A new report by the Abraham Global Peace Initiative (AGPI), a Canadian Jewish advocacy organization, found that 50 faculty groups have refused to adopt the IHRA definition of antisemitism.
Describing how the faculty associations have rejected the “internationally accepted working definition of antisemitism,” AGPI’s University Campus report also delved into the fact that while overall reports of campus antisemitism have decreased in Canada, there was an increase in students reporting being bullied into hiding their Jewish identity in classes and on campus.
“Promises of tougher implementation of procedures against antisemitism were met with lax reaction from university administrations,” the report said. It also noted that there is increased concern that revisionist narratives and historical distortions are spreading across campuses.
“Since our first report was issued one year ago, the Abraham Global Peace Initiative has been happy to see that overall reports of on-campus antisemitic incidents have declined. While this news is worth celebrating, some institutions have admitted to investigating alleged incidents, though failedto report them,” AGPI Director of Education Neil Orlowsky said.
He criticized institutions for being “secretive in releasing findings on internal matters” when it comes to investigations.
“AGPI has been happy with the support we have been receiving from universities and colleges but so too we remind them that reporting incidents and investigating them are only half of our concerns,” Orlowsky added.
At universities where faculty associations and unions have taken anti-IHRA positions, “students have felt that with this position, they have been made to feel outed and indirectly discriminated against by having to justify their connection to Israel, or publicly denounce its state policies.”
“While academia has always been a space to pursue and challenge knowledge, AGPI is concerned that in such pursuit, revisionist narratives, historical distortions, and minimizing the lived experiences of Jewish students have fostered an environment interested in and trumpeting impact over intent.”