringe on academic freedom. But there's more to scholarship than freedom to say anything, no matter how absurd and counterproductive it may be. Universities need to "ensure both high quality and honest scholarship, adhere to principles of truth, preserve civil discourse, and provide freedom from intellectual intimidation." In this book, we see some striking examples of uncivil behavior and campus misconduct. Perhaps the most obvious example is the infamous Columbia University Middle East and Asian Languages and Cultures department. But there are plenty of others. And we see that the issue is not some sort of genuine or intellectual debate about a real nation, namely Israel. Instead, it is "a failure of the university community at all levels to properly protect its highest ideals." The result is a barrage of propaganda that has no place on any campus. According to the authors, this propaganda has four primary components. First is the claim that Jews do not deserve to have a nation-state at all, and that Zionism is a form of racism. Second is the taunt that the Holocaust is not a Jewish experience at all, but a Levantine Arab one. Third is the justification of violence against Israelis. And fourth is the fantasy that there is a race called the Jews which controls America, our government, and our foreign policy. We see plenty of examples for all four of these components. The authors make some very reasonable recommendations. Universities need to police themselves, both with internal groups and committees of scholars from other universities. These folks need to review the level of scholarship, quality of teaching, and objectivity of the discipline. Faculty who harass, discriminate against, or intimidate students need to be disciplined, with repeat violations leading to the firing even of tenured faculty. The campus community needs to be educated about anti-Semitism and anti-Israelism (including integrating such material into courses, curricula and syllabi when appropriate). Colleges need to establish rules for civil discourse (for example, i