New Petition Calls for Ouster of Florida State University Student Senate President Tainted by Antisemitism
Florida State University. Photo: Tim Ross.
A new petition is calling for the new president of Florida State University’s Student Senate — who has an extensive record of antisemitism — to resign or face impeachment.
Ahmad Daraldik — who is Palestinian-American — has made numerous statements online such as “stupid Jew” and “f**k Israel,” and created a web site minimizing the Holocaust and comparing Israel to Nazi Germany.
The petition — organized by the Alums for Campus Fairness (ACF) NGO — stated, “ACF does not question Daraldik’s personal experiences or his right to free speech. Countless Israelis and Palestinians have traumatic experiences from the conflict. What we will not accept is elected leaders that spew vile antisemitism. For those of us who are descended from Holocaust survivors, it’s especially painful for an elected leader at our alma mater to lie about and exploit what our families went through for Daraldik’s own political agenda. Daraldik needs to take responsibility, step down, and learn from his mistakes.”
ACF also urged the Student Senate to “affirm and recognize the internationally accepted IHRA Definition of Antisemitism,” and said student government members and other university leaders should undergo “mandatory anti-racism training,” including “a session on antisemitism led by an organization or expert chosen in advisement with Hillel and other Jewish organizations on campus.”
A no-confidence motion against Daraldik failed to gain a necessary two-thirds majority last week in a vote that was described as highly irregular.
In a letter sent to Florida State President John Thrasher and Vice President for Student Affairs Amy Hecht on Wednesday, the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) accused Daraldik of “bigotry,” saying he had propagated a “blood libel” against Israel, and asked for the administration to “examine whether he will contribute to the marginalization of Jewish/Zionist students on campus.”