The School of Religion will host webinars to discuss antisemitism this semester.
The 2021 Neustadt Lectures will feature Dr. Alvin H. Rosenfeld, who will discuss antisemitism in a series of webinars. Hosted by the Wimberly School of Religion, the event is set for Feb. 9-11.
The Neustadt Lectures are free, yearly spring events that aim to address a different topic or trend according to current culture. Walter and Dolores Neustadt began these to give people greater exposure to Judaic culture. Each year, the School of Religion invites scholars to come and share with our campus and local communities.
Guest speaker Dr. Rosenfeld is a professor of English and Jewish studies at Indiana University Bloomington and is also the author of Deciphering the New Antisemitism, among other works.
Elizabeth Horton-Ware, director of student religious life, said there are definite benefits to hosting the event virtually, one of the most important being better accessibility to those who may not otherwise have been able to attend.
“One of the strange advantages to being on Zoom is the fact doing this online also allows us to engage a larger community,” Horton-Ware said.
This year, the topic of the first webinar will be “Antisemitism in Today’s America” on Feb. 9, followed by “History of Antisemitism” on Feb. 10 and ending with “Connections Between Anti-Zionism and Antisemitism” on Feb. 11.
She said the major rise in antisemitic language and bias in recent years has made this year’s lecture topic especially relevant, as well as weighing on both the campus and local communities.
“There’s been vandalism, hateful language, murders. We even see it in things like the antisemitic rhetoric, clothing and symbolism that were standing right at the steps of our country’s capitol,” Horton-Ware said, “It’s had a more pronounced space lately, which is so disheartening.”
Despite the challenges, Horton-Ware said she is hopeful and especially eager to shine a light on the Jewish part of our campus community going forward. These webinars also give those attending the opportunity to learn more on this topic and dive deeper into its many nuances through a single forum, she said.
Penina Eisenberg, music theater/vocal performance sophomore and member of the Jewish Stars, said that as a Jewish woman and a curious student, she is especially looking forward to sitting in on Dr. Rosenfeld’s research and perspective in the series.
“I think that antisemitism is honestly one of those things that’s often overlooked,” Eisenberg said. “As a Jewish person that never lived within a Jewish community, I’ve mostly dealt with microaggressions. It’s the little comments that add up.”
Eisenberg said though many think of antisemitism as a thing of the past, last year, OCU’s own virtual graduation ceremony was hacked and raided with hate speech and symbols.
“Along with posting racial slurs, there were swastikas put up on the screen,” she said. “It was so horrifying to see something that could affect you so deeply when it was supposed to be a day to celebrate our students.”
Eisenberg said antisemitism isn’t even about religion, but rather a way of finding some reason to view another group as inferior for one arbitrary reason or another.
“Antisemitism is kind of its own animal: conspiracy theories, holocaust denial.” Eisenberg said. “Most of our holidays are based around prevailing a past of persecution or celebrating freedom. We need to make sure that as a people we show strength in that matter.”
Eisenberg said she wants to emphasize the importance of giving people that awareness, so communities understand not only the religion, but also the beautiful yet heavy culture tied to Judaism.
“The better we understand the history, the more we can begin to address what’s going on right now,” Eisenberg said.
To reserve a spot for the 2021 Neustadt lectures, RSVP by emailing RSVP@okcu.edu for additional information and a Zoom link confirmation.
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