I went to the University of Guelph. This is horrifying.
I loved it when I went there. Even with the rising antisemitism. This was long ago, and it was only the fringe anarchists who spent their time in clubs and magazines than the average student, who cared more for parties and grades and relationships, than obsessing over Israel.
I'm reading this a year later, and I don't know where your situation is at now, but I'd like to offer at least moral support. As someone who used to live and to study in Guelph.
And now I live in Jerusalem. When you visit, reach out - I'd love to offer you a cup of tea and show you around.
Thank so much for standing with us. I admire your courage when so many of my fellow Jews stand by shamelessly silent.
I am an ordinary, elderly, jewish, very proud Israeli who in her teens ( in the fiftees) lived in Montreal for several years. I loved and respected Canada but eventually chose Israel as my home as I understood that this is the only place on earth for the Jews.
My heart bleeds for Canada, home of the free.
Unfortunately I am afraid that the western world will wake up too late to see reality.
Again thank you from the bottom of my heart for your courage and strength.
I fear the situation is much the same at Australian universities. Will these institutions ever return to what they once were? Thank you for standing up to them. I hope I would be as brave if they came for me.
I hope you are suing the university, that particular vice-provost, and anyone in their HR department involved in this travesty. Hamas traces its lineage directly to the Nazis, this is not some calumny you invented. I am almost sorry that I am not an alumnus of that university, as I’d love to be able to tell them to go pound sand when they call looking for donations. Although I did tell the University of Toronto to do so this year, for similar reasons.
I am taking them to the Human Rights Tribunal, but that will take at least a year. I am not prepared to play an amateur lawyer, but I hope CIJA will help me; I can pay some, but I can’t go up against a multimillion-dollar state-funded institution. I’m not sure what my civil options are. I just added up how much they have spent attacking me, not including internal labour (just call that a sunk cost), but $300K for salary cover and legal (I bet my legal is too low). I am using every regulatory agency I can to investigate them, making FOI requests on all of them, and I am Chat GPT arguing with their lawyers and keeping everything. But the bigger thing than the suspension is the defamation and the slander; that’s where the PTSD came from; the dog barks and my whole body goes into combat mode. I will recover, but the insanity of this. I called Hamas Nazis, and I upset a radical antisemite whose entire social portfolio violates the speech code a hundred times over, and they let that go completely; they don’t care; I’m not sure if they hate Jews that much or if they are just afraid of losing their huge Muslim student base.
The infuriating thing is, Hamas ARE literally fucking Nazis. The HRT is pathetic. You need a pit bull of an employment lawyer and a go fund me to help pay the bills. This has got to be the best wrongful dismissal suit ever- lawyers should be calling you wanting the case.
Good grief, I am so sorry to read this. Such lunacy is unimaginable, and yet here we are in this morally inverted time where evil is supported and celebrated.
Like you, I am not Jewish. Like you I was profoundly moved by learning about the plight of European Jews during the Holocaust. Like you I am not silent on this matter. I will not be silent, ever.
I have expanded my learning of Jewish history since October 7th and have a clear understanding of the shape shifting nature of ‘the oldest hatred’. I will not be a part of it.
Unlike you, I have not lost my career. Although if I was working in a university in my hometown of Melbourne, Australia, suspect I’d be on notice. It is a cesspool of antisemitism here, like Canada and my place of birth and upbringing, the UK.
Go to Israel. I will be going this year to volunteer. I think it will be a balm for the soul.
I’ve been following your story. Even though it seems extreme, there are enough similar reports of antisemitism in academia that it is entirely believable. I did some Google searches and learned about your original post that… “Most reasonable people would probably consider the response to be slightly over-caffeinated but well within the bounds of fair comment.” So, thank you for your “fiery” defense of Israel, which you have understated in this post. As you probably know, we Jews are often shocked but never surprised when these sorts of things happen. So sorry it’s happening to you for merely defending us.
