U.S. Jewish Institutions Are Purging Their Staffs of Anti-Zionists
A months-long investigation found even the smallest hints of dissent are often met with unemployment.
Shane Burley October 1, 2024 InTheseTimes
an Fischer had been working as a Hebrew and Jewish ethics teacher for three years at Sinai Synagogue in South Bend, Ind., when a television reporter asked him for comment during an ?“All Out for Palestine” rally held four days after October 7.
“I am one of multiple Jews that are here today, proud to be in solidarity with the people of Gaza and Palestine,” Fischer said. ?“And I know that my tradition, the Jewish tradition, is a religion of tzedek, meaning justice, and shalom, meaning peace.”
He was fired the next day.
The synagogue sent a letter to the congregation saying it ?“had no choice but to release a teacher from his employment … effective immediately” and that ?“after Oct. 7, with the dead being buried, the savagery of Hamas being brought into living rooms every night, the subtlety of one’s personal politics cannot be allowed to cause pain and insult to our community, who have so many family and friends in Israel.”
Fischer had previously been lauded by Sinai leadership for his work, with the education director writing, ?“I know 3 [years] in a row is a big ask, but I love having you as a teacher and would love to have you back,” according to an email sent months before Fischer was fired. Now, Fischer saw his job gone and his reputation muddied with the implication he supported the Hamas attack and, as Sinai’s leader Rabbi Michael Friedland put it in an email to In These Times, was ?“not being respectful or compassionate” to grieving Israelis or those with friends and family in Israel.
Fischer is not alone. In These Times interviewed 18 Jewish professionals with 16 different Jewish organizations across the country, all of whom describe being fired, quitting under pressure, or seeing their roles disappear since October 7 for issues surrounding criticism of Israel or support for a permanent cease-fire. These stories are just a snapshot of what appears to be a growing trend across the Jewish professional world. At the time of publication, In These Times was continuing to receive tips about similar cases.
inthesetimes.com
The anti-semitism criticism of anti-genocide opposition is out of place when institutions and monied interests coerce Jews to toe the line with threats to their livelihood or to their place in university as professors and students. |
