Last Thursday, the University of California Board of Regents unanimously adopted "Principles Against Intolerance" (
full text) as a response to an increase in anti-Semitic incidents on UC campuses. The Introduction to the new document explains:
During the 2014-15 academic year, the Regents received correspondence and public comment from a variety of sources expressing concern that there has been an increase in incidents reflecting anti-Semitism on UC campuses. These reported incidents included vandalism targeting property associated with Jewish people or Judaism; challenges to the candidacies of Jewish students seeking to assume representative positions within student government; political, intellectual and social dialogue that is anti-Semitic; and social exclusion and stereotyping. Fundamentally, commenters noted that historic manifestations of anti-Semitism have changed and that expressions of anti-Semitism are more coded and difficult to identify. In particular, opposition to Zionism often is expressed in ways that are not simply statements of disagreement over politics and policy, but also assertions of prejudice and intolerance toward Jewish people and culture.
Anti-Semitism, anti-semitic forms of anti-Zionism and other forms of discrimination have no place at the University of California.
As reported by the
New York Times, the version of the document that was adopted eliminated previously proposed language that would have condemned all forms of anti-Zionism.
