Calls for ending free speech intensify as youth increasingly critical of Jewish narratives

[D. Ray]

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania – A professor at an Ivy League college has
overtly called for the elimination of Americans’ 1st Amendment rights in
order to protect Jews from so-called “antisemitism.” The demand comes in
the wake of numerous polls and studies that suggest Millennials and Gen Z
have grown skeptical of Jewish-imposed political narratives.

On Sunday, University of Pennsylvania law professor Claire Finkelstein
stated, “To fight antisemitism on campuses, we must restrict speech,” in an
opinion piece for the Washington Post. In it, Finklestein made several
damning admissions, including a belief that college campuses should
restrict the “time, place and manner” of student demonstrations and
officially reclassify anything considered “antisemitic” as a call to
violence against Jews.

“Antisemitism—and other forms of hate—cannot be fought on university
campuses without restricting poisonous speech that targets Jews and other
minorities,” wrote Finklestine in her Oped. “They do not have to stand idly
by and wait for such speech to turn into “conduct.” Public institutions can
restrict the “time, place and manner” of demonstrations; they can restrict
speech that incites violence, that involves threats of violence against
specific individuals or that involves the targeted harassment of members of
the community.”

Finklestine—ironically, a member of Penn’s Open Expression Committee and
chair of the committee on academic freedom—is an Algernon Biddle professor
of law and philosophy at the University of Pennsylvania. Her OpEd was
penned in the wake of recent testimony made before a House committee by
three college presidents last week, which sparked “outrage” after they
stated that pro-Palestine student demonstrations were covered by free
speech policies.

The professors were grilled after it was alleged that some student
protestors called for the “genocide” of Jews. Despite their seemingly
principled stance on freedom of speech and political expression, Penn
President Liz Magill was forced to resign, facing backlash from the Jewish
community and the school’s wealthy stakeholders. She was ultimately
replaced by Jewish vice-chair Julie Platt, a woman described as “one of the
most prominent Jewish communal leaders in the country” by the JTA.

“I have worked hard from the inside to address the rising issues of
antisemitism on campus. Unfortunately, we have not made all the progress
that we should have and intend to accomplish,” she said in a statement
issued by the Jewish Federations of North America. “I will continue as a
board member of the university to use my knowledge and experience of Jewish
life in North America and at Penn to accelerate this critical work.”

The recent attacks on freedom of speech emanating from the Jewish community
come at a time of monumental criticism of Israel, a nation accused of
countless war crimes and other controversies as it continues its relentless
war on Palestine. According to the Gazan health ministry, the Palestinian
death toll since the war began on October 7th has risen to more than 18,000
people as Israeli forces continue their ground invasion and reduce large
swaths of the high residential areas to rubble.

Israel’s war has since created a veritable public relations nightmare for
Jews abroad. Many now seek to curtail anti-Zionist rhetoric both overtly
and covertly, mainly through the use of Jewish-controlled anti-Zionist
organizations that deny the Palestinian right to militarily liberate
themselves from Israeli occupation.

According to a recent survey conducted in the US, 20% of all Generation Z,
aka “zoomers,” polled believe the “Holocaust” of European Jews during the
Second World War is a “myth.” At the same time, nearly half of all
millennials were unable to name a single concentration camp. Additionally,
28% believe Jews have too much power in the United States, with almost one
in five New Yorkers believing Jews were deserving of the Holocaust.

“This needs to serve as a wake-up call to us all, and as a road map of
where government officials need to act,” said Gideon Taylor, president of
the Conference on Jewish Material Claims Against Germany.

Joining Taylor in sounding the alarm of rising “antisemitism” among the
youth is CEO of the Anti-Defamation League, Jonathan Greenblatt. In
November, Greenblatt could be heard in a leaked phone call furiously
raising concerns over “Gen-Z” and the social media platform of “TikTok” for
instilling a “terrifying” lack of support for the state of Israel.

Greenblatt previously drew controversy for publically denouncing anyone who
holds a pro-Palestinian sentiment as an “accomplice” to terrorist attacks.
Meanwhile, Israel has targeted and destroyed hospitals, holy sites, and
residential areas with impunity, largely with the help of US-funded
warheads. Like Finklestine, Greenblatt has also pushed for curtailing
speech protections to protect Jewish public perception and hopes to use
social media policies to enforce strict moderation on those critical of
Israel.

“It is essential that we gain insight into the policies platforms employ to
mitigate content from designated terrorists, as well as the metrics used to
gauge the effectiveness of platform policy enforcement,” he said during the
call.

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