Dear UCI Humanities Department,

We, the undersigned students, faculty at UC Irvine, and community members, strongly denounce the recent actions taken by UC Irvine’s Department of History concerning the Center for Jewish Studies. These actions include, but are not limited to:

• The cancellation of Jewish Texts (History 18A) in Fall 2024.
• The decision not to renew Professor Daniel Levine’s contract.
• The statement issued by the Dean of Humanities on May 29, 2024.  

We believe these actions run counter to the interests of the campus Jewish community. The Center for Jewish Studies at UCI should be a place of refuge for Jewish students, especially now, as Jewish students on campus are facing undue hostility and stress following Hamas’ October 7th attack on Israel and the ensuing war. Instead, the History Department, which oversees Jewish Studies, has become a toxic and hostile environment for Jewish students.

1. Professor Morrissey’s Conflict of Interest

We believe Professor Susan Morrissey, the Chair of History at UCI, has a clear conflict of interest that prevents her from making decisions for the Center for Jewish Studies that best serve the interests of the campus Jewish community. It is public knowledge that she is part of the Faculty for Justice in Palestine and moderated a talk for the group on January 23, 2024. This same organization was involved in efforts a few weeks ago to pressure the university to cut funding for the Center for Jewish Studies and Jewish Studies courses (Figure 1). The organization also called for severing ties with “Zionist organizations and individuals” (Figure 2). This has left us concerned that Professor Levine’s visibly Jewish identity, which is often assumed to entail support for Israel, is what led Professor Morrissey to choose not to renew his contract. This decision contradicts Chancellor Gillman's statement on May 7th, asserting that he would not permit such discriminatory actions on campus (Figure 3). Chancellor Gillman has not yet taken a stand on this matter.

Professor Morrissey’s decisions to not rehire Professor Levine, change the frequency at which his former course is offered, and hire new anti-Israel faculty in his stead are not coincidental, considering her position on Israel. Professor Morrissey is also a signer of a document titled “UC Statement of Solidarity,” which considers Hamas "a result of the systematic annihilation of other Palestinian resistance groups, including the withdrawal of support for the Palestinian Liberation Organization, thus making Israel responsible for the retaliation of its own making."Given the conflict of interest that prevents Professor Morrissey from fairly representing the interests of Jewish students, we urge the university to transfer the Jewish Studies discipline to a different department outside of Humanities.

2. New Faculty Hires

The May 29, 2024, statement "Update on Jewish Studies" released by the UCI School of Humanities announces a "major expansion of the program" with the hiring of two new professors.

First, as both professors are recent graduates of their doctoral programs, Jewish students rely heavily on such professors for their campus welfare and intellectual growth. Therefore, it is essential that experienced academics hold such positions.

Moreover, Professor Smith’s background focuses on Ottoman Jewish history. The History 18A Jewish Texts class aims to explore over three thousand years of Jewish history through its primary texts and literature, surveying a range of intellectual movements and highlighting the diversity of ideas in the Jewish canon. Research involving Ottoman Sephardic communities covers only a small portion of the material relevant to this course.

Similarly, Professor Margaux Fitoussi, who will join UCI in July 2025, is a documentary filmmaker and a Ph.D. candidate. While her background is impressive, it does not align with the fundamental focus of the Center for Jewish Studies curriculum, and her hiring may overlook other scholars who are better suited for the position, namely those with a focus on the Jewish canon broadly. Rabbi Daniel Levine meets this standard.

Additionally, both professors in question have publicly shared anti-Israel views. For instance, Professor Smith was a leader and signatory for Jewish Voice for Peace at UCLA (Figure 4), an organization with positions that do not represent the Jewish community at UC Irvine or at large. A simple Google search reveals that both incoming faculty members have publicly expressed anti-Zionist views. This further supports the notion that Professor Morrissey’s anti-Israel agenda might be influencing her hiring decisions, at the detriment of the Jewish community at UCI. We urge the university to consider these factors and take action to ensure that the faculty hired to teach Jewish Studies are aligned with the community's needs.

