URBANA – Local Jewish organizations came together at the University of Illinois Alma Mater Tuesday afternoon for a show of Jewish pride amidst the third day of a pro-Palestinian encampment on campus.
“What’s happening on campus right now, a lot of us are scared. They’re scared to be Jewish. They’re scared to be Israeli,” said student organizer Ben Shapiro. “This is just to show that there’s a community of Jewish students who you can be allies with.”
But, Shapiro said this event was not a direct response to the encampment and emphasized that it was not a counter protest. He said it was meant to be in solidarity with Jewish students who feel unsafe on campus, the hostages and those killed in the October 7 attack by Hamas.
“Obviously, we want the encampment to end. And obviously we want the administration to uphold their policy,” said Shapiro.
Attendees sang and danced to the Israeli national anthem arm in arm. Some wore traditional Jewish clothing, including the kippah, or wore Israeli flags on their backs. Others held up hostage posters and small Israeli flags.
“This wouldn’t be happening if that [the encampment] wasn’t, but this is not a counter protest,” said Shapiro. “We’re not going over there. We purposely chose this spot as far as possible. We’re not trying to interfere with anything they’re doing. We’re trying to keep our students safe. We want their students to be safe.”
However, some of the attendees of the Jewish pride event did make their way over to the encampment less than a mile away near Foellinger.
“Even if we have numbers, it still is scary. And some of these people are violent. And also a lot of them aren’t even students,” said Shayna Andrews, whose brother Jaden said he had his Israeli flag snatched from him while near the encampment with his friends the day before.
However, as she stood right in front of the encampment wearing her Israeli flag with her friends she said she was not afraid.
“We haven’t posed any threat to them. We haven’t responded with any counter protesters on our end. We’re here as peaceful protesters,” said one encampment organizer, who asked not to be named for safety reasons.
Encampment organizers said they didn’t have a problem with their presence and that Jewish students were free to exercise their free speech the same way they do.
This event happened to coincide with the Jewish holiday of Passover. Shapiro said he is a more secular Jew, but will still be observing in his own way.
“[By] telling a story of Passover, spending time with friends, talking about the story of the Jews escaping Egypt – which is really a story about persecution.” said Shapiro. “We don’t just tell the story because it happened back then. We tell it because it’s happening right now. And it’s happening on campus.”
Shayna’s brother, Jaden Andrews, was another student organizer for Tuesday’s Jewish Pride event. He said he doesn’t consider the tents antisemitic, but said he has faced antisemitism firsthand on campus.
“One could maybe consider those [tents] antisemitic, but while I’ve been here and sort of showed my support of being Jewish and loving Israel, I’ve been called a pig. I’ve had animal noises mocked at me. I’ve been told that Jews do not belong on this campus,” said Andrews.
Encampment organizers say that they do not hold that belief. As witnessed by IPM News, they have held Jewish services during the encampment process.
“We don’t have any quarrels with people that are Jewish,” said one encampment organizer. “Our problem is with Zionism and if that is a Jewish Pride event, then that is a Jewish Pride event.”
Jewish people have been outspoken locally for the Palestinian cause. Champaign-Urbana Jews for Ceasefire has been involved in organizing and participating in pro-Palestinian protests.
But, Andrews said, sometimes Jews are used as poster children for the Palestinian cause.
“Judaism and Zionism are not the same thing,” said an encampment organizer. “We have numerous members of the Jewish community with us here today, because they do understand that what’s going on right now in Palestine is genocide, is an occupation, is illegal, is apartheid.”
Andrews also said that Jewish support for Palestine lies in misconceptions about what exactly they are standing — or chanting for.
“Being extremely vocally anti-Zionist, in my opinion, is tiptoeing on the line of antisemitism. When that line is crossed is when there’s antisemitic chants and things like calling for intifada, which was suicide attacks in Israel that killed multiple civilians,” said Andrews.
Intifada is an Arabic word with a literal translation of revolution or uprising.
To promote education on the Palestinian cause, the encampment hosts a series of teach-ins, some of which are taught by UIUC professors. On Tuesday, one of the teach-ins focused on apartheid and was taught by a university history professor.
No encampment participants and no Jewish pride attendees interfered with one another on Tuesday’s event, but encampment organizers did say that Andrews’ claim of their supporters being misinformed is incorrect.
“I think that any type of narrative that is spun about Zionism and Judaism being the same thing is just somebody not being familiar with history,” one encampment organizer said.
Organizers said they are working to get negotiations with administrators started up again, but that the university is unwilling to talk until organizers take down their tents – which, to them, is a dealbreaker until the university divests from corporations that support military occupation in Israel.
“There’s 33 tents on campus now, which is not allowed. We’re doing exactly what we’re supposed to, which is preaching for what we believe in, but doing it in a very safe and very respectful manner to everyone around us,” said Andrews.
University of Illinois Associate Chancellor Robin Kaler was near the Jewish pride event. She said that the University always wants the students to be able to exercise their free speech, but there are rules.
“They’ve got a banner hanging on Alma, which is not allowed. They’ve got tables set up, which are not allowed. They’re using amplified music, which is not allowed,” said Kaler.
The University of Illinois Police Department did not interfere with the Jewish pride event or the encampment that afternoon, but Kaler said that if students continue to disobey they could receive suspensions.
“A university is a place where you learn and grow and figure out how to navigate the world, right?” said Kaler. “So,we’re trying to help people do that. But there are always consequences to your actions.”
