{"id":936,"date":"2025-04-01T12:00:56","date_gmt":"2025-04-01T12:00:56","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/jtotheb.com\/?p=936"},"modified":"2025-04-03T12:41:45","modified_gmt":"2025-04-03T12:41:45","slug":"nyu-relocates-conference-with-israeli-science-institute-amid-protest-threats","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/jtotheb.com\/index.php\/2025\/04\/01\/nyu-relocates-conference-with-israeli-science-institute-amid-protest-threats\/","title":{"rendered":"NYU relocates conference with Israeli science institute amid protest threats"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

NYU\u2019s Center for Neural Science relocated an event co-hosted by an Israeli scientific institute last week to keep it \u201csecured from disruptive protest,\u201d the director of the center told event registrants in an email obtained by WSN. The move from the Silver Center for Arts & Science to the NYU Grossman School of Medicine came after pro-Palestinian groups on campus <\/span>publicized plans<\/span><\/a> to protest the meeting.<\/span><\/p>\n

At the annual event, \u201c<\/span>Progress in Neuroscience: The Forseen and the Unforseen<\/span><\/a>,\u201d neuroscience researchers from NYU and the Weizmann Institute of Science \u2014 a research school with ties to the Israeli military and weapon manufacturers amid its ongoing siege in Gaza \u2014 were set to host discussions about the latest developments in research on March 24 and 25. CNS director Andr\u00e9 Fenton told prospective student attendees about the relocation in a March 26 email, after <\/span>previously informing them<\/span><\/a> that the event would take place virtually and a recording would be distributed to \u201cminimize the possibility of disruption and harm.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cAt the request of university leadership, we decided to move the meeting both to minimize the harm to individual members of our community and to protect our core academic mission,\u201d Fenton wrote in the email. \u201cWe deeply regret that our trainees could not participate, but this was a condition of using the new location.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

A CNS alum, who requested to remain anonymous due to safety concerns, confirmed that students were unable to attend the relocated event.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

In the email, Fenton noted that enabling on-campus protests, and subsequent violations of student conduct policy, could result in disciplinary action and suspensions. He cited that \u201cthese facts\u201d contributed to the decision to relocate, and said he would consult with a diversity, equity and inclusion committee to address the \u201ccomplexities of this time\u201d and \u201cchallenges to academic freedom and independence it has brought.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Last year, dozens of faculty, students, alumni and neuroscientists from other universities signed an <\/span>open letter<\/span><\/a> to Fenton and CNS professor Wei Ji Ma, demanding the center halt its over 20-year collaboration with the Weizmann Institute and bolster efforts to combat antisemitic and anti-Palestinian rhetoric. Last year\u2019s conference was \u201c<\/span>postponed indefinitely<\/span><\/a>,\u201d according to NYU\u2019s chapter of Faculty and Staff for Justice in Palestine. A spokesperson for Science for the People NYC told WSN that community members circulated the same petition this year, which has garnered 75 signatures.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The CNS alum also told WSN that alumni led protests against the department because students are concerned about potential repercussions in the wake of the Trump administration\u2019s campaign to crack down on pro-Palestinian protesters across college campuses. Over the past few weeks, the U.S. Department of State revoked more than 300 student visas and detained several international students involved in on-campus demonstrations.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re dealing with a rising fascist government that is willing to detain students who express certain pro-Palestine views,\u201d the alum said. \u201cWe\u2019re calling on NYU to do the right thing, which is to support students\u2019 right to protest what is effectively an ongoing genocide that has been devastating for a lot of members of the community.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

An NYU spokesperson previously told WSN that the university \u201c<\/span>will comply with the law<\/span><\/a>\u201d amid the Trump administration\u2019s crackdown on student visas, and that Campus Safety officers will only allow U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement personnel on campus if they have a valid search warrant or subpoena.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The Weizmann Institute of Science was <\/span>founded in 1934<\/span><\/a> in what is now known as Rehovot, Israel and offers postgraduate degrees to those studying natural and exact sciences. The institute has created a <\/span>program<\/span><\/a> preparing Israeli high school graduates for military duty, has been heavily involved in <\/span>developing Israel\u2019s nuclear weaponry<\/span><\/a> and has <\/span>spearheaded research<\/span><\/a> on chemical and biological warfare.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI have very little hope that NYU will do the right thing,\u201d the alum said. \u201cBy canceling all further instances of this event in coming years, they could be showing their students that they care about their safety.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

