Congregation Beth Torah will hold a live webinar about rising antisemitism on college campuses.
The event, “Shocking Trends on College Campuses: The Rise of Antisemitism and Fall of Academic Integrity,” will feature two authors and scholars on the topic, Scott Shay and Andrew Pessin, and be moderated by Jewish community member and attorney Samantha Von Ende.
The event will be held in-person at Congregation Beth Torah (6100 W. 127th St., Overland Park, KS 66209) at 7 p.m. on Thursday, Dec. 14. Registration is requested by calling (913) 498-2212 or signing up online at beth-torah.org/adult-education. The free event is presented by Beth Torah, Jewish Community Relations Bureau|American Jewish Committee (JCRB|AJC) and Chai Mitzvah, a national nonprofit resource center for Jewish engagement.
Years after receiving undergraduate and graduate degrees from Northwestern University, Scott Shay wrote the book “Conspiracy U,” citing examples of antisemitic instruction from professors on the far right and the far left at his alma mater. Shay says that these professors, protected by tenure and inaction by administrators and trustees, have threatened the well-being of Jewish students and degraded the academic integrity of the institution.
Shay will be joined by Andrew Pessin, professor of philosophy at Connecticut College and editor of the Campus Bureau for The Algemeiner. A long-time monitor of the hostility to Israel across college campuses, Pessin co-edited an anthology called “Anti-Zionism on Campus” in 2018, and this year published an anthology on antisemitism in the United States. In addition, he examined the problem in a novel called “Nevergreen,” depicting campus “cancel culture” and its impact on Jews. Informed by his own research and that of professional colleagues, he describes what is happening at Northwestern as just one example of a situation infecting campuses across the country and argues that the grave concern it causes for Jews should be shared by anyone who cares about education and the future of the United States.
All four of Shay’s children graduated from Northwestern, while Pessin’s son is in the process of writing college applications. Despite their concerns (during a talk show last year, Shay cited a study which led him to state that advanced education actually instills antisemitism), both believe that college should remain a high priority depending upon the interests and aptitude of the student. In the past, the selection was determined by family resources and the prospective student’s academic interests. Now, families are urged to research the political climate of the campus, how safe their child is likely to feel and the steps that have been taken by administrators to support academic integrity.
Shay and Pessin will speak with Kansas City native Samantha von Ende, whose professional endeavors around the world reflect the intersection of law, higher education and scholarship. Her nonprofit collective of consultants, AMICUS Institute for Governance, provides legal counsel and technical assistance to law reform initiatives and sustainable, community-led development projects. The focus of her civic engagement is on antisemitism and the protection of democracy.
The program will be followed by a reception and a book sale.
