Ep 363: The Past Has an Afterlife with Gilad Avrahami and guest Trevor Stern P2 on hmTv

Ep. 363
 The Past Has an Afterlife with Gilad Avrahami & Guest Trevor Stern (Part 2) on hmTv

In this powerful continuation of their conversation, host Gilad Avrahami welcomes back Trevor Stern for an honest, unvarnished look at Jewish student life across three countries and three elite universities. From Haverford to Oxford to Edinburgh, Trevor traces how his casual expectation of “showing up for holidays” evolved into leadership, advocacy, and resilience in the face of rising hostility.

The episode journeys into the realities students rarely talk about openly:

• the campus climates that make Jewish spaces feel like sanctuaries,
• the ideological tensions that dismiss anti-Semitism as yesterday’s news,
• the strange double standard of being seen as “too white” to suffer and “not white enough” to belong, and
• the emotional toll of building community while navigating polarized environments.

Trevor shares personal experiences — from Shabbat tables filled with curious classmates, to spitting attacks on UK streets — and reflects on his years leading one of the world’s oldest Jewish student societies through turbulent times. Together, Gilad and Trevor tackle questions of collective memory, identity, belonging, and whether Jewish student groups should stay apolitical or speak out.

The episode closes with grounded advice for young Jews entering college today: how to choose a campus wisely, why Jewish community matters even when you think it won’t, and why stepping in — not stepping back — can be transformative.

This conversation isn’t just about student life; it’s about continuity, courage, and the quiet revolution of Jewish youth refusing invisibility.

Tune in — your assumptions might shift, and your hope might grow stronger.

Transcript

Podcast Transcript — Ep. 363
 The Past Has an Afterlife with Gilad Avrahami and guest Trevor Stern (Part 2) on hmTv

Gilad:
Hello, and thank you for joining me today.
I'm your host, Gilad Avrahami, the Programs and Development Coordinator here at the Holocaust Memorial and Tolerance Center. This podcast is a production of the Holocaust Memorial and Tolerance Center of Nassau County.

On today’s episode of The Past Has an Afterlife on hmTv, my special guest, Trevor Stern, joins me for a conversation about Jewish student life today.

Trevor, I’d love to hear from you — not just about the college we shared, Haverford — where we met in Philadelphia, but also about your experiences at the other universities you attended. You went on to pursue two master's degrees at Oxford and a PhD at the University of Edinburgh. The subjects you’re studying are worth exploring another time, but for now, let’s start with Haverford. When you began your undergraduate degree, what were you hoping to find in Jewish student life? What were you expecting? What did you actually encounter — and how did it shape you?

Trevor:
To be honest, I don’t think I walked into undergrad expecting Jewish student life to play a major role for me. I felt connected to Judaism, absolutely, but I didn’t anticipate becoming deeply involved. I figured I’d show up for holidays, maybe go to the occasional Shabbat, meet some fellow Jews — but I didn’t have a sense of how formative it would become. It surprised me how central it turned out to be in my undergraduate experience and in my life ever since.

Gilad:
So what did Jewish life look like at Haverford? Were there student organizations, programs, or academic ties — or was it separate from coursework?

Trevor:
Most of my involvement centered around the Chabad house on campus, run by an incredibly warm couple, Ellie and Bloomy Gervitz. They went out of their way to make Jewish students feel welcome — weekly activities, holiday observances, Shabbat dinners — the works.

It’s worth noting that I wasn’t looking to join an Orthodox-run group. But Haverford’s structure pushed a lot of us that way. There was Chabad, and there was the Jewish Student Union — very secular in outlook, ordering non-kosher food, and they’d even disaffiliated from Hillel due to its Zionist positions. I assumed I’d end up there originally, but socially the divide was clear. If you cared about Judaism in any sustained way — even as a Conservative Jew — you went to Chabad. That’s where I went, and where you went. It wasn’t necessarily about religious alignment — it was about shared value for tradition, belonging, and Jewish identity.

Gilad:
And it’s worth noting Chabad intentionally created space for everyone — Jewish and non-Jewish. Almost every Shabbat dinner was filled with people curious about Judaism, wanting to learn through experience. Those dinners were spaces of discovery.

Trevor:
Exactly — and we also hosted “Shabbat 100,” trying to gather 100 people out of a campus of about 1,400. We hit the mark a few times, or came close. Another important initiative was “Stories That Live,” which paired students — Jewish and non-Jewish — with Holocaust survivors. Students learned their stories and publicly presented them to the campus and community. I took part in that during my first year.

Gilad:
We were on campus during a period when progressive activism was especially strong. The campus climate made places like Chabad feel like refuge — spaces where being Jewish wasn’t a problem or a question. Could you talk about some experiences you faced that made Chabad feel distinct from the broader campus environment?

Trevor:
Haverford was fraught. Early on, it became clear that even mildly different viewpoints weren’t welcome. Forget conservatives — even liberal students like me who didn’t buy into every ideological trend felt alienated.

