“(JTA) — On a 70-degree day last week, I toured Brown University. I found myself falling in love with the school and could easily picture myself working on the student newspaper, studying in the quad and grabbing coffee from the dining hall. The only thing I couldn’t quite imagine, though, was navigating around the “Gaza Solidarity Encampment” on the main quad of campus (before the students agreed to disperse after discussions between university leaders and protesters).

The calls of “free Palestine” and the beating drums made it hard to hear my tour guide. And the beaming sun reflecting off the green fabric of the “liberated zone” tents partly blinded me. I found myself not only distracted, but angry. How could these students, who seemed to be having the time of their lives in the tents, be so against the State of Israel? And who was I, a free speech advocate, to find myself wishing that the protests would stop so that I could enjoy my tour?”

Read the full article in Jewish Telegraphic Agency here.