Get David Miller off Bristol Uni campus

Get David Miller off Bristol Uni campus

Started
17 February 2021
Signatures: 9,346Next Goal: 10,000
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Why this petition matters

Started by Sabrina Miller

As a Jewish student at the University of Bristol I want the University to protect Jewish students. Professor David Miller must be held to account for his actions and face disciplinary action for his comments. 

In 2018, at UCL, Miller argued that accusations of anti-Semitism in the Labour party are “mostly false”. Yet according to a 2017 YouGov survey, 80+ per cent of British Jews believe the Labour party tolerated anti-Semitism. At the same event he claimed the reaction of some Jewish students was a result of “propaganda which they have been schooled with”.

In June, Miller accused Keir Starmer of receiving “Zionist money” and was suspended from the Labour party. The idea that Jews or Zionists are using their money to manipulate politics is a trope as old as time.

Jewish students in his class have described the experience as "scary because he is a teacher so people believed the anti-Semitism he was spreading."

In his Harms Against the Powerful Module Miller claimed the “Zionist movement (parts of)” of being one of the five “pillars of Islamophobia”. Zionism, defined as the belief that Jewish people have a right to statehood in their ancestral homeland, has nothing to do with Islamophobia and everything to do with Jewish self-determination.

In slides Miller attempts to link various British Jewish organisations to the state of Israel. As a Jewish student, this conspiratorial spider’s web of arrows and organisations is grimly reminiscent of anti-Semitic tropes where Jews are accused of having unique power and influence over political affairs. 

He also implies  charities like the Community Security Trust (CST) are part of this invented malign and powerful “Zionist movement”. Miller claims a number of organisations are in fact “formal members” of the Zionist movement.

He has also claimed that the CST “is an organisation that exists to run point for a hostile foreign government in the UK. Rather than being funded by the British state, it should be under investigation for its ties with the State of Israel.” He claimed it is “a straightforward story of influence-peddling by a foreign state. In particular, a state that has tried to dictate the outcome of the past two general elections, and by any yardstick, succeeded to a great extent.” The CST has branded Miller’s comments “disgraceful and dangerous” and has made a complaint to the University of Bristol. 

Despite complaints sent to the university over a year ago, Bristol Uni has found no wrongdoing and he still holds a teaching position at the university. In dismissing the complaint, Bristol Uni said the lecture did not contain any material hostile to Jews, and so was not anti-Semitic.

Most recently David Miller called for an "end of Zionism". He said investigations into antisemitism in Labour were " a mere detail of this attempt by Israelis to impose their will all over the world". 

This has been going on for two years. ENOUGH IS ENOUGH. If you wish to stand in solidarity with Jewish students at the University of Bristol then please sign this petition. 

Hate speech should NEVER be tolerated especially not on campus. https://twitter.com/hannah1_rose/status/1360970897327349761

 

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Signatures: 9,346Next Goal: 10,000
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