Despite being known as "people of the book,​" Jews have had a vexed experience with the modern university. While their tradition of scholarly study has drawn them to the academy, they have often met with antisemitic discrimination. At the same time, Jewish university students and faculty have often asserted themselves by engaging in important social, political, and intellectual causes. In the modern era, Jews on college campuses have continually navigated between the obstructions of antisemitism and the opportunities of activism. 

This double-sided reality has recently gained new attention, as college campuses have become hotbeds of student protest due to the renewed war in the Middle East. To provide insight into recent events, Between Antisemitism and Activism presents a series of historical vignettes demonstrating the turbulent experience of Jewish students and faculty at European and U.S. universities in the past century. The exhibit addresses several timely issues: how Jews have all too often experienced antisemitism on college campuses; how Jews have just as often asserted themselves through campus activism; and how, in doing so, Jews have as often disagreed as agreed with one another.