Report From a Jewish Student at Santa Monica College in Los Angeles
On November 15, 2023, I received the following email from a Jewish student at Santa Monica College in Los Angeles:
I reached out to the StandWithUs legal team requesting they send a legal letter to Santa Monica College advocating on behalf of all the Jewish students there and for the Students Supporting Israel club board on which I am serving.
At a required meeting for our attendance of all Santa Monica College club board members, we experienced harassment as Jews due to antisemitism. Fortunately this required meeting where discriminatory attacks were made to remove the Israel club from campus was being audio recorded by the college.
The attached letter from StandWithUs legal team is making a positive difference. Santa Monica College did reinstate our Israel club. The college is being asked to enforce laws that they have refused to do to protect Jewish students. These attacks have increased tremendously after the Oct. 7th attack from Hamas murdering Israeli civilians in Israel and starting a war.
We are hoping the intervention from StandWithUs legal team will help to protect Jewish students since the administration has refused to provide any safe guards or take any stand against discrimination and harassment.
I personally want to thank this student for speaking up against anti-Jewish and anti-Israel hate at a local college in Los Angeles. And I hope the StandWithUs letter as well as this podcast interview with StandWithUs lawyer Yael Lerman will encourage other Jewish college students who are experiencing harassment to get support for speaking up!
UPDATED: Here is a Dec. 12, 2023, CBS News Los Angeles report about the surge in antisemitism sparking federal investigation at Santa Monica College.
StandWithUs letter sent to Santa Monica College November 2023
Organizations combatting antisemitism in educational institutions