StandWithUs’ Center for Combating Antisemitism director visits Pittsburgh
A journey worth takingCarly Gammill travels from Alaska to Pittsburgh for training

StandWithUs’ Center for Combating Antisemitism director visits Pittsburgh

Leads training aimed at unpacking Zionism, Jewish identity

Molly Braver, Marjorie Manne, Elayna Tell, Julie Paris, Carly Gammill, Libby Cohen, Karen Gal-Or, Sarah and Rabbi Shmuel Weinstein and Tara Surloff met during training provided by StandWithUs. (Photo provided by Julie Paris)
Molly Braver, Marjorie Manne, Elayna Tell, Julie Paris, Carly Gammill, Libby Cohen, Karen Gal-Or, Sarah and Rabbi Shmuel Weinstein and Tara Surloff met during training provided by StandWithUs. (Photo provided by Julie Paris)

How committed is Carly Gammill to battling antisemitism? Committed enough to travel more than 3,000 miles, from Alaska to Pittsburgh, and spend three days meeting community stakeholders, politicians, university security officials and members of Pittsburgh’s Jewish community to discuss Zionism, Jewish identity and bigotry.

Gammill is the founding director of the StandWithUs Center for Combating Antisemitism. She’s a constitutional litigator who has assisted clients with issues involving freedom of speech and religious liberties. And for more than a decade, she was active in fighting antisemitism on college campuses, in court and at the United Nations.

StandWithUs Mid-Atlantic Regional Director Julie Paris calls Gammill “one of the foremost experts on the issues affecting the Jewish community, and the IHRA (International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance) definition of antisemitism. She is able to come in and really bring a level of expertise that I am in awe of.”

Paris should know. Not only does the pair work together at StandWithUs — an international, non-partisan education organization that supports Israel and fights antisemitism — but they’ve shared a car traveling around Pennsylvania and spent most of Gammill’s time in Pittsburgh together.

The duo’s journey began on Jan. 13, when they gave a presentation about antisemitism to DEI administrators and staff at the University of Pittsburgh.

Gammill did “a great job addressing depoliticizing Zionism,” Paris said. “Her way of explaining and breaking down Zionism as a core component of Jewish identity for the vast majority of Jews in the world, and how Zionism being politicized changes the way administrators respond to it.”
Gammill said the conversation was an “unpacking” of Zionism and Jewish identity for the DEI group, including “its breadth and its scope and how that is tied to this 3,000-plus year history of the Jewish people in the land of Israel.”

This topic is particularly important on college campuses, where protected speech is a prominent issue, Gammill said.

“We talked a lot about the impact of words, and that even if you can’t punish those words or silence those words, the impact of those words can create a hostile environment, triggering the responsibility of the administration to act,” she said.

Gammill said many university administrators are confused when it comes to incidents involving free speech and equal treatment. Whatever is being done to protect other minority groups should also be done to protect the Jewish community, she stressed.

“Just because there’s protected speech doesn’t mean they’re out of options and can ignore it and move on,” Gammill said. “In DEI meetings, there are discussions about how to ensure that Jewish students feel like they belong on campus and that they know they are not only welcome but wanted.”

Gammill and Paris spoke on Jan. 14 to local law enforcement, members of college and university law enforcement and student affairs staff as part of a training hosted by the Allegheny County District Attorney’s office, Carnegie Mellon University and the Pittsburgh Council on Higher Education. They also conducted training at the U.S. attorney’s office, which Paris said was initiated as a result of conversations with Allegheny County District Attorney Stephen Zappala and Deputy District Attorney Ilan Zur.

“Unfortunately, attacks on the Jewish community are on the rise,” Paris said, “and the DA’s office has a responsibility to ensure that all members of the community feel safe and able to live in this community free of division and hostility.”

Gammill said the training was part of ongoing conversations that have been taking place for over a year and that it wouldn’t have occurred without the buy-in of the U.S. attorney and district attorney’s offices.

“The fact that we had the opportunity and access to provide this educational training is a credit to these offices,” she said.

Gammill and Paris didn’t only talk to university officials and law enforcement officers, though. They also had a meeting with community members that included David Smokler, director of K-12 educator outreach for StandWithUs, about issues focused on students in elementary, middle and high school.

The duo finished their Pennsylvania trek with a trip to Harrisburg, where they discussed the state’s Jewish community and the IHRA definition of antisemitism.

The meetings, Paris said, demonstrated the importance of collaboration and relationships.

“We always say it’s much harder to hurt someone you know,” she said. “So, the more that we’re able to provide these kinds of educational opportunities outside of the Jewish community, outside of this immediate inclusive environment, where we’re able to reach people who can bring about positive impacts for our community, I think we’re in a much better place.” PJC

David Rullo can be reached at drullo@pittsburghjewishchronicle.org.

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