'I get very nervous': Jewish student group feels targeted by a toolkit circulating at York University
Johanna Joseph says she feels nervous about wearing a necklace from her late grandmother when she goes to class at York University because it bears the symbol of the Star of David.
“One of the pendants was from my late grandmother, who was a Holocaust survivor,” Joseph told CTV News Toronto in an interview. “Whenever I enter classrooms, I, you know, take it off. I get very nervous.”
Joseph is part of Hillel York, a Jewish student group that feels targeted at school after “A Toolkit for Teaching Palestine” started to circulate.
- Download our app to get local alerts on your device
- Get the latest local updates right to your inbox
CUPE Local 3903 published a 15-page toolkit for teaching assistants at York University to provide guidance on teaching and discussing Palestine in the classroom. In it, the union’s education committee breaks down why it calls for action, who should teach about Palestine (and how), as well as supports for members experiencing reprisals.
READ MORE: Group at York U calls for reinstatement of employees charged in Indigo defacement
“This toolkit reflects on our collective, moral and professional responsibility to speak, write and teach on Palestine in spite of the culture of fear that has dominated much of Western academic institutions,” the document reads.
The document asks its CUPE members to join the call for action from Jan. 21 through 28, and divert the week’s tutorials to focus on teaching Palestinian liberation and refuse “to abide by York University’s culture of repressive normalcy.”
In the toolkit, the union says York University is complicit in Israel’s occupation of Palestine due to its investments and “economic and academic relationships with various Zionist cultural institutions (e.g. Hillel) and Israeli universities (e.g. Hebrew University of Jerusalem), some of which are on UN-recognized illegally occupied Palestinian lands.”
“Being a Jewish student, this is one of the only places I do feel safe on campus, and the labelling and calling out makes it feel like Hillel kind of is a target now,” Jacob Berman said.
Dean Lavi, director of Hillel York, told CTV News Toronto more than a dozen students have since contacted him, expressing concerns their teaching assistants will mistreat them.
“They’re sitting there in the classroom, and the person who can grade them is the one telling them that what they’re saying is wrong and that their opinions don’t matter and that, you know, they’re in the wrong for existing as their whole selves,” Lavi said.
York University President Rhonda Lenton recently wrote in a letter that senior administration does not find CUPE 3903’s latest email containing the toolkit “to be in accordance with the rightful expectations of the students and the legitimate claims of the community.”
A student at York University in Toronto.
This is not the first time York University administration has issued a statement with regards to the Israel-Hamas war.
Shortly after Hamas' attacks on Oct. 7, the York Federation of Students, the York University Graduate Students Association and the Glendon College Students Union issued a joint statement appearing to call the move a “strong act of resistance” while reaffirming their solidarity with Palestinians.
York University “unequivocally” condemned the statement.
“Freedom of expression has limits and comes with responsibilities. It must never reach into promoting or justifying violence against unarmed civilians,” the university said then.
The university’s administration says the dialogue on world events inside the classroom should allow for diverse perspectives to be expressed, but added it should always be respectful.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Police arrest 3 Indian nationals in killing of B.C. Sikh activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar
Three people have been arrested and charged in the killing of B.C. Sikh activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar – as authorities continue investigating potential connections to the Indian government.
TD worst-case scenario more likely after drug money laundering allegations: analyst
TD Bank Group could be hit with more severe penalties than previously expected, says a banking analyst after a report that the investigation it faces in the U.S. is tied to laundering illicit fentanyl profits.
Human remains found in rural Sask. possibly a decade old, RCMP say
RCMP say human remains found in a rural area in central Saskatchewan may have been there for a decade or more.
2 charged after police find 'concerning and diverse' explosives at Manitoba home
Winnipeg police say they have arrested two people in their 20s after a large amount of explosives were found in a home outside of Winnipeg, Man.
Five areas Canada's foreign interference commissioner says needs more investigation
Commissioner Marie-Josee Hogue released her interim report examining foreign election interference on Friday. Here are five elements of the issue that Hogue says she needs to further probe before she can make conclusions or recommendations.
Drew Carey is never quitting 'The Price Is Right'
Drew Carey took over as host of 'The Price Is Right' and hopes he’s there for life. 'I'm not going anywhere,' he told 'Entertainment Tonight' of the job he took over from longtime host Bob Barker in 2007.
Police officer hit by driver of fleeing vehicle in Toronto
York Regional Police say they are continuing to search for a suspect in an auto theft investigation who was captured on video running over a police officer in Toronto last month.
Why your airfare may be getting more expensive
Skyrocketing airfare prices are linked to heightened competition and rising food and fuel, according to the CAA.
Canadian doctor concerned new weight-loss drug Wegovy may be used inappropriately
As Wegovy becomes available to Canadians starting Monday, a medical expert is cautioning patients wanting to use the drug to lose weight that no medication is a ''magic bullet,' and the new medication is meant particularly for people who meet certain criteria related to obesity and weight.