You have /5 articles left.
Sign up for a free account or log in.
A recent incident at Canada's York University illustrates the reason students may want to listen to what gets said in class -- at least before seeking anyone's dismissal. The Toronto Star reported that Cameron Johnston, a social sciences professor, was talking to students about the difference between facts and opinions, and the role of dangerous opinions. As an example of a dangerous opinion, he offered the idea that "all Jews should be sterilized." A female student, who heard the statement as the professor expressing his own view, quickly left class, alerted Jewish groups on campus and elsewhere, and websites started demanding the professor's dismissal. Not only doesn't Johnston believe the statement, but he is Jewish.
Sheldon Goodman, co-chair of Toronto's Center for Israel and Jewish Affairs, told the Star: "This event is an appropriate reminder that great caution must be exercised before concluding a statement or action is anti-Semitic."
