Notably, Judge Young calls the government's definition of antisemitism (which officially is the IHRA def) unconstitutionally broad: "Trump administration's full-throated assault on the First Amendment across the board under the cover of an unconstitutionally broad definition of Anti-Semitism"

"An ecosystem of pro-Israel and right-wing organizations have been deeply involved in driving the surge in [Title VI antisemitism investigations] At least a quarter of the investigations originated from people with no relationship to the schools in question."

The ADL is openly caving to right-wing antisemites. No one should looking to them to arbitrate what is and isn't antisemitism, least of all school systems and universities.

"Secretaries Noem and Rubio have intentionally and in concert implemented Executive Orders in a viewpoint-discriminatory way to chill protected speech. This conduct violated the First Amendment."

Powerful testimony last week by Alain Jehlen and State Sen. Pat Jehlen against the IHRA definition of antisemitism, which the MA Special Commission on Combating Antisemitism is trying to force on Massachusetts schools.

If you or your kids have been ostracized, bullied, censored, discriminated against, excluded from campus Jewish life, or fired for Israel-critical views: let the Special Commission on Antisemitism hear it. They claim that victims will be believed, not gaslit.

The ADL's cynical strategy of defending right-wing antisemites who profess support for Israel--while attacking those (including Jews) who call out Israel's atrocities--has not worked out well for them. Time to change course.

Suspending a tenured Jewish professor because an Israeli student (and former IDF cyberintelligence agent) disagrees with the course content? This is not "fighting antisemitism"

Turning Jews into the sole carve-out of bans against anti-racism training does not actually make Jews safer. It just prevents allyship and keeps students from understanding the many forms that antisemitism has historically taken. www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...

The MA Special Commission on Combating Antisemitism is still accepting written testimony. Make your voice heard here: forms.office.com/pages/respon...

300 Northwestern students were blocked from enrolling in classes because they refused to complete a training that compares critics of Israel to former Ku Klux Klan grand wizard David Duke

Surely Massachusetts lawmakers must be starting to realize that this Special Commission is a political liability.

JD Vance comparing legitimate criticism of ICE to a “blood libel” is one of the most antisemitic things that has happened in US politics recently, and yet none of the major US Jewish groups like the ADL and the AJC have said anything, because they’re too focused on college students.

JD Vance invoking "blood libel" is dangerous and wrong. He is using a term with a specific, horrific history tied to centuries of antisemitic violence. Weaponizing it for political attacks undermines the fight against actual antisemitism.

Beyond grateful to everyone who spoke up for free speech, human rights, and safety through solidarity yesterday. 👇🏻👇🏻

I was there, and I too spoke against using the IHRA definition.

By an informal count, 59 spoke out yesterday against the MA Special Commission's approach, 18 in support. Many who spoke out were Jews critical of IHRA's labeling of various criticisms of Israel as antisemitic. Here are a few quotes:

State Sen. Pat Jehlen testified! Then Alain Jehlen: “Your proposal would punish comparisons between Israel and Nazi Germany, but Israel's actions have much in common with the Nazis. … The Nazis killed my uncles, my aunts and my grandmother. My father escaped from a concentration camp."

Today's public hearings amounted to a complete rebuke of the MA Antisemitism Commission's approach. Antisemitism must be combated, but the IHRA definition, which declares many criticisms of Israel to be hate speech, is not the way. Our safety is intertwined with that of others.

The public testimony being given to the MA Special Commission on Antisemitism couldn't be more different from that of their handpicked guests. Many speaking out against IHRA definition of antisemitism. Follow the livestream here: malegislature.gov/Events/Heari...

"Part of having a rich Jewish intellectual community means making space for them. We are all worse off when we cast out the dissenters." www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

"In the name of 'fighting antisemitism', the Trump administration is publicly making an example out of arguably the most famous Jewish public intellectual in the country today."

Opinion | Education as Freedom As a new academic year begins, Michael S. Roth writes that colleges must redouble their commitment to educating for freedom—including freedom from governmental intrusion. https://bit.ly/4mfneiG #EDUSky #AcademicSky #HigherEd

"The Commission’s co-chairs seem insistent on becoming the patrons of one particular faction of MA Jews—not only providing a platform for them to dominate a different faction but also empowering them to use their access as “court Jews” to destroy the right to free expression in our state."

Today, we release guiding principles and concrete practices on how to meaningfully combat antisemitism, without enabling the Trump administration or sacrificing immigrants, trans people, or the rights to free speech and protest. www.concernedjewishfaculty.org/copy-of-agai...

Excellent write-up in @jewishjournal.bsky.social of CJFS expert testimony to the MA Special Commission on Combating Antisemitism, and the Commission's bizarrely dismissive response: jewishjournal.org/2025/09/18/a...

We ask UC Berkeley to withstand political pressure & act in solidarity with other universities to defend their independence, to uphold the right of students & faculty to engage in legitimate protest & critical inquiry, & to protect them from intimidation, harassment & attacks. tinyurl.com/ycxncf5y

Statement from US Jews: "[We] condemn the charge of antisemitism being leveled against student activists—many of whom are Jewish—for their legitimate criticisms of Israel’s violence in Gaza and their universities’ connections to the Israeli occupation" www.thenation.com/article/soci...

