Staff at the University of Sydney (USyd) have spoken out against Vice-Chancellor Mark Scott’s decision to appoint Dr Michael Abrahams-Sprod as a special advisor on antisemitism.
USyd Staff for Palestine (USydS4P) said the creation of this advisory role would allow the “fight against antisemitism to be hijacked by supporters of Israel”. It said the job’s main responsibility would be to “design and implement ‘antisemitism training’ that will be mandatory for ‘frontline’ staff at the university”.
This training will likely present Zionism as intrinsic to Jewish identity, and cast any criticism of Israel as antisemitic, even from anti-Zionist Jews.
USydS4P said it is an initiative of the Special Envoy to Combat Antisemitism Jillian Segal, “a dogged critic of genocide opponents, whose family’s substantial donations to the far-right, anti-immigrant Advance organisation are on the public record”.
Abrahams-Sprod, a lecturer on Jewish history, is a leading member of the pro-Israel Australian Academic Alliance Against Antisemitism (5A), which considers pro-Palestine activism to be antisemitic.
“It would be impossible for Scott to appoint a more divisive or partisan figure, or to signal more clearly the depth of his opposition to the Palestine solidarity movement on campus,” USydS4P said.
The 5A group, which last year claimed to have about 80 members across the country, was established after October 7, 2023, to quash campus opposition to Israel’s genocide. USydS4P said it argues that the phrase “Free Palestine” is inherently racist. It also characterised the National Tertiary Education Union as a “driver of antisemitism”.
“Dr Abrahams-Sprod has claimed that pro-Palestine activity at the University of Sydney in 2024 was anti-Semitic,” USydS4P said. “It beggars belief that someone who holds such a view will now be elevated as an official arbiter of antisemitism at the university.”
USydS4P said anti-racists have long criticised the exceptionalisation of antisemitism as “ineffective and counterproductive” and that this position means that “that racism against Jewish people is being uniquely prioritised above other forms of discrimination”.
It also said the position ignored the recent Australian Human Rights Commission report, which identified widespread racism in Australian universities, particularly against First Nations, Jewish and Palestinian people, as well as people of Asian, African, Māori, Pasifika and Muslim backgrounds.
USydS4P said Scott’s decision to appoint Abrahams-Sprod proves he is “indifferent to the plight of Palestinians”.
USyd management blocked the Students Representative Council from fundraising in March for student and Students for Palestine member Ethan Floyd’s participation in the Global Sumud Flotilla.
Scott and USyd management have tried to block students showing solidarity with Palestine for more than 2.5 years, including introducing the Campus Access Policy which severely restricts students from being able to organise campaigns.
[Isaac Nellist is a student at the University of Sydney and a member of Socialist Alliance.]