Actions not words: Universities and antisemitism

There is no doubt in my mind that antisemitism continues to rise at universities despite the diligent efforts by thousands of people in positions of influence on campuses in all four nations of the UK. 

Why is this the case? One reason is that we have a lot of young people on our campuses, and evidence suggests that people between the ages of 18 and 34 are disproportionately represented in those holding antisemitic, including extremely antisemitic, views.  

The second is that universities are often centres of activism. This is broadly a good thing: it is why autocratic governments always seek to control universities. They are potentially dangerous places for those who want to preserve a status quo. From war to climate change, to sex and drugs and rock and roll, students have a long history of mobilising, campaigning and challenging society on the issues they care most deeply about. Sometimes history judges them to have been entirely right to do so. My parents’ generation (although I should say, not my parents) were forever burning bras and making a nuisance of themselves over nuclear disarmament, civil and women’s rights.  

Thirdly, they are attractive to outside influences who are keen to capitalise on young, activist students to promote their own ends. So we have a situation where thousands – perhaps hundreds of thousands - of people who feel strongly that what has happened in Gaza since October 7th 2023 is intolerable and must be stopped get swept up into movements which all too often slip into hatred of Jews, and knowingly or unknowingly repeat statements which clearly call for their eradication. Into this state actors, including both Iran and Russia, stick their oars, exploiting the opportunity to destabilise British society for their own ends.  

I want to be clear. We have not been idle since the 7th October massacre or before it. Universities UK’s hottest ticket in the last two years has been our regular 8am calls on managing campus tensions, where we bring university leaders together to learn from each other. As part of a wider series of calls on topics such as tackling anti-Muslim hatred and enabling freedom of speech and academic freedom, this has included a consistent focus on tackling antisemitism. This includes discussion about how to manage protest, how to protect Jewish students and staff, and hearing from experts including the Community Security Trust and the excellent Union of Jewish Students.

We have issued guidance, shared practice among our membership, and co-ordinated regular and sustained channels of communication between representative groups and the university leadership, so they understand and can act on requests for action, including in relation to security measures.

But I woke up on Thursday morning thinking: what does ‘action not words’ mean for me. 

I have written to vice chancellors to ask them to review security arrangements in the light of evidence of escalating violence. I will work with the Union of Jewish Students to promote their antisemitism training, and I will undertake it myself. I will work with others to implement the recommendations of their Time for Change report, and I will accept the responsibility that I personally have to be part of a wider societal move to counter extremism. 

I believe that universities can be part of the solution – especially through our opportunity to educate a large number of young people on effective disagreement, and where the boundaries between legitimate protest and antisemitism lie. Universities are uniquely well placed to play this role, and to address a growing societal evil through taking a zero-tolerance approach to antisemitism on campuses. But it will take all of us, working together, to make any difference. 

This opinion piece originally ran with Times Higher Education.