From CJFS member Aaron Shakow to the Massachusetts Special Commission on Combatting Antisemitism: "Your approach is toxic and threatens core democratic values. You must change course or cease to exist." www.bostonreview.net/articles/let...

From the incomparable Judith Butler: "To allow a widely admired university to be bossed around by political operatives undermines its own basic ideals and imperils the future of critical thought, dissent, and democracy itself." www.chronicle.com/article/when...

From Alex Gourevitch, Political Science professor at Brown: "It cannot be good for the fight against antisemitism to associate Jews with new limits on speech and the degradation of the learning environment" commonwealthbeacon.org/opinion/stat...

Our co-founder @jpygold.bsky.social explains how the MA Special Commission for Combating Antisemitism plays into the Trump admin's assault on universities and civil rights

The MA Special Commission on Combating Antisemitism--along with the Trump admin--is staking its approach on the IHRA definition of antisemitism. One of the definition's authors explains why this is a terrible idea knightcolumbia.org/content/a-ba...

‼️Join the Massachusetts Special Commission on Combatting Antisemitism TODAY at 1 pm in person or online‼️ Our panel says: "Fight antisemitism the Massachusetts way;" "Don’t manufacture ammo for Trump’s authoritarian assault on education." More from our panelists & link to hearing below.

Incredibly important point: "As pertains to this case, it is important to recognize and remember that if speech can be curtailed in the name of the Jewish people today, then just as easily the speech of the Jews (and anyone else) can be curtailed when the political winds change direction."

JUST IN: Harvard won summary judgment against the Trump administration with the court finding that the admin violated Harvard's 1st amend. rights. The court has vacated the funding freeze orders and termination letters and issued a permanent injunction. storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.us...

Will Mass Dems fight actual antisemitism or will they just serve Trump’s agenda? Tune in Monday, September 8 at 1 pm for the next Massachusetts Special Commission on Combatting Antisemitism hearing. We'll be testifying. Show your support in person on online. go.bsky.app/redirect?u=h...

📅 Mark your calendars for September 8 at 1 pm. 🗣️ CJFS will testify at the next Massachusetts Special Commission on Combatting Antisemitism hearing, which will focus on antisemitism and higher education. 🫶 Support our stellar panel in person or online. malegislature.gov/Events/Heari...

The Trump admin lawyer trying to protect Jews from antisemitism "enjoyed Hitler’s autobiography and political manifesto, “Mein Kampf,” more than any other book he’d read recently."

Is Massachusetts’ new “Antisemitism Commission” really protecting Jewish communities—or putting them at greater risk? Prof. Margaret Litvin (Boston University) breaks down how the commission’s rushed recommendations could undermine teachers, youtube.com/shorts/BmV-9...

i've raised concerns for a while that many high profile democrats and liberal institutions are enabling Trump. here's my latest, which raises a number of concerns about Massachusetts' Dem-led Special Commission on Combatting Antisemitism. www.masslive.com/opinion/2025...

"Don't Say Palestine" rules and anonymous snitch lines are not the way to keep Jews or anyone else safe, in Massachusetts or anywhere

“Massachusetts Democrats have a choice. They can resist Trump, or they can help the ADL. They cannot do both.” From this op-ed by our co-founder Jonathan Feingold. www.masslive.com/opinion/2025...

Jeremy Ben-Ami, president of the liberal Zionist group J Street, defends criticisms of Israel: "If we want Jews to be safe, and if we truly desire peace in Israel and Palestine, we must defend the distinction between political argument and racial hatred."

Letters from @inclusivemass.bsky.social on the K-12 antisemitism recommendations. "With DEI under attack, fight against bigotry should be all-encompassing," writes Nancy Murray. "It is now more important than ever to take a united approach in the fight against bigotry...and hate in schools."

Peter Beinart on a potential deal between Harvard and the Trump administration: "The harsh reality is that Harvard has already seriously infringed upon academic freedom... It’s just that it doesn’t get noticed so much because it has to do with the rights of Palestinian scholars and students."

CJFS member Zinaida Miller on the promise of Palestinian statehood: "Yet this recognition [of statehood] is far too little and much too late. It is also a radically inadequate response to starvation — let alone genocide."

If you want to know how many Massachusetts Jews really feel about these recommendations, read the thread below. And follow us, along with @concernedjfaculty.bsky.social & @inclusivemass.bsky.social, to hear about ways to join our fight for freedom and shared safety for all, here in the Commonwealth.

Brown professor and CJFS member Alex Gourevitch on Brown's deal with Trump: "[The University] seems to imagine that we can make it through the next couple years, weather the storm, and then return to the status quo. But do they really think a President Vance or Rubio or whoever won’t also do this?"

The headline is everything you need to know about philosemitism in Massachusetts. (I formally lodged my objections).