Jewish students have safety fears over campus support for Hamas

Anti-Israel actions have led to students hiding their Jewish identity, as a major student body declares ‘solidarity with Palestine’.

Federal opposition education spokeswoman Sarah Henderson called on the Albanese government and universities to take steps to protect Jewish students on university campuses. Picture: AFP

Jewish students say anti-Israel material being distributed on university campuses following the Hamas attacks is deeply distressing and has led to students hiding their Jewish identity, as one of Australia’s biggest student bodies declared it “stands in solidarity with Palestine”.

The University of Sydney Student Representative Council on Wednesday urged students to “stand against oppression … until Palestine is free”.

Earlier this week, the SRC promoted the Sydney Rally for a Free Palestine, where protesters mar­ched on the Sydney Opera House as it was lit in the national colours of Israel, chanting violent anti-­Semitic slogans.

“The Israeli state has waged a war on Palestinians for 75 years,” the SRC said in a statement.

“Palestinians have faced ethnic cleansing, torture, bombing and violence against civilians.

Gaza has been under a blockade for 16 years and all Palestinians live under an occupied apartheid state, which is the root cause of violence.

“The movement for Free Palestine is not anti-Semitic, and rally organisers strongly share this belief,” the SRC added.

A spokesperson for the University of Sydney said the vice-chancellor had written to staff and students “acknowledging many hold strong views on this conflict and encouraging them to express themselves in a way that considers the impact on other members of our campus community”.

Paris Enten, a Monash University student who is vice-president of the Australasian Union of Jewish Students, said many students had family in Israel and felt the impact of the attacks very strongly. “Whilst we in no way want to limit anyone’s freedom of speech, walking through campus and seeing people celebrating the attacks that have impacted them so personally is really upsetting,” Ms Enten said.

“We’ve heard of students who are avoiding campus out of concern for their safety,” she said, adding other students were deeply angry at seeing support for Hamas on campus.

“They’re saying ‘How dare you talk about my dead relatives that way’,” she said.

A flyer from the University of NSW Muslim Students’ Association being handed out this week says the Hamas attack was an “attempt to reclaim Palestinian land”.

The flyer, which was also distributed at Macquarie University, does not mention the many innocent civilians – including babies and young children – killed or wounded by Hamas, nor the civilian hostages who were forcibly removed to Gaza.

Since Saturday, the AUJS has helped submit more than 400 special consideration requests for students who have fallen behind in their studies because of the stress brought on by the recent events.

Federal opposition education spokeswoman Sarah Henderson called on the Albanese government and universities to take steps to protect Jewish students on university campuses.

She pointed to a recent survey of Jewish students which found 64 per cent had experienced anti-Semitism on campus and 57 per cent had hidden their Jewish identity in order to avoid it.

Senator Henderson said she had written to Education Minister Jason Clare asking him to say how the government would protect Jewish students in universities and schools. She has also written to umbrella body Universities Australia urging universities “to have much better measures in place so that student safety and wellbeing is of the highest priority”.

Universities Australia CEO Catriona Jackson said there was no place for racism or any form of discrimination on campus. She said universities had “zero tolerance for attitudes and behaviours which create unsafe learning and working environments”.

The Palestine Action Group, which was behind Monday’s rally in Sydney, has organised another rally in Canberra on Friday, which office bearers from the Student Association of Australian National University spruiked through their council agenda.