Support Professors' Mission to Israel to Witness October 7

The war crimes committed by Hamas on October 7 resulted in the largest single massacre of Jews since the Holocaust. We, a group of law professors, ask your financial support to help us go to Israel, where we will bear witness to October 7th, so we can better understand what happened and aid in efforts to keep such atrocities from happening again.

How Much Funding Do We Need and Why?

Your financial support will fund four University professors on a mission to Israel this July, organized by the World Jewish Congress ("WJC"). For each professor, costs are $4,000, which includes: international economy class airfare, modest hotel accommodations (single occupancy), group ground transportation, kosher meals, WJC-sponsored activities, and armed security. Therefore, we collectively request $16,000 in total, so we can all four of us go on this mission and thus become empowered to personally understand what happened on October 7 and to better combat such atrocities going forward.

Who and What Are You Supporting?

The professors you will support by providing their travel expenses for this WJC organized trip are:

This trip, organized by the WJC, will be similar to the mission WJC organized for American Federal Judges. Click this link to learn more about WJC.

Why Is This Mission Important?

Hamas murdered over 1,200 people, including whole families, raped and tortured women and girls, and took over 200 people as hostages. Hamas pledges a thousand more October 7th massacres. Hamas continues to commit war crimes in response to the Israeli counteroffensive in Gaza.

As with the Holocaust, it is imperative to bear witness to October 7. Through the WJC, a delegation of professors will visit Israel in July for this purpose. The delegation will visit the Nova festival grounds, the destroyed kibbutzim, and meet with Israeli officials, including lawyers and judges.

This information-gathering delegation to Israel is even more important given the explosion in antisemitism in the U.S. since October 7, especially at leading U.S. universities. At Harvard, Columbia, Yale, MIT, NYU, UC-Berkely—and on many other campuses—students voice support for Hamas and Iran, praise the atrocities of October 7 and call for genocide of all Jews. They also harass, assault, and torment Jewish students in ways not seen since the Brownshirts ran riot in Germany in the late 1930s. We seek to inform such students who express support for Hamas through our first-hand experiences of what Hamas did on October 7 so they will understand what they are endorsing.

Who Is Organizing This Fundraiser?

I, Seth Oranburg, am a Professor of Law. I have written extensively on American contract law. My work focuses on the importance of freedom and free markets.

I am connected to this fundraising because I will personally go on this mission, thanks to your generous contributions. I will also manage the finances so my esteemed colleagues can also visit the October 7 sites in Israel. I will withdraw the money from GoFundMe to my personal bank account and use those funds to directly pay for or reimburse myself and these colleagues for the costs listed above.

How Will This Money Be Sent and Spent?

I will spend this money by paying directly for the costs listed above or by reimbursed the colleagues named above for their actual expenses incurred. Reimbursements will occur via Venmo, PayPal, or ACS wire transfer.

What Exactly Will This Money Be Spent On?

Although the WJC plans the logistics for this delegation, each professor must pay his or her own way, including the costs of airfare, room and board, and related travel expenses. Thus, we ask for your financial help in making possible this critical trip. Your funds will be used to ensure these four professors will go to Israel and visit October 7 sites on a WJC organized trip.

For security reasons, the exact itinerary will remain confidential until after the trip. The itinerary will resemble this WJC's Federal Judges Mission. We will provide video, photo, and written evidence and testimony after the conclusion of this trip.

Why Should You Contribute?

The professors in the delegation are volunteering their own time, taking time away from both their academic work and their families. They are doing this to directly learn the facts so that they can more effectively work to oppose the rising tide of nihilism and antisemitism. Even more important, they can become better advocates on behalf of Israel—a key U.S. ally and the only country in the Middle East that is a democracy, observes the rule of law, and secures civil rights equally for all citizens regardless of religion, heritage, gender, or sexual orientation.

Conclusion

Your financial support in this critical time that is all-too reminiscent of the 1930s will help us be more effective as scholars and teachers so that neither the Holocaust nor October 7 will ever happen again.

Thank you for your generous support.