Pro-Palestinian protesters at the University of Michigan. Photo: Screenshot
The University of Michigan announced on Thursday that it halted a campus-wide vote on an anti-Israel resolution accusing the Jewish state of “genocide” and “apartheid.”
In a note to the campus community, the university said the decision followed an unauthorized communication sent to the entire undergraduate student body at the request of a graduate student in what the school described as an “inappropriate use” of the university’s email system.
Another resolution, which condemned Hamas as well as bigotry targeting both Jews and Muslims, was also canceled. The student body on Wednesday was considering and began voting on both resolutions when the email was sent. The message, which the university described as a “significant violation” of its rules, called on students to support the anti-Israel resolution and to vote against the other measure.
“That communication irreparably tainted the voting process on the two resolutions,” university vice president and general counsel Timothy G. Lynch wrote in a statement obtained by The Algemeiner. “We do not know, and never will know, the voting results on these two resolutions. But, under the circumstances, the university has been left with no alternative but to cancel the portion of the election process for these two resolutions.”
Lynch noted that the Central Student Government (CSG), which was overseeing the voting, “declined to address this threat to the integrity of the election results” when the university immediately brought it to the attention of the body.
“We take this action with deep reluctance,” he added. “But the extraordinary, unprecedented interference with the CSG ballot process requires the significant action we take today.”
In addition to accusing Israel of genocide and apartheid, one of the resolutions — titled Assembly Resolution 13-025: University Accountability in the Face of Genocide — demanded that the university establish a committee for investigating its “investments in any apartheid regime in the world.” It also said that the university failed to acknowledge the deaths of Palestinians in a statement addressing Hamas’ massacre across southern Israel on Oct. 7.
The other resolution — titled Assembly Resolution 13-026: CSG Response to Atrocities in the Middle East — aimed at addressing “opportunities to bridge students together in this time of increased division and tension.”
The false claims of Israeli genocide and apartheid are typical of the disinformation that has been spread by anti-Israel voices about the ongoing war between the Jewish state and the Hamas terror group, according to Jacob Baime, CEO of the Israel on Campus Coalition.
“While criticism of Israeli policies can be valid, the claims that Israel is committing genocide or apartheid are patently false. Reasonable people can disagree on complex geopolitical issues, but we must reject efforts that single out or delegitimize one side,” Baime told The Algemeiner. “The campus climate at Michigan and on campuses nationwide continues to be deeply concerning. However, the university’s stand against this inflammatory referendum is a step in the right direction. I hope it marks the start of a return to nuance and fact-based discussion regarding the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.”
Jonathan Greenblatt, CEO of the Anti-Defamation League (ADL), commended the University of Michigan’s decision.
The school “made the right decision to cancel the student vote today,” he wrote on X/Twitter. “Students violated University of Michigan policies, and the university must conduct a thorough investigation. From the beginning, this effort pitted students against one another and intensified hate at a time when Jewish students on campus were already vulnerable. The University of Michigan must now focus on bringing the community together.”
The University of Michigan has long been a hub of anti-Israel activity. In January, anti-Israel student protesters there chanted, “Kamala, Kamala, you can’t hide, you’re committing genocide,” during Vice President Kamala Harris’ visit to campus, where she was scheduled to discuss climate change. They also chanted, “There is only one solution: Intifada revolution” while waving Palestinian flags. A student who appeared to be leading the demonstration condemned the Biden administration for approving aid to Israel, which she referred to as “the Zionist entity.”
Follow Dion J. Pierre @DionJPierre.
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