On lots of university and students’ union managers’ desks right now are thorny problems relating to conflict between groups of students – many of which concern artefacts of activism emerging from the Middle East conflict.
The manifestations can be about protests, posters, social media graphics or speaker events, and are complex to resolve.
So the news that an employment tribunal has formally recognised anti-Zionist beliefs as protected under the Equality Act has the potential to raise the stakes even higher.
The judgement arguably offers some clarity about what goes on in the context of teaching and research – but once we’re out into wider student (and academic) activities and the way that people conduct themselves, things remain very difficult to judge.
