France: Jewish students are frightened and wary on campuses

Interestingly, Jewish students' fear in French universities is a subject that is not raised in France.  A lot of attention is given to what is going on in primary and secondary schools, but when it comes to universities French Jewish organisations and Jewish academics keep silent.  There is no such thing as a University Watch body in a country where antisemitism is rampant, Israel-bashing is the norm and Jews are leaving in great numbers.  Why does it take a visiting British delegation to notice and report that Jewish students are very frightened and wary on their campusus? "I vividly recall meeting with Jewish students and their talk of how frightened they were, of how wary they were on campuses."

The Jewish Press reports:

Activists behind the “disgraceful” attack on Jewish students at a university are “neo-fascists”, Sir Eric Pickles has said.

The Conservative former communities secretary suggested the scenes which disrupted a meeting at King’s College London shared similarities with 1938’s Kristallnacht, also known as Night of Broken Glass, when Nazis attacked Jewish people and their property. Sir Eric was referring to disruption at an event organised by the KCL Israel Society and LSE Israel Society, in which politician Ami Ayalon, a former head of Israel’s Shin Bet security service, appeared. 

Speaking in the Commons, the UK’s post-Holocaust envoy said: “(Labour MP Wes Streeting) mentioned that we travelled together to France in the autumn of last year to look at anti-Semitism there and I vividly recall meeting with Jewish students and their talk of how frightened they were, of how wary they were on campuses.

“I can’t help but reflect at the disgraceful attack upon Jewish students in King’s College in London just two nights ago, where a peaceful meeting – literally about peace – was broken up with obscenities and with the breaking of a window and the breaking of glass and the offering of violence.

 Read more. 

More on this topic: 
- France: Sorbonne runs a student exchange programme with Bir Zeit university but not with Israel universities
- France: "I was branded a Nazi four times this week, I was told to go back to the gas chambers." 
- France: Israeli activists banished from university after pro-Palestinians riot