Students sit on the steps of Wilson Library on the campus of University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, North Carolina, US, Sept. 20, 2018. Photo: REUTERS/Jonathan Drake

On Nov. 28, I attended the event “No Peace Without Justice: A Round-Table Talk about Social Justice in Palestine,” hosted by numerous departments at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC).

One of the speakers, Dr. Rania Masri, said: “Oct. 7 for many of us from the region was a beautiful day. It was the day in which we saw that, we saw our brothers, we saw our fathers, we saw men break out of a concentration camp.”

Then speaking with pride and admiration for Hamas and their paragliders, she continued: “So for many of us, the question is, how did they learn that? How did they develop those paratroopers? Where did they get those skills? How, how, after a hundred years of having a military boot on your neck, could you still develop the technique and the resilience to literally fly? That is what Oct. 7 means to many of us. And I just want to be very frank about it and not be in the least bit apologetic of the violence of the oppressed or the occupied.”

Panelist and UNC doctoral student Kylie Broderick was the only speaker who participated via Zoom. She was projected on a huge screen above the in-person panelists. While Masri spoke her hateful words, Broderick nodded along in approval. The Reverend Mark Davidson spoke about five minutes after Masri, pronouncing, “I agree with everything my colleagues have said.”

Masri went on to call Zionism a “cancer,” and President Biden a “racist Zionist.” Masri said: “Let us demand the eradication of Zionism. Let us have that be our goal.”

There were seven panelists, two moderators, and UNC professors present. No one appeared concerned by what Masri said, or challenged her. Further, the absence of a question and answer period meant that nothing could be challenged by audience members.

After introductions, the audience was shown a short film titled “Gaza Concentration Camp,” chosen by panelist Dr. Frances Hasso from Duke’s Department of Sociology. The film narrator stated that on Oct. 7, “Palestinians didn’t break through a border to enter Israel.” She added, “They destroyed a fence separating them from the homes they were forced out of.” The film portrayed Hamas’ massacre of Israelis as people simply going home. The film did not mention Hamas’ killing of 1,200 Israelis, taking more than 240 hostages, and raping and torturing many others.

UNC professor of Geography Sara Smith began the program by announcing “This should be Danielle Purifoy. I’m so sorry she couldn’t make it, but please know that she is the one who organized all of this and gets all the credit for this event.” In 2021, Smith and Purifoy both signed a public letter which stated, “As academics based in the United States, we acknowledge our complicity in Israel’s oppression of the Palestinians.” Also in 2021, Smith signed a letter affirming her commitment to promote the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) movement against Israel “in the classroom and on campus.”

A moderator explained that all the prepared questions for the panel were “written by Dr. Danielle Purifoy.” Questions included “How do we explain the US government response to Palestinian genocide?” and “How do we connect Palestine to other forms of colonial and imperial violence?” The starting point of these conversations was clearly the demonization of Israel.

The event was sponsored by the UNC Department of Geography and Environment, the UNC Center for Middle East & Islamic Studies, and UNC’s Student Life & Leadership.

Kylie Broderick taught UNC’s 2021 course on Israel and the Palestinians, even though she publicly promoted the view that Israel should not exist. On Oct. 15, 2023, Broderick tweeted “F—k Israel.” Her anti-Israel track record is beyond vile, and has been reported on extensively.

Not all in the audience were activists. I saw a number of students taking notes. It made me wonder: Are some students actually receiving credit for attending this antisemitic event?

The event reminded me of UNC’s 2019 Conflict Over Gaza conference — co-sponsored by the university’s Center for Middle East & Islamic Studies — which made international news for featuring an antisemitic rap performance. In response to an antisemitism complaint filed with the US Department of Education stemming from this conference, UNC entered into a Resolution Agreement with the department’s Office of Civil Rights, requiring UNC “to ensure that students enrolled in the university are not subjected to a hostile environment.”

As this column and my recent reporting suggests, UNC may be breaching its obligation to protect its Jewish students.

The painful question I can’t shake and that I keep asking myself is: why would any parent, especially those who are Jewish, ever wish to send their children to UNC?

Peter Reitzes writes about issues related to antisemitism and Israel.