Jewish Defense League Provokes Furor at Tufts

After a month-long struggle centered on freedom of speech rights, the Tufts University chapter of the Jewish Defense League (JDL) decided this week to abandon efforts to gain official university recognition.

In a letter sent Tuesday to the Medford-based university. Jeffrey Weiss, a student leader of the Tufts-JDL, stated that it would be "best for all concerned" if he stopped his effort to have the offshoot of the worldwide Jewish group recognized by the university.

The international JDL., whose goal is to protect Jews around the world, has been often linked to violent acts. Its leader Meir Kahane, has been imprisoned in Israel.

The Committee on Student Life (CSL), a student-faculty advisory council, had voted against Weiss's attempt for recognition in March. But three weeks later the full faculty overruled the CSL's decision and stripped its power to give student organizations official standing.

Before Weiss made this week's announcement, it had appeared that Provost Sol Gittleman would have to resolve the dispute.

The CSL made its earlier decision primarily because of the Tufts-JDL connection to the international JDL. Don Klein, CSL chairman and professor of Political Science, said Thursday.

The faculty overruling of the CSL decision came after an impassioned plea by Biology professor Saul Slapikoff, who cited the CSL vote as an abridgement of the Tufts-JDL's constitutional right to freedom of speech.

Complaint

"There is little or nothing that I like in their positions, most of which are dangerous to the future of the world." Slapikoff said Thursday. "However, it is their constitutional right to have [their positions.]" he added.

"There is a First Amendment consideration, but do we want a group with a proclivity for violence associated with Tufts?" Klein said of the CSL decision.

Weiss said in his letter that he was withdrawing his plea in part because some faculty "detested everything I stand for," but only supported him on the basis of his First Amendment rights.