The Time for Action is Now
The Faculty Against Antisemitism Movement (FAAM) is a network of academics who stand against antisemitism on campus — and demand that university leaders join them.
Open hate directed toward Jewish people on campus, inflamed by the Israel-Hamas war, has become permissible and even expected. Students should never be attacked for their Jewish or Zionist identities.
We are here to say: Antisemitism under the guise of activism is still antisemitism. Failure to condemn antisemitism condones antisemitism. Jewish students and faculty deserve to learn and teach without fear of harassment, discrimination, ostracism, or violence.
Our Core Principles
Antisemitism should have no place on campus. Antisemitism is contrary
to the academy’s principles of inclusion, belonging, diversity, and community.
Jewish people are entitled to be full members of the campus community and
should not face any pressure to refute or disavow the Zionist component of
their identity in order to be accepted.
All members of the campus community have a right to feel safe on campus
and to be treated with respect and dignity. While debate and dissent are
fundamental to learning and the advancement of knowledge, antisemitic
harassment and discrimination cannot be tolerated.
Open inquiry and free discussion and debate regarding Israel, the Israeli-
Palestinian conflict, and the Middle East is crucial and should be encouraged.
Divergent points of view should not be censored. Members of the campus
community, including university leaders, can criticize, condemn, and actively
challenge hateful and divisive speech that is antithetical to the values of civility
and respect. Such criticism should not be misconstrued or misrepresented as
silencing speech.
Academic boycotts are antithetical to a university's mission to produce, advance,
and transmit knowledge. Efforts to boycott Israeli academic institutions or individual
academics should be rejected, and no faculty member or student should be punished
for engaging with Israeli academic institutions or Israeli academics.
Academic departments should not adopt a pedagogical mission or political stance
that marginalizes and alienates any campus community. Academic units, and
especially degree-granting departments, should refrain from imposing ideological
orthodoxies about Israel, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and the Middle East.
Harm to Jewish people on campus must be taken as seriously as harm to any
other protected class.
#KeepTheLightOn
in Your Office
Faculty across the nation have been calling attention to campus antisemitism and urging university leaders to address it — forcefully and unequivocally.
Now, to unify our efforts, we are calling on faculty across the United States to #KeepTheLightOn in solidarity with Jewish students and to send an urgent message to university and college administrators.
Meet Our Steering Committee