Re: Rochkind: Time to Include All Voices
This month, I attended my first Yom Kippur service as a part of the Dartmouth Jewish community, shortly after a swastika was found on campus. Yom Kippur is the holiest day of the Jewish calendar, a day meant for atonement. But, instead of discussing our flaws, the service devolved into fearmongering and kvetching about a “lack of support from [our] non-Jewish friends.”
This mindset of victimization is dangerous to a culture of free speech and a precariously situated Jewish community. Acts of antisemitism are despicable in all circumstances, and they must be combatted. However, decrying peers for not being constantly outspoken for the Jewish community is unproductive.
It’s reasonable to expect support from those around you, but it’s not students’ jobs to vocally condemn every act of hate. The assumption on campus is that these acts are unacceptable. Silence is not necessarily an attack on Jewish students.
Making everyone seem against us forms the basis of a “victim culture” that I feel is growing in the Jewish community. Jews have been historically persecuted, but it’s important to acknowledge that Dartmouth’s administration is generally favorable to Jewish individuals. It’s vital to avoid creating unnecessary fear.
In many pieces, I’ve heard the line, “Jewish students are afraid.” This is frequently true, but speaking for a group is risky. It makes Jews who are unafraid feel that they should be, creating a culture of division.
Leaving the synagogue on Yom Kippur, I wanted to discuss the service, but as I walked, I overheard disparaging remarks, and even accusations of antisemitism towards the recent opinion piece “Admin, Do Your Due Diligence.” This mindset that all other narratives constitute antisemitism undermines free speech.
To cultivate a Jewish community that fosters discourse, we must push forward without assuming that there’s a “target on [our] back[s].”
Letters to the Editor represent the views of their author(s), which are not necessarily those of The Dartmouth.
