Adela Cojab

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Adela Cojab
Born
Adela Cojab Moadeb

November 12, 1996
EducationNew York University Yeshiva University
Occupation(s)Activist, author, podcaster, law student
Years active2019–present

Adela Cojab Moadeb (born November 12, 1996) is a Mexican-born American activist, author, podcaster, and law student. She is known for advocating against antisemitism and for Zionist causes.[1] Most notably, she is known for her lawsuit against New York University under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 for allowing antisemitic activities on campus.[1][2][3][4]

She was also a host of the podcast American-ish Show: Daughters of the Diaspora, alongside Mariam Wahba, during 2022-2023.[5][6][7]

Early life[edit]

Cojab was born in Mexico City, Mexico.[8] She is Jewish of Syrian and Lebanese descent.[1][8][6] She moved to the United States in 2001.[8] She grew up in Deal, New Jersey, and attended Hillel Yeshiva.[9][10]

Education[edit]

Cojab attended New York University and graduated from the Gallatin School of Individualized Study with a degree in Middle Eastern diaspora studies in 2019.[3][11] While studying at NYU, she served as president of the student organization Realize Israel,[1][4][12][13] Senator for Jewish and International Students on the school's University Senate,[14] and the official representative for Jewish students for the United Nations’ Economic and Social Council.[14] She was also vice president of the AEPhi sorority[14] and a chairperson for the American Union of Jewish Students.[13] Cojab received a Broome & Allen Scholarship from the American Sephardi Foundation in 2018.[15][16]

She went on to attend the Cardozo School of Law at Yeshiva University.[17][18]

Activism[edit]

During Cojab's time as president of the Realize Israel student group, 53 other student groups refused to co-sponsor events with Realize Israel as part of the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) movement.[19][20][13] One of the group’s celebrations, Rave in the Park, was also disrupted by Anti-Zionist protestors affiliated with the student groups Students for Justice in Palestine and Jewish Voice of Peace, two of which were arrested for reckless endangerment and assault.[21] One of the protestors arrested was one of Cojab's classmates in her Arabic seminar.[13] Cojab was also subjected to social media attacks and social isolation for her Zionist stances.[17][13]

In response to NYU giving an award to the university chapter of Students for Justice in Palestine,[22] Cojab filed a Title VI complaint with the Department of Education, calling for a full-fledged investigation into antisemitic activity on campus.[23][24] Cojab went on to reach a settlement with the university, with NYU revising its discrimination and harassment policies to include antisemitism.[14]

Speaking engagements[edit]

In 2019, she spoke alongside President Donald Trump during the keynote address at the Israeli-American Council Annual Conference.[25][26][27] In response to the events at NYU and other college campuses, President Trump would go on to sign an executive order expanding the definition of antisemitism to include "denying the Jewish people their right to self-determination," making such actions a Title VI violation.[28] Cojab also spoke about on-campus advocacy at the Maccabee Academy Conference, hosted by the Maccabee Task Force at the Venetian hotel in Las Vegas in February 2019.[29]

In 2022, Cojab was a speaker at the Sephardic Community Alliance BootCampUs event for high school students.[30]

Cojab spoke about her experiences with antisemitism at her university at the World Jewish Congress's Lauder Fellowship Opening Seminar in 2022.[31] Cojab also served as a speaker at the Lauder Fellowship Opening Seminar in 2023[18] at the second annual Jewish Youth Assembly, hosted by the World Jewish Congress.[32] She also spoke at a community event rallying against antisemitism organized by the nonprofit organization Enough Is Enough in 2023.[33]

Media[edit]

Cojab wrote the chapter "Confronting Terror: The Buenos Aires Bombings” in the World Jewish Congress’s 80th anniversary book, which was published in 2017.[15][34]

Cojab co-hosted the talk show podcast American-ish Show: Daughters of the Diaspora with her co-host Mariam Wahba in 2022-2023.[5][7]

Personal life[edit]

