As part of the Preston Lecture speaker series, Dr. Rachel Fish, co-founder of the non-profit Boundless Israel and Israeli studies professor, visited the school to talk about historical transformations of antisemitism on Tuesday, October 2.

At her alma mater, Brandeis University, she is a Special Advisor for the President’s Initiative on Antisemitism and an associate research professor.

In her talk, Dr. Fish emphasized that Jewish people encounter antisemitism in everyday life. She encouraged students to be aware of how even seemingly innocuous jokes or comments normalize and spread harmful anti-Semitic narratives.

Dr. Fish highlighted how these, and other forms of antisemitism, can be recognized using the “three D’s” formulated by Israeli politician Natan Sharansky: demonization, or disproportionate criticism of Israel or Jews; double standards, which place stricter moral standards on Israel than on other nations; and delegitimization, the denial of Jews’ right to self-determination.

As an example of delegitimization, Dr. Fish cited a critique of the creation or existence of the state of Israel. She stated that as a traditional Jewish ancestral home, rejection of Israel’s right to exist as a country is antisemitism.

The idea of delegitimization, in particular, roused discussion among students during general Q&A and later in the Faculty Room. Students inquired about when criticism of the Israel’s actions crosses over into invalidation of the Israeli state, and therefore, by Dr. Fish’s definition, antisemitism. She clarified that criticizing the specific policies and political choices made by Israel is not an act of antisemitism, but rather fosters healthy and open discussion around the country.

Following the lecture and surrounding conversations, HPU partnered with No Place for Hate to host an open discussion of Dr. Fish’s lecture on November 5.