I feel compelled to respond to the accusations and misrepresentations that were made in Jakob Sebrow's OP-ED this past week. Given the limited space available, I will focus on the most blatantly libelous and misleading claims within the piece.
Mr. Sebrow states that "Brandeis Coalition for Tolerance has made it known that the 'tolerance' in their club name will be replaced by a more lofty and embracing noun only once the Brandeis community has proven its ability to tolerate." We have done no such thing. Although some within BCT have purposed strategies similar to the one described by Mr. Sebrow, BCT has never officially adopted or publicly supported such a tactic.
Mr. Sebrow goes on to say, "I find it deeply disturbing that the group has found it appropriate to label 3,000 of its peers in the nastiest terms." I find distressing is that Mr. Sebrow would make such an unfounded allegation. If we have made such statements, why does he not cite or directly quote them? What are the nasty terms to which he is referring? Perhaps the evidentiary dearth of the piece is rooted in the fact that BCT has made no public comments labeling the 4,000 students, and countless other faculty and staff members who compose this community. It is BCT and its members who are being labeled.
I find a significant fault with the manner that Mr. Sebrow lightly casts aside complaints made by numerous members of this community regarding how racial, religious, and other minorities are treated at Brandeis. He states that "I am not intolerant. Neither are my friends. Neither is the great majority of my community." While Mr. Sebrow might be able to speak on behalf of himself and his friends, I would be quite impressed with his social skills if he was acquainted with, let alone able to vouch for, the "great majority" of this campus. Perhaps some polling has been done to measure the amount of tolerance present on this campus, but if not, Mr. Sebrow's comments are little more than wishful thinking. It is not impossible that he is correct, but I for one will admit my own inability to accurately gauge the stance of thousands of individuals on this campus. I wish to know how can Mr. Sebrow be so certain?
Mr. Sebrow states that "I know of no student who has come out in support of the perpetrators of intolerance." Perhaps he does not, but I know of numerous acts that were committed by students in support, furtherance, or appreciation of the intolerant or hateful messages of this past semester: to find them, one need not look very hard.
Mr. Sebrow ends his column by offering a list of condescending and ineffective responses to the issues we face on campus: "If a member of our community feels afraid walking to class, accompany him or her with a smile. If a fellow student is feeling vulnerable, ease his or her worries." These, and the other solutions Mr. Sebrow gives, imply that the problems of this community are in the heads of those who are complaining, denying the legitimacy of the grievances. He suggests that we should work to make those individuals who perceive that they are unwelcome feel better, not to overcome the source of these feelings. We should not respond by walking our peers to class, we should make this a community where no one feels so vulnerable that they want us to.Albert Cahn
Vice President
Brandeis Coalition for Tolerance

Please Note: If this letter is longer than space permits, please tell me the maximum length you are willing to print so I may edit it.