I'm not sure if anyone is still following my story. I am still suspended, but my "with pay" suspension is now without pay. I have learned many things in the last 13 months, and one is that these institutions that set their own rules have such an easy time breaking them; I have hundreds of examples. The final "report" on me, which is officially non-disciplinary but essentially political cover for management, comes out at the end of Jan. Prof Ramadan, who is the accuser, along with the VP Melanie Spence Ariemma, continues to post anti-semitic bile; he is thoroughly protected. I am ramping up and ensuring that the individuals involved in my suspension and persecution, not to mention defamation, are held to account, and multiple investigations are proceeding with the University of Guelph. The irony is that Ramadan, whose actions and posts have been dismissed and ignored, violates the free speech code with a rating of 9/10, according to an analysis of speech codes. I violated it at 1.5/10 (based on accusations without evidence). What is particularly disappointing is the lack of support at the university from Jewish professors, students and staff; some say they are scared, but mostly they are cowards, and you have one Jewish professor who just quit but refuses still to get involved, and one who though 70 years old seems still afraid, and told me to "just keep quiet and listen to the union." The union that represents me is being sued for anti-Semitism and has refused to meet me once or file a grievance, nothing in 13 months. Sorry, I'm not a Jew, but the be meek and maybe they will be nice to us tactic doesn't work. Weakness is like blood to these savages, which only puts them in a frenzy. The University of Guelph and Humber College are in for a hell of a fight; they have no idea. I don't care about money; I lost my dad recently, and on his grave, I will not be silenced, and I will fight these bastards. To fire a professor who said, "I stand with Israel," based on the complaint of a professor (who has faced no sanction) who said, "Hamas are noble warriors", is a red line that, when they cross, needs to be met with extreme resistance.
Thank you so much for standing with us. I admire your courage when so many of my fellow Jews stand by shamelessly silent.
I am an ordinary, elderly, jewish, very proud Israeli who in her teens ( in the fiftees) lived in Montreal for several years. I loved and respected Canada but eventually chose Israel as my home as I understood that this is the only place on earth for the Jews.
My heart bleeds for Canada, home of the free.
Unfortunately I am afraid that the western world will wake up too late to see reality.
Again thank you from the bottom of my heart for your courage and strength.
Thank you. I didn’t do much, I thought I was normal. But while with their lawyers and their public safety officers and threats they are doubling down and trying to break me I am more resolved. My tribe is the Jews though I am not a Jew and I won’t be budged. Please say a prayer for me, sometimes it is overwhelming, new threats all the time. A girl threatened to make false sexual allegations if I didn’t bank off. I ignored her so she did. They are so dirty.
I am teary-eyed reading this 06:00am in the morning in the UK. How can one actually help from afar now except for spreading the word? Canada is a lost cause it seems. Deplorable.
Your story is incredible. You should fight back. Don't give up, these Jew haters will win if you surrender. And continue to train hard, be 24x7 ready to use your new skills, because if you win they will come for you. Someday when this is over someone will write an article about it. You'll be a hero. The wheel turns slowly but justice will prevail. Be a warrior, keep fighting, you'll be proud one day when all of this is over. Never again. I stand with you.
I’m fighting back but the issue is only Jewish strangers with good hearts will help. CUPE and OPSEU have been awol since day one - I know their leaders are anti semitic but I think the local does not understand a Hunan rights case, they are extremely lazy and it’s not the sharpest knives in the drawer. It attracts staff and faculty that are weak in their jobs. They are my only legal reps. I’m waiting for an external investigator report and then the Claimant against me - Melanie Spence - gets to determine any disciplinary action. Huge conflict of interest. She has already said - a year ago - that she would fire me but they are shitting their pants because they are afraid of a public outcry from the Jewish community. I think they will fire me in a month, no idea but that is what they said and I will lead a PR charge that exposes them. Hopefully the big Jewish organizations give support. Nothing from them yet.
Bless you and your sensitive, brave, and strong soul. What you are going through is the stuff of nightmares, and yet you are not backing down. If the majority, Jewish and non-Jewish, the decent, life loving, intelligent people had even a fraction of your courage, we might be able to stop this madness.
I went to the University of Guelph. This is horrifying.
I loved it when I went there. Even with the rising antisemitism. This was long ago, and it was only the fringe anarchists who spent their time in clubs and magazines than the average student, who cared more for parties and grades and relationships, than obsessing over Israel.
I'm reading this a year later, and I don't know where your situation is at now, but I'd like to offer at least moral support. As someone who used to live and to study in Guelph.
And now I live in Jerusalem. When you visit, reach out - I'd love to offer you a cup of tea and show you around.
