In response, Kovi Rose, a postgraduate student and grandchild of Holocaust survivors, stood to speak against the motion, only to be met with nearly 200 students standing and turning their backs on him.
“I pleaded with the room to vote based on well-reasoned and fact-based arguments,” Rose said. “But this prompted nearly the entire audience to stand up and turn their backs on me.
I’m devastated that values like minority protection apparently don’t apply to Jews or Israelis.”
Community Condemnation
The Australasian Union of Jewish Students (AUJS) described the meeting as “emotionally draining.” Dr. Dvir Abramovich.
Chair of the Anti-Defamation Commission, denounced the meeting as a “show trial” and a “purge.”
“They turned their backs not just on Jewish students, but on decency, democracy, and dignity,” Abramovich said. “The verdict was pre-written: Jewish students guilty of existing, guilty of speaking, guilty of refusing to renounce their identity.”
