Student Senate calls for boycott of hummus company due to Israel ties
Tufts University students allegedly spat on their Jewish peers and told them to “go back” to Israel during a contentious student government meeting Sunday, according to Jewish on Campus.
Other students were targets of rude gestures and remarks at the private, Massachusetts university, the group reported on Instagram. Jewish on Campus is a student-led campaign to end antisemitism on college campuses.
The Tufts Senate meeting ended early Monday with student leaders approving three pro-Palestinian resolutions proposed by the Coalition for Palestinian Liberation, The Tufts Daily reports.
More than 300 students attended and dozens walked out in the middle of the meeting after pro-Israel students kept being interrupted, according to the report.
While leaving, several Jewish students overheard others saying, “Israel, like, controls the entire world,” and “If you love Israel so much, like, go back. Just go back!” according to Jewish on Campus.
Another Jewish student noticed an individual making a rude hand gesture toward them saying, “Stinky, stinky. It stinks in here,” the group reported.
In a third case, the group reported a Jewish student “asked an anti-Israel student to stop laughing as our side presented. In response, she said, ‘Shut up b*tch,’ and spat on me.”
The Daily reported more:
“We’ve asked multiple times for respect,” one speaker commented to the Daily. “I can’t stay because every time we try to talk, that’s how they act. We are merely students trying to have a debate with something so complicated.” […]
TCU Senate Parliamentarian Tolulope Adewumi and TCU President Arielle Galinsky reminded the audience to abide by meeting protocol and allow speakers their uninterrupted time to testify. Many students who left returned to the floor, as the remainder of the discussion proceeded without major disruption, as each resolution was proposed and discussed in turn.
One resolution calls for the boycott of Sabra, a hummus company, and a halt to the sales of its products in university dining, according to the report. According to the resolution, the company’s owners have supported the Israeli military.
Two other resolutions urge university administrators to “acknowledge the Palestinian genocide” and “divest from companies tied directly and indirectly to Israel,” the report states.
The student government narrowly rejected a fourth resolution that called for an end to the university’s study abroad programs in Israel.
University spokesman Patrick Collins condemned the discriminatory acts in a statement to The Daily. He said the university is investigating the allegations.
“Though much of the debate was civil and respectful, we have received reports of antisemitic and Islamophobic words and actions that occurred before and during the meeting,” Collins said. “This is entirely unacceptable and should be met with condemnation from the entire community, regardless of individual perspectives on the resolutions.”
Collins also said the university opposes the resolutions, and its leaders are “disappointed” by the students’ vote.
MORE: Tufts ignores antisemitic actions against Jewish student government member: lawyers
IMAGE: Jerusalem U/YouTube
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