Dear Friends, Family, and Community Members,

As many of you know, 11 members of the Muslim Student Union at UCI were arrested last month after attempting to shut down a speech by Israeli Ambassador Michael Oren. The disruptions were featured on over 200 media outlets and websites, including Jerusalem Post, Democracy Now, Huffington Post, and many more....

Last week, a member of both the Muslim Student Union and student government at UC Irvine, was successful in passing a student government legislation condoning the actions of the eleven students, and condemning UCI Administration for "excessive punishment" for arresting the students.

As Jewish students at UCI, we decided we would no longer sit silent in the face of the continued anti-Semitism perpetrated by the Muslim Student Union. We stood up, and spoke out at a student government meeting, demanding that our student government leaders join us in putting an end to hatred and anti-Semitism on campus. The student government appeared receptive to our message.

Please take a minute to watch and rate the video of us breaking the silence below:

Adobe Flash Player not installed or older than 9.0.115!

The media often issues reports on anti-Semitism at UCI. As a Jewish student leader, I want to ask that you put aside what you have heard in the media. We, the Jewish students, are not merely surviving on this campus; we are thriving. Despite a small but vocal minority of hateful students, our campus is, and has always been a safe place for Jewish students. We are strong, and our community is not afraid to take on the challenges that lay ahead of us.