The era of Enlightenment which advocated tolerance, freedom and equality is well buried… Jewish students suffer in silence… in general indifference… many university rectors…
In the Age of Enlightenment, spirit and commitment were in the service of freedom and tolerance...which is no longer the case in many universities complicit in the rise of anti-Semitism through their inaction.
In Lausanne, tomorrow April 24, 2024, the inauguration evening of the UNIL Palestine association will take place.
Politics at university?
Should the university serve politics? To the detriment of the collateral damage it can cause?
In a period of increasing anti-Semitism in the world and in Switzerland, a few weeks after the anti-Semitic terrorist attack in Zurich, Unil authorizes a pro-Palestinian association with digital content such as:
- pro- BDS
- pro-Rima Hassan (banned from conferences at the University of Lille and summoned for advocating terrorism)
- pro-boycott of Israel at the Olympics
- to the Palestine logo “without” Israel,
- inaugurate its place on campus, close to EPFL.
Should the university be a place of peace, serene, apolitical?
Or a media space, politically oriented?
In this context, if there are risks of discrimination, exclusion, stereotypes, violence against a category of students based on their origin, religion, political affiliation, is it not the duty of the university to ensure the well-being of all students?
Security and peace on campus are the responsibility of universities: each student must have the same rights to respect, calm, and access to conferences as others.
What is the situation in the USA today? In France? in Switzerland?
Do universities serve politicians or all students, without privilege, whether Jewish or not?
There are enough places for non-university conferences…
The University of Lausanne had already created controversy with Oriane Sarrasin, researcher at Unil, who had decided to no longer collaborate with Israeli institutions and had made this known publicly: is this legitimate in a university where she is paid to do research and not politics?
Socialist from Vaud, she wrote on « Gender and Islamophobia »: wouldn’t the university allow her above all… to have a publicity stunt? We can ask ourselves the question…
When we do research on discrimination, it seems to me that we should not exclude athletes, « discriminate » them on the grounds that what their government is doing does not suit us…
When we fight against prejudice…we don’t « categorize » athletes based on their origin..
When we fight against inequalities and injustices, we do not support the boycott of athletes: we can disagree with a government, debate it, but prohibit young people from playing sport in a state of law… democratic…makes no sense.
Finally, we see movements flourishing in European universities and elsewhere with « anti-democratic », « discriminatory », anti-Semitic overtones, oozing hatred of the Other especially when he is Jewish…all trivialized and legitimized by the complacency of many universities …
Many universities are assassinating the Spirit of Enlightenment…
Coralie Schaffter
Source photos: insta Unil Palestine
Swiss Women in politics 