A university spokesperson did not respond to requests for comment. <\/span><\/p>\n

Contact Amanda Chen at achen@nyunews.com.<\/em><\/p>\n

This story NYU relocates conference with Israeli science institute amid protest threats<\/a> appeared first on Washington Square News<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

NYU\u2019s Center for Neural Science relocated an event co-hosted by an Israeli scientific institute last week to keep it \u201csecured from disruptive protest,\u201d the director of the center told event registrants in an email obtained by WSN. The move from the Silver Center for Arts & Science to the NYU Grossman School of Medicine came after pro-Palestinian groups on campus publicized plans to protest the meeting. At the annual event, \u201cProgress in Neuroscience: The Forseen and the Unforseen,\u201d neuroscience researchers from NYU and the Weizmann Institute of Science \u2014 a research school with ties to the Israeli military and weapon manufacturers amid its ongoing siege in Gaza \u2014 were set to host discussions about the latest developments in research on March 24 and 25. CNS director Andr\u00e9 Fenton told prospective student attendees about the relocation in a March 26 email, after previously informing them that the event would take place virtually and a recording would be distributed to \u201cminimize the possibility of disruption and harm.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0 \u201cAt the request of university leadership, we decided to move the meeting both to minimize the harm to individual members of our community and to protect our core academic mission,\u201d Fenton wrote in the email. \u201cWe deeply regret that our trainees could not participate, but this was a condition of using the new location.\u201d\u00a0 A CNS alum, who requested to remain anonymous due to safety concerns, confirmed that students were unable to attend the relocated event.\u00a0 In the email, Fenton noted that enabling on-campus protests, and subsequent violations of student conduct policy, could result in disciplinary action and suspensions. He cited that \u201cthese facts\u201d contributed to the decision to relocate, and said he would consult with a diversity, equity and inclusion committee to address the \u201ccomplexities of this time\u201d and \u201cchallenges to academic freedom and independence it has brought.\u201d Last year, dozens of faculty, students, alumni and neuroscientists from other universities signed an open letter to Fenton and CNS professor Wei Ji Ma, demanding the center halt its over 20-year collaboration with the Weizmann Institute and bolster efforts to combat antisemitic and anti-Palestinian rhetoric. Last year\u2019s conference was \u201cpostponed indefinitely,\u201d according to NYU\u2019s chapter of Faculty and Staff for Justice in Palestine. A spokesperson for Science for the People NYC told WSN that community members circulated the same petition this year, which has garnered 75 signatures.\u00a0 The CNS alum also told WSN that alumni led protests against the department because students are concerned about potential repercussions in the wake of the Trump administration\u2019s campaign to crack down on pro-Palestinian protesters across college campuses. Over the past few weeks, the U.S. Department of State revoked more than 300 student visas and detained several international students involved in on-campus demonstrations.\u00a0 \u201cWe\u2019re dealing with a rising fascist government that is willing to detain students who express certain pro-Palestine views,\u201d the alum said. \u201cWe\u2019re calling on NYU to do the right thing, which is to support students\u2019 right to protest what is effectively an ongoing genocide that has been devastating for a lot of members of the community.\u201d An NYU spokesperson previously told WSN that the university \u201cwill comply with the law\u201d amid the Trump administration\u2019s crackdown on student visas, and that Campus Safety officers will only allow U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement personnel on campus if they have a valid search warrant or subpoena.\u00a0 The Weizmann Institute of Science was founded in 1934 in what is now known as Rehovot, Israel and offers postgraduate degrees to those studying natural and exact sciences. The institute has created a program preparing Israeli high school graduates for military duty, has been heavily involved in developing Israel\u2019s nuclear weaponry and has spearheaded research on chemical and biological warfare. \u201cI have very little hope that NYU will do the right thing,\u201d the alum said. \u201cBy canceling all further instances of this event in coming years, they could be showing their students that they care about their safety.\u201d A university spokesperson did not respond to requests for comment. Contact Amanda Chen at achen@nyunews.com. This story NYU relocates conference with Israeli science institute amid protest threats appeared first on Washington Square News.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":938,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-936","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/jtotheb.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/936","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/jtotheb.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/jtotheb.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/jtotheb.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/jtotheb.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=936"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"http:\/\/jtotheb.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/936\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":939,"href":"http:\/\/jtotheb.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/936\/revisions\/939"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/jtotheb.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/938"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/jtotheb.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=936"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/jtotheb.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=936"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/jtotheb.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=936"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}