Right message from U.C.
I commend the entire U.C. administration, from President Yudof to U.C. Berkeley Chancellor Birgeneau, for reminding the campus community as well as the broader community of the values for which well-intentioned people stand.
President Yudof issued an open letter in response to recent incidents at U.C. Davis and U.C. Riverside, at which IDF soldiers were heckled and an Israeli flag was defaced with the word “terrorist.” Chancellor Birgeneau issued a statement following Louis Farrakhan’s appearance last weekend on campus. President Yudof’s letter called for tolerance and civility, and condemned hate-driven actions meant to disrupt the free speech rights of others.
I applaud President Yudof for enlisting the aid of the Anti-Defamation League to strengthen prohibitions on threatening conduct and acts motivated by bias in the student code of conduct. Chancellor Birgeneau, while recognizing Farrakhan’s free speech rights, condemned Farrakhan for his anti-Semitic, homophobic and misogynistic message, pointing out that it runs counter to the principles of community articulated for the campus, which call for taking into account the potential effect of words or deeds and for a positive intent not to hurt, offend or denigrate others. Clearly Louis Farrakhan fails this test. This is the right message at the right time from our academic leaders.
Eric Horodas | San Francisco
Regional board chair, Central Pacific Region, Anti-Defamation League
‘What can I do for you?’
There is hope.
As I began to read the article on the recent bill before the Stanford student senate (“Stanford senate defeats bill for Palestinian alum,” March 9), I thought to myself, “Oy, another confrontation on a college campus.” The story continued with the report of a Hillel-sponsored interfaith Shabbat (Arab/Israeli/Muslim/Jewish), and the phrase that made my heart leap for joy: that the attendees were “…mostly listening to each other.”
As a dual American-Israeli citizen and a resident of Jerusalem during the second intifada, I am often asked my opinion about the Mideast conflict and any hope for peace. My answer is absurdly simple: to listen. No one side is right; no one is wrong. There is no one who has not suffered from the ongoing conflict. But we are not chained by our past. A simple yet profound shift is possible, from dwelling in our own pain and making demands, to focusing on how we can serve the needs of the other. To realizing there are no “sides” — just some human beings who can learn to listen. And to speak simply to ask: What can I do for you?
These kids listened. There is hope.
Sara Heckelman | San Francisco