How lecturers became activists, and how courses turned into political workshops disguised as “research methods.”

If there’s one institution that used to be a lighthouse of knowledge, and now looks more like a flickering streetlamp in a sketchy park in south Tel Aviv-it’s academia.
Once it was a place where people searched for truth; today it’s a place where they search for your identity-just to determine whether you’re even allowed to speak.

So what exactly are they selling us?

“Academic freedom.”
“Critical discourse.”
“Paradigm-breaking analysis.”
“The inclusion of diverse narratives.”

But in practice?

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Say the word “Zionism”-and you’ll get looks like you’ve walked into the faculty lounge sporting a Hitler-mustache.
Say “Am Yisrael Chai”-and suddenly you’re summoned to a disciplinary meeting about “creating an unsafe space.”

So what is allowed?

That Israel is an apartheid state.
That Palestine stretches from the river to the students’ union.
That the Nakba was an existential trauma.
That the IDF is a suppression machine with tanks.

What isn’t?

Mentioning life is actually good here.
Suggesting the enemy might actually… be the enemy.
Pointing out Jews are dying at a rate that’s a little too high for comfort.
Or worse-bringing an Israeli flag to a conference.

Sample Courses, Semester A:

• Introduction to Post-Colonial Deconstruction of White Jewish Existence
• Gender Discourse as a Subversive Lens on the Holocaust
• The Separation Barrier Through Queer-Feminist Optics
• ADHD as an Act of Resistance Against Zionist Social Norms
• Bonus workshop: Hands-On Anti-Zionist Graffiti, taught by a professor from the Political Philosophy Department.

The Lecturer No Longer Teaches-They Emotionally Orchestrate

They don’t teach-they educate.
They don’t ask questions-they position you politically.
They don’t listen-they “process the trauma of the occupation,” ideally through doodles of crossed-out Stars of David in the margins of student papers.

And what happens to the student who doesn’t buy the whole performance?

Failed assignments (“insufficient intercultural sensitivity”).
Banned from seminars (“your presence disrupts safe learning environments”).
Reported to the Office for Inclusive Dialogue (“the student expressed Zionist viewpoints that could be harmful”).
And most importantly-he learns to shut up.

So what are they selling us?

They’re selling openness-as long as your mind is closed in the correct direction.
They’re selling “the pursuit of truth”-just not your truth.
They’re selling “critique of the state”-as long as it’s not Iran, Russia, China, or Gaza.

No, the critique is reserved for one address only: Israel, Main Building.

So what do we do?

We talk-even when they prefer we stay silent.
We don’t buy the act of “academic enlightenment.”
We remember academia is not a democracy-and nobody voted for it.
We keep in mind that anyone preaching “pluralism” but fainting at a Naomi Shemer song is not looking for diversity-they’re looking for intellectual surrender.

And finally-the golden rule:

If you have to hide who you are in order to earn a degree-
maybe you shouldn’t be the one getting graded.
Maybe the lecturer should.

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