211: Shai Davidai: I saw "vast and scary" antisemitism at Columbia University and had to act

Since October 7, 2023, antisemitism has erupted across some of America’s most prestigious university campuses. But why have the institutions supposedly dedicated to intellectual freedom and critical thinking struggled to confront it?

My guest is Professor Shai Davidai, the Israeli social psychologist who became one of the most prominent voices challenging the explosion of antisemitism at Columbia University.

In his book, American Intellectual Antisemitism, Shai argues that anti-Jewish prejudice has acquired a new intellectual respectability, wrapped in the language of social justice, anti-colonialism and academic scholarship. He challenges university leaders over their response to hostility towards Jewish students, the treatment of Israel and the ideological conformity that, he believes, has displaced open inquiry.

We discuss what happened on American campuses after October 7, the difference between legitimate criticism of Israel and antisemitism, the failure of university leadership, and the personal cost of speaking out when silence is the easier option.

Who is holding our universities accountable? Where should free speech end and intimidation begin? And can institutions that have failed so many Jewish students recover their moral authority?

A compelling conversation about antisemitism, academic freedom, moral courage and the battle for truth.

Listen now to the latest episode of Jonny Gould’s Jewish State, proudly supported by Dangoor Education and UK Toremet. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices