A CTV News report aired on November 20, 2024, featured a statement by the Jewish Academic Alliance of British Columbia concerning academic freedom and diversity in the classroom. The focus of the CTV report was the University of British Columbia’s investigation of anti-Israel statements by Dr. Litsa Chatzivasileiou, a sessional lecturer at the UBC Institute for Gender, Race, Sexuality and Social Justice.
JAABC supports academic freedom and a diversity of viewpoints. The same principle which supports faculty teaching freely also supports students learning and expressing themselves freely. Where faculty fail to do that, it is essential that the university enforce its own standards and ideals and we call upon UBC to do so.
In September 2024, Chatzivasileiou went on a virulent 12-minute anti-Israel rant in her Gender and Environmental Justice course. A student, who has remained anonymous for fear of retribution, recorded her chilling diatribe. Among other biased statements, Chatzivasileiou claimed that the deaths of Palestinians in Gaza were motivated by profit.
Click here to watch the CTV News report.