Union of the Jewish students of France

The Union of the Jewish students of France (UEJF) is an association national coed, which organizes the students Juifs.

Activity

It is very active on the Paris region. Its mission first consists in bringing services to the Jewish students on the campuses, to start with the simple fact of meeting between boys and girls. Among his main activities one finds the defense of the image of Israel and the fight against the Antisémitisme in the higher education like outside, which took according to it for image initially the National front, then gradually the radical Islam, the movements altermondialists and the extreme left antisionist.

Since 1995, it supported UNEF-ID, in particular with the elections CNESER, before breaking gradually then completely with it and supporting the initiative FEDER; one of its former presidents, Patrick Klugman is today one of the persons in charge of S.O.S Racism, association whose UEJF had supported creation.

She asserts: 15.000 members, including 3.000 members 10 local sections established within the university campuses in Paris, 15 local sections located in the other big cities of France, 34 members elected with the Boards of directors of the universities.

Its activities go from the sale of sandwiches Kasher to the purse to the books while passing by a follow-up in the administrative approaches or the mediation for the Jewish students having to pass from the examinations the days of Shabbat. Without being a religious movement, it organizes each year of the “days of the Jewish culture”, intended for better making known this culture. It is in justice against many anti-Jewish actions at the university (business Bruno Gollnisch, against the Renouveau studied, etc) or outwards (on Internet for example, left civil against Maurice Papon).

History

The UEJF was born on the initiative from a group of Jewish students resulting from the Résistance directed by Dely Tecuciano. Its first vocation is the reintegration in the social life, by in particular recovering their rights of students, young returned Jews of Déportation.

During the Guerre of Algeria the movement is torn between the sections of the metropolis which support independence and the sections Algerian which are opposite there. But after 1962, the UEJF takes part in the integration of the Jews of Algeria " rapatriés" in France.

Following the War the Six Day old in 1967 and events of May 1968, the movement is at the edge of disappearance. Part of the executives decides to make its Aliyah in Israel while others begin in the militancy of extreme-left (thus the section of Strasbourg which “autodissout in the people” in 1968).

During the Years 1970, the UEJF is primarily a bunch of extreme-left, without real connections with the Jewish community.

At the beginning of the Years 1980, the UEJF lines up under the bosom of the Socialist party and takes part in particular in the creation of the movement S.O.S Racism. At the same time, the UEJF starts to be established in the universities in order to attract with him the mass of the Jewish students. The movement changes gradually, becoming more consensual, Community, and continuing Zionist and officially apolitical in spite of the bonds with UNEF (especially during its time UNEF-ID) and MNEF.

Following the support of the movement for the Agreements of Oslo in September 1993, the movement passes through an serious attack which moves away it little by little from the base plus traditionalist of the Jewish community.

In 1997, in answer to the Congress of the National front, the UEJF organizes at the same time and a few meters of the right party main road its convention annual with Strasbourg.

In 1999, the movement is at the edge of disappearance and owes its resurrection only with the action of the new team under the crook of Patrick Klugman and with the release of the news Intifada and the disorders anti-semites in France. These events place the UEJF at the front of the media scene and contribute to give him a new breath.

The April 28th 2002, between the two turns of the presidential election, the UEJF Co-organizes a republican gathering in the Pantheon: “I like the Republic! ”.

Succeeding Benjamin Abtan, his current president is Raphael HADDAD, elected on Sunday, June 24, 2007, with the 31e congress of the UEJF which was held in Paris region. The national office of the UEJF is composed of 8 members (president, vice-president, general secretary, treasurer and 4 national secretaries). The UEJF, under the impulse of Benjamin Abtan, engaged in 2006 for a dialog of the memories (already initiated locally since many years). She now wishes to also imply herself in the student debates.

A voyage to Rwanda was organized in February 2006 and whose unfolding was put on line on this page: http://www.uejf.org/rwanda

In the same way, since 2004, the UEJF organizes each year in partnership with S.O.S-Racism the spectacle " To laugh against Racisme" , which takes place since its beginnings in the room of the Zenith in Paris. This project has the role to bring together actors with an aim of fighting against racism.

Sections

The Paris region gathers the large majority of the Jewish students of France, and the UEJF is organized there by sections within the principal universities. It generally lays out room to with it from where it can organize its local activities.

Apart from the principal universities, there is a section Sciences Po with the Institut of political studies of Paris, a section Universities, as well as a section health (Médecine, Dental surgery and Pharmacie).

In province, the UEJF is organized by cities.

The UEJF Grenoble is become again since 2004 a privileged interlocutor of the town councilors. Under the impulse of Solomon Attia, who received the keys of the city, then of David Hanau of many actions were carried out around the dialog of the memories .

