(Source: MIRS.news, Published 04/23/2024) In response to reports coming out of the University of Michigan of protestors using terms like “intifada,” which refers to periods of violence against Jews, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer Tuesday said “hateful rhetoric” at “college campuses” is unacceptable.
The Michigan Daily, the U-M student newspaper, reported that a banner was raised on campus that read “intifada.”
The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) reported Tuesday that “intifada” refers to two periods of indiscriminate violence directed at Jews in Israel, which resulted in thousands of Palestinian and Israeli lives lost.
“Simply put, Intifada is a call for violence that only stokes fear, anger and division,” an ADL statement reads.
Senate Minority Leader Aric NESBITT (R-Lawton) took to Twitter to write “I strongly condemn hateful, threatening rhetoric coming out of protests at the University of Michigan. Jewish students fearing for their safety need to hear the same from their Governor. Silence is complicity.”
In response to a question from MIRS, Whitmer replied, “The hateful rhetoric we’ve seen on some college campuses across the country is unacceptable, especially when it becomes unsafe for students and faculty or targeted toward communities.
“This does not represent either the Jewish or Arab-American communities here in Michigan. In our state, we see the humanity in each other. This is a really difficult situation, and I know many in the Arab-American and Jewish communities in Michigan are experiencing an enormous amount of pain. That’s why we must work together and remain united toward peace.”
