Skip to main content Skip to main navigation Skip to footer content

Division of Equity and Engagement

Addressing Antisemitism

Fresno State is committed to ensuring as sense of belonging for our Jewish community as we desire for all communities. It is critical that we pay attention to the implicit and explicit ways of diligently creating belonging on our campus for and with our Jewish community.

Antisemitism and its origins

The word antisemitism means prejudice against or hatred towards Jewish individuals, Jews as a people, Jewish ethnicity, culture, institutions, and/or religion/religious teachings. In addition, antisemitism can manifest as stereotyped views, hostility, discrimination, or violence against Jews because they are Jewish.

In 1879, German journalist Wilhelm Marr originated the term antisemitism, denoting the hatred of Jews, and also hatred of various liberal, cosmopolitan, and international political trends of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries often associated with Jews. The trends under attack included equal civil rights, constitutional democracy, free trade, socialism, finance capitalism, and pacifism.

Watch the US Holocaust Memorial Museum's video on the History of Antisemitism from to gain a deeper understanding.

How does antisemitism manifest on a college campus?

Scholars and Jewish community leaders have different perspectives on how to draw the line on precisely what is or is not antisemitic. As scholars from the Association for Jewish Studies Task Force on Antisemitism and Academic Freedom make clear, “no single group or institution speaks on behalf of all Jews on any issue, including antisemitism.”

Therefore, the following information is not exhaustive and cannot be used in isolation. We must consider context, nuance, and motivational factors when evaluating if a particular action or incident was or was not antisemitic.

  • Speech or writing that is slanderous or libelous of Jews as a group, the Jewish religion, or towards Jewish individuals because they are or presumed to be Jewish.
  • Claims about individual Jews or groups of Jewish people that call upon classic antisemitic imagery and tropes (such as conspiratorial claims that Jews wield undo power over the financial system, government policy, or Hollywood; or that Jews conspire against the interests of other groups of people).
  • Attributing collective responsibility to Jewish people for actions of an individual, or articulating conspiracy theories about Jews as a people or as a group.
  • Blaming all Jews for the actions of the Israeli government.

  • Not allowing religious accommodations for Jewish students and staff within private or public institutions.
  • Denying or infringing on the ability or right for Jewish people to worship or practice religious traditions.
  • Posting signs or making statements that suggest directly or indirectly that Jewish people do not belong or are not welcomed.
  • Requiring Jewish students to denounce their beliefs or perspectives as a condition for joining a group.
  • Aggressively proselytizing among Jews – demeaning Judaism or demanding Jews convert to other religions or beliefs.

  • Defacing or destroying property with Nazi swastikas, Nazi related numbers (e.g., 1488) or other symbols related to Nazi Germany, white supremacy and dominance, the KKK, or other hate groups.
  • Gestures such as the “Sieg Heil” or Nazi salute, which was used as a greeting to Hitler in Nazi, Germany.
  • Denying the Jewish Holocaust actually happened or dismissing the scope and trauma of the Holocaust and the murder of six million Jews.
  • Challenging the right for Jewish people to exist and targeting Jewish people for wearing traditional head coverings, clothing, or Jewish symbols.
  • Physical violence, harassment, or assault against a Jewish individual because they are Jewish.

It is important to define antisemitism as well as demonstrate what it is not, noting that context does matter. Please be mindful that though this is not considered antisemitic, it may be harmful to some members of the Jewish community. It is NOT antisemitic to:

  • Critique or oppose specific policies of the government of Israel.
  • Critique, oppose, support, and advocate for Israel.
  • Critique, oppose, support, and advocate for Palestine or Palestinians.
  • Support or advocate for Palestinian individual or collective rights.
  • Express pride in one’s Christian, Jewish, Muslim, Buddhist, or other religious identity.
  • Ask respectful and genuine inquisitive questions about Jewish history, culture, or religious practices.

*This is not an exhaustive list.

Additional Information

Like any other group, being Jewish is not a monolithic identity. Jews come from many races and ethnicities, with many subcultures, unique traditions, and languages. One who converts to Judaism becomes a member of this people, no less than those born as ancestral Jews.

Jews who do not consider themselves religiously practicing may often still strongly identify as Jewish and feel a deep sense of connection to Jewish history, Jewish culture, and the Jewish people. Jews traditionally see themselves as both adherents of a religious faith and part of a people since ancient times.

Many Jews feel connected to a variety of cultural practices, stories, customs, etc. that other Jews value as essential to a joint sense of identity that are often only loosely linked to religious practices.

The world’s oldest monotheistic (belief in one God) religion. This religion dates back nearly 4,000 years. Jewish people worship in places known as synagogues and their spiritual leaders are called rabbis. The six-point Star of David is one of, if not the main symbols of Judaism.

Jewish religious beliefs and practices span a wide spectrum and can include observance of religious holidays, such as Passover and Yom Kippur; special ways of marking Shabbat (or the Sabbath); and for some Jews, following kosher dietary laws and other religiously-informed social and cultural practices.

Institutions in the United States have experienced a rise in antisemitism incidents. This is impactful to higher education because stakeholders (students, staff, faculty, administrators, and community members) who identify as Jewish and allies/advocates for the Jewish community are affected by these incidents.

When students experience any form of hate or hostility like antisemitism on a campus, this could contribute to academic, psychological, sociological, and physical challenges. What this looks like in the day-to-day life of a student differs depending on the individual. General examples of this can be mental health challenges, academic challenges, physical challenges, which could impact the success of students and erode a sense of belonging.

XXXXXXXXX

As a member of the campus community, you can uplift and amplify the voices of the Jewish community by providing spaces for members to speak, heal and feel genuinely like they belong. It is important to understand the needs and concerns of the population impacted. After listening to the needs provide resources to support students, staff and faculty.

If one population is impacted by a form of hate it affects everyone because we are a community.

To learn more about antisemitism and to better understand its complexity, we encourage you to explore these resources offering deeper definitions of antisemitism. Each includes specific examples of antisemitism and offer different details. Some scholars, Jewish and non-Jewish students, and members of the public will prefer one definition over another. We offer these resources not as endorsements of one over another, but as an invitation to learning, unlearn, grow, and dialogue.

The text above includes material borrowed from guides to antisemitism produced by the Anti-Defamation League; “A Working Report from the AJS Task Force on Antisemitism and Academic Freedom” produced by the Association for Jewish Studies; and “A Very Brief Guide to Antisemitism” produced by T’ruah: The Rabbinic Call for Human Rights.