To Lyon the UEJF largely contributed to denounce the remarks negationnists of Bruno Gollnisch. In partnership with the UNEF and Hippocampus, association against the negationnism at the university Jean-Mill Lyon 3 and, they form the collective Lyon 3 against the negationnism.

The preceding Lyons president, from now on National secretary, was Deborah Halimi. Its combat was against any form of racism and anti-semitism, of Dieudonné to the extreme right-hand side. Today, the Lyons president is Arthur Dreyfus. He centered his action in " citizenship, awakening of the consciences, and the fight against the antisémitisme" according to the weekly magazine Lyon Capital.

The UEJF, in Lyon, always was very implied in the local political life. The Lyons president and the vice president, Alexis Jakubowicz, are very present in the political debate. The influence of the UEJF is important within the Lyons university institutions.

Indeed, the Universities of the Memory, Co-organized by the UEJF, were placed under the presidency of honor of the vice-chancellor of the academy of Lyon. The UEJF expressed for justice and the truth in memory of Chaïb Zehaf.

In addition, the UEJF with Lyon and its president took part in the inauguration of very discussed memorial of the Armenian genocide.

With Marseilles , the UEJF, strong of its anchoring in a city with the point of the intercommunity dialog, opening towards the other one of its priorities with in the chair Stephan made Boumendil (2003-2005). Thus, L" UEJF Marseilles worked with associations of students Armenian, African, English, Israeli… Its activities are varied, working, in addition to on the opening to the other, memory work (in particular by actively supporting the teaching initiative of Alain Chouraqui on the camp of the Miles), the Judaism (course of Judaism with Joel Benhamou which deals with Hillel association, or with Rav Lemel), the social one (visits in hospitals…), the fight against racism and anti-semitism, the Middle East and Israel (conference-debates, meetings with Israeli students…), but also the leisures (various evenings). The UEJF is also very active in Toulouse, Nice, Nanterre, Marseilles, Aix-en-Provence or Strasbourg.

Nicolas Sarkozy was the guest of the UEJF in 2005 in Strasbourg with the European Parliament.

The UEJF organizes its national Convention regularly being held for example in Nice, Strasbourg, New York, Israel where it is question of subjects around the Jewish community. According to its own terms “the UEJF was always posed in considered and effective support of the State of Israel” and promotes “peace in the Middle East”.

Last national convention had place in Toulouse in the presence of Frederic Encel, Dominique Sopo and Bernard Kouchner.

The topic was: secularity and memory, which models for France?

The president of the UEJF Toulouse is Philippe Coriat. The UEJF, in Toulouse, works in close cooperation with CRIF Toulouse.

The UEJF NICE is " a great section which gathers 180 membres".

At the time of the general meeting which was held on Tuesday, October 9, 2007, Gabriel Attar, studying in right 24 years old, was elected with the presidency of the UEJF Nice.

It does not hide its " large ambitions". It more wishes initially médiatiser the local UEJF which it has found too quiet for several years.

According to him the section niçoise would like to much better form part of the Community and public life. It would be necessary for that to meet the persons in charge of Jewish main associations of Nice, to take share with the debate which the next municipal elections envisaged will generate in March 2008, to give an active support for the celebrations of the 60e birthday of the State of Israel. He would like also a participation more important in the university life so that the representatives of the UEJF are present in the various councils of university.

In short, it is given for objective of " to put UEJF-Nice on the front of the media scene and politique."

The UEJF Lille joined Feder at the time of the elections of Crous 2006.

The UEJF Nanterre work for an intercultural dialog with the daily newspaper within one of the most famous universities of France, the University Paris X-Nanterre. Placed between the easy suburbs and of the more underprivileged districts of the surroundings of Paris, the University Paris X-Nanterre is an establishment which accommodates in its center of the students of cultural and/or social origins very diverse. The UEJF Nanterre at the sides of many partners (S.O.S Racism as well as associations of French students of Armenian or African origin…) try to start again the debate within the university on the place of the Other, always in a dynamics to fight against racism and anti-semitism.

The UEJF Nancy is one of the most active sections. Under the aegis its former president Elie Bohadana, it found a second breath in 2001. After training seminars intended for the executives of the Jewish community of France, it took part in the re-creation of S.O.S Racism in Nancy.

Affiliations

National relations

In France, the UEJF forms part:

of the General meeting of CRIF (Representative council of the Jewish institutions of France),
of the French section of the world Jewish Congress,
of the national council of the FSJU (Funds of a company Jew unified) of France,

International relations

The UEJF maintains the close relationships with the Jewish students throughout the world. It is member:

of the executive office of the EUJS ( European EUJS /Union of the Jewish students),
of the executive committee of the WUJS ( World world Union off Jewish Students /Union of the Jewish students).

See too

Representative council of the Jewish institutions of France

External bonds

Site of the UEJF

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