Cojab is fluent in Spanish, English, Hebrew, and Portuguese.[13]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c d Lobell, Kylie Ora (December 10, 2023). "Suing NYU: Fighting Antisemitism on Campus". Aish. Retrieved 2024-02-21.
  2. ^ Murakami, Kery (October 1, 2020). "NYU Settles Anti-Semitism Case". Inside Higher Ed. Retrieved 2024-02-21.
  3. ^ a b Mohammadi, Mina (February 24, 2020). "NYU Sued for Alleged Anti-Semitism, Students React". Washington Square News (NYU student newspaper). Retrieved 2024-02-21.
  4. ^ a b Wolf, Rachel (December 15, 2019). "Student who sued NYU over antisemitism praises Trump's executive order". The Jerusalem Post. Retrieved 2024-02-21.
  5. ^ a b Bandler, Aaron (2022-02-14). "Sephardic Jew, Coptic Christian to Launch Middle East Talk Show". Jewish Journal. Retrieved 2024-02-21.
  6. ^ a b "'American-ish': Adela Cojab, Mariam Wahba's Show Details". In Touch Weekly. 2022-03-03. Retrieved 2024-02-21.
  7. ^ a b "Podcast: Americanish: Daughters of Diaspora". Spotify. Retrieved 2024-05-03.
  8. ^ a b c Russell, David (January 13, 2020). "'Now's the time for Jewish pride': rabbi". Queens Chronicle. Retrieved 2024-02-22.
  9. ^ Moscovici, Claudia (March 19, 2021). "Fighting BDS on college campuses: Adela Cojab and the Maccabee Task Force". The Times of Israel blogs.
  10. ^ "An Unforgettable Evening". Jewish Image. September 2, 2021. Retrieved 2024-02-21.
  11. ^ Prince, Catherine J. (February 11, 2020). "Anti-Semitism on US campuses may force schools to choose free speech or bigotry". The Times of Israel. Retrieved 2024-02-22.
  12. ^ Devlin, Sayer (2018-12-07). "Student Senators Pass BDS Resolution After Shouts, Screams and Snaps". Washington Square News. Retrieved 2024-02-21.
  13. ^ a b c d e f Dreyfus, Hannah (June 6, 2018). "Adela Cojab Moadeb, 21". New York Jewish Week. Retrieved 2024-02-23.
  14. ^ a b c d Mandeles, Samantha (2020-10-08). "NYU Student Reaches Landmark Settlement with University in Campus Anti-Semitism Lawsuit". Legal Insurrection. Retrieved 2024-02-21.
  15. ^ a b "Announcing the ASF's 2018 Broome & Allen Fellowship and Scholarship Recipients" (Press release). The American Sephardi Federation. December 21, 2017. Archived from the original on 2018-02-19. Retrieved 2024-02-23.
  16. ^ "PROPEL by propelnetwork – Issuu". issuu.com. 2020-06-18. Retrieved 2024-02-21.
  17. ^ a b Braunstein, Melissa Langsam (2022-09-30). "The new loyalty oath imposed on Jews – Washington Examiner". Retrieved 2024-02-21.
  18. ^ a b "Lauder Fellowship Opening Seminar 2023". World Jewish Congress. September 2023. Retrieved 2024-02-21.
  19. ^ Dolsten, Josefin (April 13, 2018). "51 NYU student groups pledge to boycott Israel and its backers". Jewish Telegraphic Agency. Retrieved 2024-02-21.
  20. ^ Dolsten, Josefin (April 24, 2018). "What it's like to support Israel at NYU". The Times of Israel. Retrieved 2024-03-24.
  21. ^ "Anti-Zionist NYU Students Arrested at Israel Independence Day Party, Charged With Reckless Endangerment, Assault". The Algemeiner. April 30, 2018. Retrieved 2024-02-21.
  22. ^ Hyatt, Lachlan (April 10, 2019). "NYU Students for Justice in Palestine Receives Service Award From President Hamilton". Washington Square News. Retrieved 2024-03-09.
  23. ^ Kaplan, Talia (November 14, 2019). "Education Dept. probing alleged anti-Semitism at NYU". Fox News. Retrieved 2024-02-21.
  24. ^ Laitman, Michael (2022). New Antisemitism: Mutation of a Long-lived Hatred. Laitman Kabbalah Publishers. ISBN 979-8-8498-1802-3.
  25. ^ Donald Trump, Adela Cojab, Elan Carr (December 7, 2019). President Trump Delivers Remarks at Israeli-American Council National Summit. C-SPAN. Hollywood, FL. Retrieved 2024-02-21.
  26. ^ "Remarks by President Trump at the Israeli American Council National Summit 2019 – The White House". trumpwhitehouse.archives.gov. Retrieved 2024-02-21.
  27. ^ "'My university failed to protect its Jewish students'". Arutz Sheva (Israel National News). 8 December 2019. Retrieved 2024-02-21.
  28. ^ Green, Erica L. (2019-12-12). "Wider Definition of Judaism Is Likely to Aid Crackdown on Colleges". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 2019-12-12. Retrieved 2024-02-21.
  29. ^ Bandler, Aaron (2019-02-13). "Conference Teaches Students to Stand Up for Israel". Jewish Journal. Retrieved 2024-02-21.
  30. ^ "SCA BootCampUs". Jewish Image. 2022-05-11. Retrieved 2024-02-21.
  31. ^ "New cohort of Lauder Fellows convene in New York City for Opening Seminar" (Press release). World Jewish Congress. August 2022. Retrieved 2024-02-21.
  32. ^ "Second annual Jewish Youth Assembly unites over 80 students from 24 countries to address the challenges facing the global Jewish community" (Press release). World Jewish Congress. March 2023. Retrieved 2024-02-21.
  33. ^ Ashkenazi, Yola (2023-02-24). "Enough is Enough". Jewish Image. Retrieved 2024-02-21.
  34. ^ Cojab-Moadeb, Adela (2021). "Confronting Terror: The Buenos Aires Bombings". World Jewish Congress. Retrieved 2024-02-21.
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