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Stanford task force ‘waste of time’

Since I am a graduate of Fairfax High School (class of 1961) and Stanford University (class of 1965), I read with interest the Jan. 12 article by the JTA’s Shira Hanau (“Stanford to investigate claim that it had quotas for Jews in the 1950s”).

As many as 25 students (all Jewish) from the 1960 Fairfax graduating class applied to Stanford, but only one was admitted. One year later, only three of us (again, all Jewish) applied, and all of us were admitted. We believed that Stanford had a quota system, but could not provide proof.

But I never experienced antisemitism at Stanford. Just the opposite: We all studied, socialized, resided, dined and played ball together.

Dean of Admissions Rixford Snyder addressed the incoming class of 1965. I paraphrase one statement: “All of you graduated from high school near or at the top of your class, but four years from now, 50 percent of you will graduate in the lower half of your class.” On that humbling yet reassuring statement alone, I am not ready to cancel Dean Snyder for what he allegedly said eight years earlier.

I don’t care now about what did or did not happen 60 years ago. What I do care about is what is happening on the campus today.

President Marc Tessier-Lavigne said it well: We must make clear that “bias in any form has no place in higher education or at Stanford.”

But this task force is a waste of time. Instead, how about calling out every antisemitic action or threatening social network post that occurs today on campus grounds?  In the ’60s, I did not need to cope with Twitter threats, event disruptions, or demonization in the classroom, but these are real problems for today’s students, and Stanford should not tolerate this behavior.

Charles Taubman
Cupertino

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Jewish quota … or not?

I was at Stanford at the time and I never could find out if there was a quota. People who did not go there were always challenging me about it. I had many Jewish friends, but many of them did not claim their Jewishness. Each fraternity had one “token” Jew, it was rumored. Registration was on Rosh Hashanah, until my friends and I challenged it; it was changed by my junior year. The Jewish boys I knew belonged to the “eating clubs.” One of the boys, Don Loze, was student body president.

Helen Ann Licht
Lafayette

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Give me captions on Zoom!

There seems to be a lot of discussion about inclusion and diversity in our community. It is very painful to be locked out of understanding a speaker when the Jewish organization sponsoring a Zoom event cannot seem to understand that turning on closed captions is something to be considered.

Honored elders attend these functions — and it is only fair, kind and mensch-like to consider their needs as well.

Herbert Brosbe
El Cerrito

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Cheap laughs, Larry David

From the start of “Seinfeld” through “Curb Your Enthusiasm,” I have been a big fan of Larry David. But, no more.

In the season finale of “Curb” that aired last month, David’s exploitation of historically poignant shoes taken from Jewish prisoners during the Holocaust was appalling. There were many more ways he could have concluded that comedic arc, without insulting and enraging those of us who are children or grandchildren of Holocaust survivors — or who are just honorable human beings. David’s trivialization of genocide may strike him as permissible black humor.

It is anything but.

If he cannot find it in his heart or mind to respect the dead, he should at least have the decency not to crudely desecrate their collective memory.

Larry David would benefit from a period of significant introspection before ever using the disastrous history of his own people for a cheap —  and utterly unsuccessful — laugh.

Nina Klein
Burlingame

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Misguided Jewish support

If demography is a guide, most J. readers were horrified by Larry Elder’s recent candidacy for governor of California. Chronicle columnist Justin Phillips presumably spoke for many progressives when he wrote in September: “Elder is known for being the Black voice in conservative white spaces who advances racist tropes in America. His ability to otherize his own people is unique … He’s celebrated by white people for his diversity, yet they don’t acknowledge how his views will only further marginalize folks that look like him.”

Furthermore, although Elder and a few Black voters supported Donald Trump, this support did not improve Trump’s image, as a grave threat to Blacks and other minorities, among progressives.\

Enter Zahra Billoo.

Billoo’s comments last month (“Muslim civil rights leader says she is target of ‘prolonged Zionist onslaught’ as she goes on sabbatical,” Dec. 21) fit a pattern of “anti-Zionist” comments that deny Israel’s right to exist and blame nearly all Jews for Palestinians’ suffering.

Then, letter-writer Elliot Helman defended Billoo and the Council on American-Islamic Relations because some Jews support them, and denounced JCRC for denouncing Billoo (Letters, Dec. 22).

Helman did not specify which “local synagogues” and “Jewish contingents” Billoo counts as allies, but let no one be fooled: Jewish Voice for Peace does not speak for the Jewish community any more than Larry Elder speaks for the Black community. If they support Billoo — who wants to throw the Jews into the sea — their views are unacceptable to the vast majority of Jews anywhere.

Thus, I don’t see how progressives can agree with both Phillips and Billoo. I suggest that they owe an apology either to Larry Elder or to the JCRC and ADL.

Ilya Gurin
Mountain View