Thank so much for standing with us. I admire your courage when so many of my fellow Jews stand by shamelessly silent.
I am an ordinary, elderly, jewish, very proud Israeli who in her teens ( in the fiftees) lived in Montreal for several years. I loved and respected Canada but eventually chose Israel as my home as I understood that this is the only place on earth for the Jews.
My heart bleeds for Canada, home of the free.
Unfortunately I am afraid that the western world will wake up too late to see reality.
Again thank you from the bottom of my heart for your courage and strength.
I fear the situation is much the same at Australian universities. Will these institutions ever return to what they once were? Thank you for standing up to them. I hope I would be as brave if they came for me.
I’m so sorry for what’s happening to you. Please continue to write the next chapters. I knew Israel was in this conclusion. Mazel Tov!
I hope you are suing the university, that particular vice-provost, and anyone in their HR department involved in this travesty. Hamas traces its lineage directly to the Nazis, this is not some calumny you invented. I am almost sorry that I am not an alumnus of that university, as I’d love to be able to tell them to go pound sand when they call looking for donations. Although I did tell the University of Toronto to do so this year, for similar reasons.
I am taking them to the Human Rights Tribunal, but that will take at least a year. I am not prepared to play an amateur lawyer, but I hope CIJA will help me; I can pay some, but I can’t go up against a multimillion-dollar state-funded institution. I’m not sure what my civil options are. I just added up how much they have spent attacking me, not including internal labour (just call that a sunk cost), but $300K for salary cover and legal (I bet my legal is too low). I am using every regulatory agency I can to investigate them, making FOI requests on all of them, and I am Chat GPT arguing with their lawyers and keeping everything. But the bigger thing than the suspension is the defamation and the slander; that’s where the PTSD came from; the dog barks and my whole body goes into combat mode. I will recover, but the insanity of this. I called Hamas Nazis, and I upset a radical antisemite whose entire social portfolio violates the speech code a hundred times over, and they let that go completely; they don’t care; I’m not sure if they hate Jews that much or if they are just afraid of losing their huge Muslim student base.
The infuriating thing is, Hamas ARE literally fucking Nazis. The HRT is pathetic. You need a pit bull of an employment lawyer and a go fund me to help pay the bills. This has got to be the best wrongful dismissal suit ever- lawyers should be calling you wanting the case.
Good grief, I am so sorry to read this. Such lunacy is unimaginable, and yet here we are in this morally inverted time where evil is supported and celebrated.
Like you, I am not Jewish. Like you I was profoundly moved by learning about the plight of European Jews during the Holocaust. Like you I am not silent on this matter. I will not be silent, ever.
I have expanded my learning of Jewish history since October 7th and have a clear understanding of the shape shifting nature of ‘the oldest hatred’. I will not be a part of it.
Unlike you, I have not lost my career. Although if I was working in a university in my hometown of Melbourne, Australia, suspect I’d be on notice. It is a cesspool of antisemitism here, like Canada and my place of birth and upbringing, the UK.
Go to Israel. I will be going this year to volunteer. I think it will be a balm for the soul.
I’ve been following your story. Even though it seems extreme, there are enough similar reports of antisemitism in academia that it is entirely believable. I did some Google searches and learned about your original post that… “Most reasonable people would probably consider the response to be slightly over-caffeinated but well within the bounds of fair comment.” So, thank you for your “fiery” defense of Israel, which you have understated in this post. As you probably know, we Jews are often shocked but never surprised when these sorts of things happen. So sorry it’s happening to you for merely defending us.
