May I report from the UK.

At the University of Manchester, a few weeks ago, there was a rowdy demonstration against the Deputy Israeli Ambassador, Mrs Lado-Fresher, who was due to speak to the Politics Society ( not even to a Jewish group), and the Embassy cancelled the talk to prevent violence. At the same time the Students Union was seriously considering banning Israeli speakers from campus.

But the University authorities have arranged for the talk to be rescheduled, and have told the Union the policy will not be tolerated (it is probably illegal, under UK anti-discrimination law). At the University of Leeds a pro-Palestinian group tried to disrupt a talk by banging on the door, etc.: the Students Union themselves have banned them from the Union (see the London Jewish Chronicle for March 12th).Maybe the tide is beginning to turn.

Certainly at Manchester the problem has not been prejudice on the part of the authorities, who have recently made a reciprocal visiting arrangement with the Hebrew University (students doing Hebrew at Manchester learn Ivrit and not simply the ancient language), confirmed a second appointment in Holocaust studies and fairly recently appointed in modern Israeli studies. The problem has been reluctance to confront extremist students, but this may be changing. There may well be a parallel at many other places.

Best wishes,

Harry Lesser
Department of Social Sciences
University of Manchester