| Dear Friends,
I write to you just days after the appearance of Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad at Columbia University to share my pride in the work of our student activists and professionals at Columbia/Barnard Hillel. With little time to prepare, Columbia/Barnard Hillel played a leading role in shaping events on campus. The result: - Columbia/Barnard Hillel helped form a campus-wide student coalition which coordinated the major rally at the heart of the campus. The rally was co-sponsored by a wide range of political, cultural and religious organizations. Thousands of students attended this rally featuring speakers from over 25 student organizations and including several keynote speeches from Hillel students. Hillel students were at the forefront of the protesting against Ahmadinejad throughout the day on Monday, ensuring that he did not have a free ride during his time on campus.
- On the Sunday before the speech – and the morning after Yom Kippur – Columbia/Barnard Hillel was a hive of activity, sponsoring a day of advocacy training and preparation for Ahmadinejad's arrival. Thanks to a partnership with the Israel on Campus Coalition, many major Israel advocacy organizations provided our students with the tools necessary to effectively voice their opposition to the Iranian President. Workshops such as "Up-to-the-Minute Analysis on Iran" to "Making Monday Matter – The Skill of Arguments and Counter-Arguments" empowered our students with the content and know-how to help them feel confident at the rally and in their opposition of Ahmadinejad.
- Hillel students worked around the clock designing and distributing materials to inform and mobilize the campus community in preparation for the student rally and protesting to take place during Ahmadinejad's speech. You may have seen Hillel-designed posters in news accounts, or their distinctive black t-shirts with the famous quote from Edmund Burke: "The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing."
- While non-Columbia students and personnel were prohibited from entering the campus on the day of the Iranian President's visit, Hillel students and professionals from across the New York region participated in a rally at the United Nations sponsored by the Ad Hoc Coalition for Justice. Josh Rosner, student president of Columbia/Barnard Hillel, addressed the rally along with Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni, members of Congress and other dignitaries. All of our students who spoke that day were articulate and impassioned and a credit to us all.
I encourage you to read some of the press following these activities on Hillel's Web site .
When the world's attention fell on Columbia University, our students and professionals rose to the challenge and helped to focus the debate on the Iranian president's despicable policies. Barnard/Columbia Hillel is a model for all of us in the Hillel movement. Please consider supporting Columbia/Barnard Hillels efforts to counter Ahmadinejad and his message of hate. In this way, we can all share in the success of this moment.
Best wishes for a joyous Sukkot and Simchat Torah and a happy, healthy new year.
Thank you again for your ongoing support.
Wayne Firestone
President
PS – If you have not yet signed Hillel's petition against the Iranian regime or shared it with your friends and family, please do so here . |
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