U. S. Senator Charles Schumer, yesterday, warned that the Boycott, Divest and Sanction (BDS) movement against Israel in American Colleges and Universities is having a chilling effect on Jewish-Americans students.
American-Jewish college students are being put in a situation where if they express their Jewishness or belief in Zionism and the existence of Israel on campus it can affect their standing in the college and can possibly put them in physical danger, Schumer told about 1,000 gatherers at the 93rd Annual Agudath Israel of America (AIA) Dinner in Manhattan.
Schumer was the keynote speaker at the event, replacing New Jersey Sen. Corey Booker, who had to cancel due to personal reasons. His comments, in part, was in a response to a recent New York Times story highlighting how the BDS movement and its debate about Israel is driving a wedge between Jews and minorities.
“What the BDS movement says is whatever everyone else can do, the Jews cannot do. That there shouldn’t be a state of Israel,” said Schumer. “The BDS double standard is the 21st Century version of anti-Semitism.”
Schumer noted that anti-Semitism is again rearing its collective head in Europe and it’s America’s role to take a much stronger stance against it.
“Remembers in the 20s and 30s nobody said anything or they said that it will go away and you see what happened,” said Schumer. “But anti-Semitism is in the bones of Europe. Sometimes it comes from the far left. Sometimes it comes from the far right or the general populace, but it’s always there.”
Schumer also explained with five reasons why he co-sponsored the Corker-Menendez oversight bill giving Congress the ability to review the Iran Nuclear agreement the White House is currently negotiating with Iran.
Among these reasons is an assurance that the U.S. and Western powers can inspect at any time any suspected sites in Iran of nuclear arms development, and a tighter ability to again impose international sanctions should Iran not comply with any deal. In particular, Schumer singled out Russia and China, who could veto any attempts to again impose sanctions.
“Not only do I not trust the Russians and the Chinese, but I don’t have much faith putting the future of the Jewish people in the hand of the Europeans,” said Schumer.
Agudath Israel Of America is a Ultra-orthodox Jewish national organization that adheres strictly to Torah laws with no deviation, and has a strong government relations and advocacy arm both in New York and across the country.