Figure 4:

3. Professor Daniel Levine

The History Department’s decision not to rehire Professor Daniel Levine is highly perplexing and has left the campus Jewish community distraught. There is nothing to suggest that Professor Levine was not fulfilling his role adequately. Over his three years of teaching History 18A, he has received extremely positive course evaluations. We have also collected testimonials from past students who took History 18A with him, as well as from students who were eagerly anticipating taking his course in Fall 2024. Professor Levine has helped shape Jewish Studies education at UCI and inspired scores of new students to pursue Jewish Studies minors.

Conclusion

We, the undersigned students at UC Irvine and fellow community members, call for an investigation into the process that informed Professor Morrissey’s recent decisions concerning Jewish Studies, specifically those related to Professor Daniel Levine. We further demand that while this investigation takes place, Professor Levine be granted a contract renewal that allows him to continue teaching in the interim. Finally,  given that Professor Morrissey has cultivated a hostile environment for Jewish students, we demand that Jewish Studies be transferred to another department outside of Humanities. At a harrowing time for Jewish students on campus and the Jewish people worldwide, we believe that UC Irvine has a greater responsibility than ever to ensure that the Center for Jewish Studies cultivates a hospitable environment for Jewish students, one that serves their needs and reflects their interests. A good first step towards that end would be to meet the above demands.

Sources:

Figures 1 and 3: Encampment Demands from SJP

Figure 2: Official statement from SJP, declaring their demands, screenshot is from a now-deleted post. See below for a picture of their demands posted on the side of their encampment at UCI.

Figure 4: A screenshot showing Rachel Smith as a signatory for the UCLA JVP organization.

Signed,

Nova Sari- Jewish Studies Minor

Samantha Ilan- Hillel at UCI President, Jewish Studies Minor

Talia Brand - Undergraduate Student

Sophia La Perle -Undergraduate Student, Chabad at UCI Vice President

Jonathan Ross - President of Alpha Epsilon Pi, Undergraduate Student

Jake Selikovitz- History Major, Jewish Studies Minor at UCI

Jacob Schreiber - Undergraduate Student

Daniel Bar - Undergraduate Student

Alex Frutkin - Undergraduate Student

Maya Barank- Hillel at UCI Vice President

Shir Diner - Undergraduate Student

Naomi Shleifer- Undergraduate Student

Makayla Gordon- History Major, Jewish Studies Minor

Claire Baumert- Gamma Phi Beta, Religious Studies Minor

Aaron Brok - Undergraduate Student

Celia Levin - Undergraduate Student

Nathaniel Heit - Undergraduate Student

Matan Sussman - Undergraduate Student

Elliot Makhani- PhD Student

Katie Candib - Jewish Studies Minor

Matthew Cohen-  Undergraduate Student

Riley B - First-Year Undergraduate

Emily Chen- Jewish Studies Minor

Mika Schreiman- Jewish Studies Minor

Aaron Amin - Undergraduate Student

Daniel Avidon - Undergraduate Student

Fae Crane - Undergraduate Student, Alpha Phi Member

Sean Gadasy - Undergraduate Student

Taryn Williams- Organization & Management PhD student

Sandra Ossman- Undergraduate Student

Yoav Feigenbaum- Undergraduate Student

Mikaela Selby - Undergraduate Student, Alpha Phi

Daniel Levinstein - PhD Student

Michael Stenzel- Undergraduate Student

Isadora Wiener - Undergraduate Student

Isaiah -Undergraduate Student

Natalia Trounce - Undergraduate Student

Shirel Nahum- Undergraduate Student

Jonpaul Cohen -Undergraduate Student, Jewish on Campus Liaison

Donna Hakimbaba - Undergraduate Student

Alissa K- PhD Student at UCI