As a Jewish academic, I have not experienced antisemitism at Sydney Uni

In recent weeks, a series of claims have been levelled against the University of Sydney, accusing its staff, students, community of scholars, and indeed the whole fabric of university life from executive leadership down, of antisemitism. It has been claimed that the university has become a place that is fundamentally hostile to Jews, the campus described as one of the “worst places to be Jewish”, and in urgent need of reform.

The Australasian Union of Jewish Students and Opposition Leader Peter Dutton are calling on vice chancellor Mark Scott to resign, and the university is facing a judicial inquiry and, potentially, a class-action lawsuit as a consequence of the “sustained and toxic nature of the attacks on Jews at Sydney University”, which have “had a grave effect on the psyche of students and academics alike”. This is simply not an accurate representation of the culture and atmosphere of the university.

Jewish students protesting against vice chancellor Mark Scott at Sydney University last month.Credit: Edwina Pickles

I am not a political activist, and would much prefer not to expose myself in this debate and simply focus on my work in the biological sciences. But as a Jewish person who has studied and worked at the university for over a decade, I feel compelled to defend the institution’s reputation.

Throughout all of my roles at the university, staff and students have been nothing but welcoming and accepting, and in my decade here I can firmly say I have never experienced anything even remotely antisemitic. I have made no attempt to hide my religion – my name is visibly Jewish, and being Jewish is something I have brought up freely with colleagues and students.

I cannot speak for all Jewish staff and students but, of the many I know and have spoken with over the years, not one has described university life as antisemitic.

Claims of antisemitism began to appear in the media when the university allowed, for a brief period, the student-led encampment protests, which were staged in opposition to Israel’s actions in Gaza. At that time, university campuses around the world became focal points in the debate around Israel’s actions and the complicity of Western governments.

That claims of antisemitism emerged simultaneously with debate around Israel is no coincidence, and must be understood within the context of Zionist activism. For many Zionists, criticism of Israel is interpreted as malicious and an existential threat to the future of the Jewish people, warranting a multitiered response that seeks to curtail free speech regarding Israel via laws, government policy, media standards and social media regulations.

This is always framed in terms of a response to “antisemitism”, but the borders between valid criticism of Israel and anti-Jewish bigotry are purposefully obscured to provide political protection for Israel and its supporters. This can be seen most clearly in the push to enshrine the highly controversial International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance definition of antisemitism throughout major institutions in Western countries, including Australian universities. We cannot allow this to undermine hard-won Australian freedoms of speech, assembly and protest.

When tens of thousands of Palestinians and over 1000 Israelis have been killed, emotions have undoubtedly run high. But it is important to note that, in the rare cases in which such arguments reach tense levels, this goes in both directions.

It is simply not accurate to frame the discourse that has been taking place on campus as one in which Jewish Zionists are exclusively at the receiving end of aggressive verbiage. In several cases that I have personally witnessed, it has been quite the opposite, involving overt and shocking anti-Palestinian racism and bigotry against members of staff in public settings. Human resources staff at the university have dealt with these cases, but to my knowledge they have never reached media reporting, and Mark Scott has certainly not been pressured to resign due to the occurrence of Islamophobia under his watch.

Doubtless, there have been genuine antisemitic incidents at the university, much as there have been racist, sexist, Islamophobic and other bigoted behaviours that unfortunately spring up anywhere and any time. But it is absolutely inaccurate to characterise this as something pervasive, systemic and representative of university life.

The media has a responsibility to engage seriously with claims of institutional antisemitism, but not just unquestioningly reproduce them. There are clear ideological and political motivations at play. The media must also not misrepresent the attitudes and perspectives of the increasingly diverse Australian Jewish community. New groups such as the Jewish Council of Australia have been vocal in challenging the conflation of Israel and Judaism, and have commented on the “dangerous precedent for all universities” that the resignation of Scott would represent.

Creating a false panic around university antisemitism is building genuine fear within my community that is damaging and misplaced, and threatens our sense of safety and belonging within the social fabric of Australia.

The University of Sydney is a rich and diverse space for expanding Australia’s social, political and cultural horizons. The conditions that allow for this to thrive should not be taken for granted, and the university should continue to stand strong in its defence of its staff and students and their right to freely express their opinions, to debate and, indeed, to vigorously protest for their beliefs.

Eva Shteinman is a PhD candidate at the University of Sydney with the faculty of medicine and health.

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