On Feb. 9, Rabbi Seth Winberg, the Executive Director of Brandeis Hillel, sent an email to the Hillel mailing list titled “Addressing Misinformation about Hillel at Brandeis,” in which he referenced “false rumors that Hillel at Brandeis is supporting or assisting a group of students identifying as the ‘Jewish Bund.’” He clarified that Hillel does not recognize or support the Jewish Bund, a Jewish anti-Zionist socialist group on campus that was inspired by the Bundist movement. The Bund has recently released a list of demands on their Instagram page. Winberg claimed that the group has “conducted activities in the library that many students have found disruptive,” “misrepresented Hillel and [their] professional staff” and “tried to misuse Hillel’s space reservations for their activities.” He asserted that Hillel will be taking steps in response through established Brandeis channels and that this response is not about any particular group but rather a “matter of principle.” The vague description of how the Jewish Bund misrepresented Hillel and misused their spaces demanded further elaboration; however, the Jewish Bund has yet to release a statement on their Instagram page. I have reached out to both Hillel and the Jewish Bund for statements in hopes of clearing up the details of this issue, specifically asking about the “misuse of Hillel’s space reservation and misrepresentation of Hillel and the professional staff,” in order to provide both sides of the story. 

Winberg responded on behalf of Hillel at Brandeis and reasserted that “Hillel at Brandeis is a welcoming community where students of all backgrounds can come together to celebrate and participate in Jewish life. We welcome all students — regardless of their Jewish practice, prior knowledge, political beliefs, financial means or any other aspect of their individual identity — to participate in our community. To foster this welcoming environment, all students are expected to uphold the standards of conduct set by both Hillel and the University.” 

Winberg did not elaborate further on the issue; however, the point of “upholding the standards of conduct set by both Hillel and the University” has been an ongoing debate among Brandeis students and administration, especially as it pertains to the issue of free speech on campus. Actions have been taken in order to properly define and redefine Brandeis’ standards of conduct, such as the establishment of a Presidential Task Force on Free Expression on March 28, 2024, and issuing a message regarding “Social Justice and Free Expression” from Vice President of Student Affairs, Andrea Dine, and Vice President for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, LeManuel Bitsóí, on Nov. 8, 2024. While I was unable to locate any explicit standard of conduct from Hillel on either their website or in their emails, one can assume they adopt the same standards as the University. The constant evolution of what sort of free speech is allowed on campus makes it difficult for any sort of political organizing, something that is especially pertinent in today’s political climate. 

The Jewish Bund was also asked about “misuse of Hillel’s space reservation and misrepresentation of Hillel and the professional staff,” and they outlined the issue in direct response to Winberg’s initial email. The full statement is included at the bottom of the publication. They assert that “Hillel does not assist the Bund in any organizational capacity. Moreover, the Bund has never tried to claim that it has Hillel’s backing,” supporting Hillel’s claim. The Bund provided their version of the full timeline of events that led to the accusations of misuse of Hillel space reservations for Bund activities.

“In reality, the Bund had received prior verbal authorization from an employee at Hillel to use their [Multi-Purpose Room] reservation in advance of the event. However, this authorization should not have been given, as was made clear two hours and 45 minutes before the event started when Rabbi Winberg emailed an organizer reversing the previous decision to allow the Bund to use the space. This [change] went unnoticed until organizers arrived at the MPR, at which point [Shapiro Campus Center] staff informed us that we had to vacate. We complied, and held Shabbat in a public area in cooperation with staff. To be clear, we did not use the MPR once the event had started, and vacated once we were informed by SCC staff. No Bund organizer spread any ‘rumors’ claiming that Hillel was facilitating our Shabbat (or any other events) beyond relaying the narrative above. In the end, that Shabbat dinner ended up being one of our most successful events so far, with great food, and uplifting singing and speeches!”

The Bund attained authorization from a Hillel employee, which was later rescinded. Upon being made aware of the change, they complied with the SCC staff, left the reserved space and held the Shabbat dinner in a public area.

In response to Hillel’s claim that the Jewish Bund “conducted activities in the library that many students have found disruptive, hindering its function as a space for focused study and scholarship,” the Bund stated: “While we respect that this claim comes from the desire to protect students from harassment, this statement is categorically false, and may embolden students to actually carry out said harassment.” They clarified that “All events held in the library have been done in coordination with library staff. The only students under threat of discrimination are those participating in the study-ins, or engaging in the productive discourse that they foster.” 

Regarding the claim of the study-in being disruptive to study and scholarship, a police officer “directly asked uninvolved students if the event was disruptive. The answer was unsurprisingly, ‘no,’ and, quoting The Justice, the police ‘determined no wrongdoing.’” The Jewish Bund asserts that “far-right Zionist students consistently attempt to dox and harass organizers and participants … These incidents (including doxxing attempts and illicit photographing) have been compiled and we are in contact with the university regarding next steps. Rabbi Winberg concludes the statement by implicitly encouraging students to report event organizers.” The Jewish students of the Bund have been the ones to bear the most harassment and antisemitism, with many anonymous users on the Brandeis Sidechat accusing them of being “self-hating Jews.”

Winberg’s email concluded with the statement: “We also envision a campus where free expression is upheld while all students — including Jewish students — are protected from harassment. I strongly encourage students with concerns about community standards, harassment, or discrimination to report them to the University.” This could easily be read as if the Jewish students involved in the Bund are seeing their free expression threatened by the risk of harassment from Zionist students that may be encouraged by Hillel to report the Bund. The Bund’s events have not raised any concerns about community standards or involved any sort of harassment or discrimination of other students. Additionally, The Justice reported that the study-in was “deemed peaceful and non-antisemitic” by the officer on the scene. The inclusion of this strong encouragement to close off the statement can be read as indirectly targeting the Bund and accusing them of harassment and discrimination against Jewish students — despite them being a Jewish organization and, as the Bund claims, “despite the fact that no university rules were violated on either occasion.”