I'm not sure if anyone is still following my story. I am still suspended, but my "with pay" suspension is now without pay. I have learned many things in the last 13 months, and one is that these institutions that set their own rules have such an easy time breaking them; I have hundreds of examples. The final "report" on me, which is officially non-disciplinary but essentially political cover for management, comes out at the end of Jan. Prof Ramadan, who is the accuser, along with the VP Melanie Spence Ariemma, continues to post anti-semitic bile; he is thoroughly protected. I am ramping up and ensuring that the individuals involved in my suspension and persecution, not to mention defamation, are held to account, and multiple investigations are proceeding with the University of Guelph. The irony is that Ramadan, whose actions and posts have been dismissed and ignored, violates the free speech code with a rating of 9/10, according to an analysis of speech codes. I violated it at 1.5/10 (based on accusations without evidence). What is particularly disappointing is the lack of support at the university from Jewish professors, students and staff; some say they are scared, but mostly they are cowards, and you have one Jewish professor who just quit but refuses still to get involved, and one who though 70 years old seems still afraid, and told me to "just keep quiet and listen to the union." The union that represents me is being sued for anti-Semitism and has refused to meet me once or file a grievance, nothing in 13 months. Sorry, I'm not a Jew, but the be meek and maybe they will be nice to us tactic doesn't work. Weakness is like blood to these savages, which only puts them in a frenzy. The University of Guelph and Humber College are in for a hell of a fight; they have no idea. I don't care about money; I lost my dad recently, and on his grave, I will not be silenced, and I will fight these bastards. To fire a professor who said, "I stand with Israel," based on the complaint of a professor (who has faced no sanction) who said, "Hamas are noble warriors", is a red line that, when they cross, needs to be met with extreme resistance.
https://www.freedomtoffend.com/p/is-the-university-of-guelph-the-modern?r=iy2ds
rita bachar
Thank you so much for standing with us. I admire your courage when so many of my fellow Jews stand by shamelessly silent.
I am an ordinary, elderly, jewish, very proud Israeli who in her teens ( in the fiftees) lived in Montreal for several years. I loved and respected Canada but eventually chose Israel as my home as I understood that this is the only place on earth for the Jews.
My heart bleeds for Canada, home of the free.
Unfortunately I am afraid that the western world will wake up too late to see reality.
Again thank you from the bottom of my heart for your courage and strength.
Thank you. I didn’t do much, I thought I was normal. But while with their lawyers and their public safety officers and threats they are doubling down and trying to break me I am more resolved. My tribe is the Jews though I am not a Jew and I won’t be budged. Please say a prayer for me, sometimes it is overwhelming, new threats all the time. A girl threatened to make false sexual allegations if I didn’t bank off. I ignored her so she did. They are so dirty.
I need to go.
Up is down; down is up
Light is darkness; Darkness is light
White is Black; Black is right
Right is left; left is right
Mighty is weakness; the weak are might.
Good is evil; Evil is good.
Upside down is right side up.
That’s where the world is right now.
Just one constant. Everyone hates the Jews. And, those who stand with the Jews.
Hang in there.
Go to Israel. You will love TA.
Come to the states; some Christian uni’s would be thrilled to have you on staff.
I am teary-eyed reading this 06:00am in the morning in the UK. How can one actually help from afar now except for spreading the word? Canada is a lost cause it seems. Deplorable.
Your story is incredible. You should fight back. Don't give up, these Jew haters will win if you surrender. And continue to train hard, be 24x7 ready to use your new skills, because if you win they will come for you. Someday when this is over someone will write an article about it. You'll be a hero. The wheel turns slowly but justice will prevail. Be a warrior, keep fighting, you'll be proud one day when all of this is over. Never again. I stand with you.
I’m fighting back but the issue is only Jewish strangers with good hearts will help. CUPE and OPSEU have been awol since day one - I know their leaders are anti semitic but I think the local does not understand a Hunan rights case, they are extremely lazy and it’s not the sharpest knives in the drawer. It attracts staff and faculty that are weak in their jobs. They are my only legal reps. I’m waiting for an external investigator report and then the Claimant against me - Melanie Spence - gets to determine any disciplinary action. Huge conflict of interest. She has already said - a year ago - that she would fire me but they are shitting their pants because they are afraid of a public outcry from the Jewish community. I think they will fire me in a month, no idea but that is what they said and I will lead a PR charge that exposes them. Hopefully the big Jewish organizations give support. Nothing from them yet.
Godwin’s Law strikes again.
This is so unjust!! Know that I will be praying for you. Hang in there!
Horrible, and I think it's coming to towns near all of us. One question re Canadian PM's aborted meeting: with the *Italian* prime minister?
Bless you and your sensitive, brave, and strong soul. What you are going through is the stuff of nightmares, and yet you are not backing down. If the majority, Jewish and non-Jewish, the decent, life loving, intelligent people had even a fraction of your courage, we might be able to stop this madness.