J Street: ADL ‘report card’ on campus antisemitism ‘deeply unproductive’

A prominent liberal Zionist group in the US has raised “serious concerns” about an ADL report on antisemitism on American university campus released yesterday.

In a statement, J Street says that affiliated students attending universities that received F or D ratings described the report card as “absurd,” “exaggerated” and “unhelpful.”

The ADL report said that many leading higher learning institutions in the US are failing to combat antisemitism.

“We’ve been fielding frustrated responses across the country from Jewish students who find this deeply unproductive and bristle at the lack of consultation. We’ve heard from students at universities which have received F or D grades that they find the rankings detached from reality. Many Jewish students who engage in human rights advocacy and protests against the Israeli government are also deeply concerned by definitions which appear to designate pro-Palestinian activities as inherently antisemitic,” J Street U Director Erin Beiner says in the statement.

The statement adds that the ADL report “lacks nuance” and has an “over-emphasis on Israel-related activity.”

“The report is already being weaponized by right-wing groups seeking to delegitimize higher education institutions focused on DEI initiatives, which many Jewish students believe are fundamental to supporting their own communities and other minorities,” J Street says.

J Street, a liberal Israel lobby with a budget in the millions of dollars, serves as the flagship of the liberal Zionist movement in the United States.