The NJA notes that Rabbi Leah Jordan has been appointed to the role of “Progressive Student Chaplain” for the campus-oriented left-wing “Progressive Jewish Students” organisation.
The NJA stands firmly in support of Jewish students who face a hostile climate of antisemitism on campus. The proof of this is well-documented, including most recently in the published findings of an independent investigation led by Rebecca Tuck KC into allegations of antisemitism within the National Union of Students (NUS). The Community Security Trust also published a major report last week exposing multiple incidents of antisemitism across several campuses.
However, the NJA is cautious of appointments of political and controversial figures such as Rabbi Leah Jordan. In 2018, Rabbi Jordan held a “Kaddish for Gaza” prayer service on May 16, 2018, during the Gaza border protests. Rabbi Jordan intended to “mourn the deaths of the Palestinians killed by the Israeli army” – even though at the time of this event, 50 of the 60 killed were known to be Hamas operatives who had intended to infiltrate Jewish communities on the Gaza border in order to conduct terror. Since participating in the event, Rabbi Jordan doubled down in defending her actions in a Times of Israel blog post.
The NJA hopes that Jewish students will receive the support they need to push back against antisemitism – much of which is rooted in anti-Israel and anti-Zionist activism – and that Rabbi Jordan will not use her position to cudgel arguably anti-Israel politics on campus.