Both statements have the aim of dispelling misinformation with the Bund stating “We understand that it is natural that rumors, especially when spread by the same students harassing others at events, have the capacity to do serious harm and generate confusion among Hillel and University staff and other students. As a result, we are not accusing anyone involved in creating the Hillel statement of deliberately misinforming,” claiming they gave their statement “feel[ing] it pertinent to give our perspective.” They conclude by asserting that “This will not deter us from organizing this semester. We understand our rights and responsibilities as a non-chartered student group at Brandeis, and will continue to work with staff in the public locations where we organize. We look forward to more successful events, including holding a Bund Shabbat again in the future!”

Bund statement in full:

Addressing Misinformation about the Jewish Bund at Brandeis

In response to a statement by Rabbi Seth Winberg of Hillel regarding our Shabbat held on 1/31

On February 9th, it came to our attention that Rabbi Seth Winberg of Hillel published a statement regarding our most recent Shabbat dinner and university ‘study-ins’ which mischaracterized some of our activities. Before covering these mischaracterizations, it is important to acknowledge that, as Rabbi Winberg wrote, Hillel does not assist the Bund in any organizational capacity. Moreover, the Bund has never tried to claim that it has Hillel’s backing. The remainder of this address will be dedicated to clearing up inaccuracies present in Hillel’s email, the first of which being the claim that the Bund “tried to misuse Hillel’s space reservations for their activities.”

In reality, the Bund had received prior verbal authorization from an employee at Hillel to use their MPR reservation in advance of the event. This authorization should not have been given, as was made clear 2 hours and 45 minutes before the event started when Rabbi Winberg emailed an organizer reversing the previous decision to allow the Bund to use the space. This went unnoticed until organizers arrived at the MPR, at which point SCC staff informed us that we had to vacate. We complied, and held Shabbat in a public area in cooperation with staff. To be clear, we did not use the MPR once the event had started, and vacated once we were informed by SCC staff. No Bund organizer spread any ‘rumors’ claiming that Hillel was facilitating our Shabbat (or any other events) beyond relaying the narrative above. In the end, that Shabbat dinner ended up being one of our most successful events so far, with great food, and uplifting singing and speeches!

Regarding our study-ins, Rabbi Winberg referred to these events as “activities in the library that many students have found disruptive, hindering its function as a space for focused study and scholarship.”

While we respect that this claim comes from the desire to protect students from harassment, this statement is categorically false, and may embolden students to actually carry out said harassment. All events held in the library have been done in coordination with library staff. The only students under threat of discrimination are those participating in the study-ins, or engaging in the productive discourse that they foster. As was reported in the Justice, far-right Zionist students consistently attempt to dox and harass organizers and participants. One agitator even called the police during our first study-in, after which an officer directly asked uninvolved students if the event was disruptive. The answer was unsurprisingly ‘no,’ and, quoting the Justice, the police “determined no wrongdoing.” These incidents (including doxxing attempts and illicit photographing) have been compiled and we are in contact with the university regarding next steps.

Rabbi Winberg concludes the statement by implicitly encouraging students to report event organizers. This is despite the fact that no university rules were violated on either occasion. We understand that it is natural that rumors, especially when spread by the same students harassing others at events, have the capacity to do serious harm and generate confusion among Hillel and University staff and other students. As a result, we are not accusing anyone involved in creating the Hillel statement of deliberately misinforming. Rabbi Winberg’s statement is titularly devoted to dispelling misinformation, and we feel it pertinent to give our perspective.

This will not deter us from organizing this semester. We understand our rights and responsibilities as a non-chartered student group at Brandeis, and will continue to work with staff in the public locations where we organize. We look forward to more successful events, including holding a Bund Shabbat again in the future!

Winberg’s first email in full:

Late last week, I learned of false rumors that Hillel at Brandeis is supporting or assisting a group of students identifying as the “Jewish Bund.” I encourage everyone to approach rumors with skepticism and verify information before accepting it as fact.

The group is not affiliated with Hillel, nor does it receive recognition or support from us. It is also not a recognized Brandeis student organization.

The Jewish Bund is an anti-Zionist group on campus that has, among other things, conducted activities in the library that many students have found disruptive, hindering its function as a space for focused study and scholarship. 

Regrettably, some individuals connected with the Jewish Bund have misrepresented Hillel and our professional staff, and have tried to misuse Hillel’s space reservations for their activities. This is unacceptable, and we are exploring appropriate steps in response, including working through established Brandeis University channels. This is not about any particular group—it is a matter of principle and ensuring that all students adhere to the University’s Student Rights and Community Standards.

As a campus rabbi and Hillel professional, I recognize that misunderstandings about our role are inevitable. Some people may not fully appreciate Hillel’s deep commitment to nuance and education, as well as our unwavering support for Israel as a Jewish and democratic state with safe and secure borders. Others may hear only part of a conversation and take it out of context. These dynamics are natural in a diverse and intellectually engaged environment of young adults.

Hillel remains committed to fostering a welcoming, vibrant, and supportive Jewish community. We also envision a campus where free expression is upheld while all students—including Jewish students—are protected from harassment. I strongly encourage students with concerns about community standards, harassment, or discrimination to report them to the University.