Staff Reports
The University of California Berkeley is gearing up for what can only be described as a government-funded crash course in antisemitism education, launching new initiatives that could make a college campus feel more like a sensitivity seminar. As if the situation wasn’t concerning enough, Berkeley is also throwing in a ban on encampments and a prohibition on masking. It turns out that shrouding oneself in anonymity while protesting is now officially “not okay”—a concept that might actually make sense if one squints hard enough.
Former Chancellor Carol Christ penned a heartfelt letter to the Chancellor’s Advisory Committee on Jewish Student Life and Campus Climate, expressing the university’s deep distress over increasing reports of antisemitic incidents. Not exactly surprising for a place that has steadily become a hotbed of both academic excellence and social chaos. Christ made it clear that these new programs are designed to educate a broad swath of the campus population, which raises the question: how did this become such an urgent issue—because it wasn’t the football team that got unruly this time.
UC Berkeley making several changes to combat antisemitism this school year (The Center Square) – The University of California Berkeley is expanding its antisemitism education in the 2024-25 school year as well as banning encampments and prohibiting mask…https://t.co/ucoLG7CSj6
— The Black Chronicle (@BlackChron) August 27, 2024
Gregg Drinkwater, the program director for Berkeley’s Antisemitism Education Initiative, has outlined a three-pronged attack to tackle this problem. Incoming students will be indoctrinated—pardon, educated—on antisemitism during their Golden Bear Orientation. Resident Advisors (RAs) won’t escape, either; they’ll have to endure a more intensive version of typical orientation, presumably while trying not to roll their eyes. Registered student organizations will also have their signatories sit through online training that covers not only antisemitism but Islamophobia as well, which begs the question: are there really people out there who are both antisemitic and unaware that they’re actually supposed to like Muslims?
The irony is rich. A place that prides itself on free expression is now dictating what can and cannot be said, all under the guise of ensuring a “safe and inclusive” campus climate. UC President Michael Drake is flexing some bureaucratic muscles to impose stricter rules on expressive activities to stomp out those pesky encampments and masked protests. Clearly, it’s now more important to have a tidy campus than to actually allow students to grapple with controversial ideas like, say, free speech.
Antisemitic incidents from the previous year, ranging from party disruptions to full-blown attacks on lecture venues, seem to have sparked a frenzy of policy updates and educational programs. It’s like a scene out of college sitcoms—where instead of wild parties and heartfelt romances, there’s now a campus-wide effort to engage in thoughtful discourse without violence or harassment. But in the leftist utopia of Berkeley, where it’s more about rallying for free tuition and less about freedom of speech, one has to wonder how much substance these programs will actually have.
Finally, Assistant Vice Chancellor Dan Mogulof has announced a slew of new programs aimed at “fostering constructive dialogue across lines of difference.” If one takes a stroll down memory lane, this could either mean genuine discussions or the same old clickbait debates held in a carefully constructed echo chamber. The liberal smokescreen of inclusivity continues, leaving everyone scratching their heads as to whether the goal is to educate or just keep the coffee cups filled while pretending to listen.
