THE REGION
Ohio U. students protesting ‘blood bucket’ video arrested By Anthony Weiss, JTA An Ohio University Student Senate meeting erupted into a chaotic scene and four students were arrested over protests of the Senate president’s “blood bucket challenge” of Israel. At the Sept. 10 meeting of the Student Senate, pro-Israel students staged a filibuster and called for the resignation of Megan Marzec over her Sept. 2 video in which she poured a bucket of fake blood (redcolored water) over her head to support the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement against Israel. Marzec’s video, which was posted in response to an ALS ice bucket challenge issued by the university president, has sparked widespread controversy on the campus and off. In the video, Marzec spoke in her capacity as Student Sen-
student paper, the Post Athens, ate president and accused Israel of “genocide in Gaza.” The Marzec called on Sebo to stop Ohio University Student Senate so that students could speak in an orderly fashion. Twitter account subsequently Sebo and other protesters apologized for the video. The video has been criticized continued to speak, however. Marzec shouted for order both for its critique of Israel and Marzec’s divisive stance as and threatened to have the protesters arrested. Other students a student body leader. and adults at the Marzec reported receiving hostile Marzec issued meeting clapped and chanted over messages and death threats. Oth- a vote to have the protesters, ers praised Marzec the protesters with some denouncing them as for speaking her arrested for “fascists.” beliefs. Rabbi DaniThe Student Sen- disrupting the elle Leshaw, the ate protest began at meeting. executive director the start of the sesof Hillel at Ohio sion with Rebecca University, was present and Sebo, the president of Bobcats said the atmosphere became for Israel, denouncing the “explosive.” threats made against Marzec Marzec issued a vote to have before calling on her to resign. the protesters arrested for disAfter approximately three rupting the meeting. University minutes, according to the
police issued the protesters a twominute warning, then arrested them and led them from the meeting. At the police station, the students were charged with disruption of a Ohio University Student Senate President Megan lawful meeting Marzec’s video in which she pours fake blood on her head in protest against Israel and released. Their court date was set for the morning of “I think it was actually a Sept. 24, the day before Rosh blessing that the police arHashanah, the Jewish New rived,” she told JTA. Year. After the arrests, Marzec Leshaw said that although stood on a table and declared she didn’t think the protesters that she would “never apoloshould have been arrested, the gize for the people of Palespolice “acted beautifully” and tine.” their presence helped prevent a She added, “And I will never hostile situation from spiraling stand up for fascists. And this out of control. body won’t either.”
Kent State prof. condemns ‘academic friends of Israel’ By Jacqueline Mitchell Cleveland Jewish News Kent State University Associate Prof. of History Dr. Julio Pino released an open letter this summer to “academic friends of Israel” condemning supporters for being “directly responsible” for what he called the murder of more than 1,400 Palestinians. Pino sent the letter to the
History News Network at George Mason University, and the website published it on Aug. 2. “Your names are scrawled on every bullet fired, bomb dropped, body buried and burnt forehead in Gaza,” the letter read. In an interview with the Cleveland Jewish News, Pino said he wrote the letter because he wanted to point out the “reality
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of total apathy out there.” He said he forwarded his letter to the History News Network in hopes that it would publish it to a broader audience, which it did. “I’m in communication with other academics all the time,” Pino said. “People tried to stifle me from speaking out.” Pino, an associate professor who specializes in Latin American history and the Third World, has a reputation for his outspoken opinions on Israel. In 2002, Pino wrote a controversial column for the Daily Kent Stater praising an 18-yearold female suicide bomber in Jerusalem, describing her as courageous and a “shining star.” In 2011, the tenured professor attended a lecture given by a former Israeli diplomat, during which he shouted “Death to Israel.” Lester Lefton, who was Kent State president at the time and is Jewish, described Pino’s behavior as “deplorable.” The university released the following statement denouncing Pino’s most recent comments: “It has come to our attention that a Kent State University professor posted an online statement charging scholars with responsibility for civilian deaths in Gaza. We condemn the professor’s statement as reprehensible and irrespon-
tion that put him in power for sible. At Kent State, we value collegiality and mutual respect. five decades, and described the Assailing the public with broad Israeli “regime” as “the spiritual heir to Nazism.” statements of culpability vioPino said he kept scholars lates these principles.” of Latin American studies The university would not specifically in mind when he elaborate further on the situquoted Castro in an attempt to ation when reached for comremind Latin Americans that ment. if they are in keeping with the “I respect their right to do it,” said Pino of the university’s Cuban revolution, they should be “supporting the oppressed statement. rather than the oppressor.” Jennifer Chestnut, executive He also said that when director of Hillel he used the phrase “the at Kent State, also spiritual heir to Nazism,” released a statement he was referring to the regarding Pino’s Israeli government, alaccusations: though this assertion has “Hillel at Kent been largely misinterpretState joins the Kent ed to be addressing Israel State University in or the Jewish people as a condemning the rewhole, according to Pino. peated hate rhetoric He used such a highly acof faculty member Dr. Julio Pino. His Kent State Assoc. cusatory phrase because Prof. of History he believes the Israeli reprehensible com- Dr. Julio Pino government is deliberatements harm our university and create a divisive ly targeting civilians, he said. Pino said he received a large and harmful atmosphere for amount of hate mail in the the students and the entire Kent State community by creat- days following publication of his letter, but he anticipated ing a toxic environment which is closed to the free exchange of as much when he released his ideas. We commend the univer- statements. He said he has also received sity administration for their letters of approval and supstrong statement in speaking up against this vile hate speech port from both Americans and in order to uphold the integrity Palestinians. Kayla Morrison, a 20-yearof our academic institution.” old senior at Kent State, wrote Pino’s letter cited longtime her own open letter in response Cuban leader Fidel Castro, a to Pino, which was published communist who led a revoluTHE DAYTON JEWISH OBSERVER • OCTOBER 2014