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Nonprofit Looks to Fight
Antisemitism on Campus
JARRAD SAFFREN | STAFF WRITER
L izzy McNeill graduated from Temple
University in 2017 and, during her time
there, she felt “a lot of hostility toward Israel-
supporting students” from her peers, she said.

She sensed that she couldn’t use the word Zionist
or wear her Israel Defense Forces patch on her
backpack without hearing antisemitic comments.

Pro-Palestine activists would outright tell her that
she didn’t deserve an opinion due to her “white
privilege.” The experience motivated McNeill, whose mother
is Jewish, to make aliyah and join the IDF. After two
years of service, she’s back in the United States for at
least part of the year, and she’s trying to get her old
school to work with her on issues of antisemitism on
campus. McNeill is a project manager for the nonprofit
Zachor Legal Institute, a Delaware-based organi-
zation serving as a legal resource for Jewish stu-
dents dealing with such issues. The Temple alum
is attempting to develop relationships with Jewish
leaders and students on Temple’s campus and other
area campuses.

But so far, the attempt is just that. The institute
has worked with students at other schools, but not
yet in the Philadelphia region.

“We’re continuing to reach out to students,”
McNeill said. “We’re always a resource. We’re
always available.”
Campus antisemitism is a prominent issue. In
October, the Anti-Defamation League and Hillel
International released a report that said one in
three Jewish college students experienced antisem-
itism in the past year.

And in January, a story broke about a Temple
rower whose roommate allegedly sent her a screen-
shot of a Snapchat saying, “I hate Jews.” The stu-
dent, Sasha Westrick, transferred from Temple
after finding the university’s response, of changing
Lizzy McNeill on her graduation day from Temple
University in 2017
Courtesy of Lizzy McNeill
58 th Annual
Behind and Beyond the Ghetto Walls
April 24, 2022 from 1:30 p.m. to 2:15 p.m.

Join us to commemorate the six million
Jews who perished in the Holocaust and
to honor the Survivors in our communities.

Featuring candle lighting, music, readings and prayers
Horwitz-Wasserman Holocaust Memorial Plaza
and live streamed on Facebook
Association of Jewish
Holocaust Survivors
of Philadelphia
jewishphilly.org/yom-hashoah-2022 If weather does not permit an in-person outdoor ceremony,
the event will be streamed live on Facebook.

Visit jewishphilly.org/yom-hashoah-2022 for updates about event
logistics, and to express your interest in attending.

8 APRIL 14, 2022 | JEWISHEXPONENT.COM
For more information: 215.832.0536 or brazin@jewishphilly.org