This tied into Judaism. There was a racialized narrative on campus that extended into intolerance — especially toward Jews. One striking moment was freshman year. I had just presented at the Stories That Live event about a Holocaust survivor. The student council scheduled its “We Speak” event — exclusively for students of color — at the exact same time. They refused to move it for us, even though they’d already moved it to accommodate a cancer run earlier that day.

I remember breaking down emotionally — this was just after the Pittsburgh synagogue shooting. Anti-Semitism felt raw and dangerous in America. And here we were, essentially told that Holocaust survivors and their stories didn’t matter — because Jews were classified as “white” and therefore excluded from campus spaces of suffering or discrimination. Someone on campus even told me, “The Holocaust was a long time ago.” That attitude — dismissiveness toward anti-Semitism — was pervasive.

Gilad:
When you came on the program previously, we discussed collective memory — who decides which histories matter. On our campus, American racial oppression histories were prioritized, and the Holocaust didn’t register as relevant. Why do you think that was?

Trevor:
There’s a bizarre dynamic in American discourse around Jewish identity. To white supremacists, Jews are not white — racially inferior — a view rooted in eugenics and Nazi racial ideology. But in left-wing spaces, Jews are classified as entirely white, privileged, and therefore exempt from discrimination narratives.

So Jews get squeezed — declared non-white by those who want to oppress us and declared white by those who want to erase anti-Semitism. On campus, Jewish concerns weren’t taken seriously. I applied for funding to bring Dara Horn — author of People Love Dead Jews — and was rejected on grounds that it didn’t fit their “Middle East focus,” despite the obvious relevance. Later allegations of anti-Semitic bias at Haverford validate what we sensed then: Jews didn’t count.

Gilad:
You’ve spent over three years now in the UK. Tell us about Jewish life there — both the community you engaged with and the negative experiences you encountered.

Trevor:
I moved to the UK in late 2022. I became deeply involved in the Jewish Society at Oxford and ended up serving as president during the term that began right after October 7th. It felt like being thrown into the deep end.

I wrote an article in The Times about what students were facing — rising hate crimes, tension, fear. During Hanukkah, walking to a party with a tinsel Star of David, a man stared, spit at me, and walked away. That was the climate.

Leading the community was challenging. We were apolitical by constitution, but 90% of us were Zionists. Some students thought we should become explicitly political; others accused us of being too outspoken about anti-Semitism. I constantly walked a tightrope.

Gilad:
Do you think Jewish student groups should ideally be apolitical? Or does it depend?

Trevor:
I think both spaces are necessary. At Oxford, we had a separate Israel Society that was explicitly political — and that was positive. But Jewish societies should remain apolitical for two reasons: to welcome all Jews — including those who are not Zionist — and to preserve Jewish life beyond politics. We’re a people with millennia of tradition; Jewish societies must safeguard belonging, learning, holidays, resilience — not just advocacy.

It also helps us be taken seriously when calling out anti-Semitism without being dismissed as “Zionist mouthpieces.”

Gilad:
Then came Edinburgh — your PhD. How did that compare?

Trevor:
I took a step back — leadership burnout is real. But Edinburgh has seen its own hostility: “intifada” posters, anti-Semitic targeting of the Jewish Society. Once, during a simple pub trivia night, a woman slammed down her glass, yelled “Free Palestine,” and stormed out — despite the event having nothing to do with Israel. It shows how diaspora Jews are lumped into the conflict.

As for structural differences — UK Jewish life is centralized around northwest London. Breaking in as a non-London Jew — or as a foreigner — is much harder than in the US, where Jewish communities are more dispersed. At Oxford, part of my mission was bridging those divides.

Gilad:
That’s true globally — students abroad often search for community and face these challenges. To close, what advice do you have for Jewish students entering college — whether they’re seeking community or figuring out their relationship to Judaism?

Trevor:
First — choose carefully. People underestimate how campus climate affects them, even if they aren’t religious or politically engaged. I’ve watched students blindsided by hostility, turning to Jewish communities for support they didn’t know they’d need.

Second — don’t be afraid to show up. Most Jewish spaces are welcoming. If one isn’t, try another — college campuses often have more than one.

Third — don’t think you’re “not Jewish enough.” Whether you have one Jewish parent, never went to synagogue, or don’t know Hebrew — most communities aren’t gatekeepers. They’re thrilled you’re there.

Fourth — lean on Jewish spaces. Especially now, when many students’ wider friend circles don’t understand their pain around Israel or anti-Semitism. Jewish communities can hold that with you.

So if you’re considering getting involved — take the plunge.

Gilad:
Well said. Trevor, thank you — thoughtful as always.

Trevor:
Thanks for having me back. It’s always a pleasure.

Gilad:
And thank you to everyone tuning into this episode of The Past Has an Afterlife on hmTv. My thanks to Trevor Stern for sharing insights on Jewish student life. If you enjoyed today’s conversation, check out our other episodes and series here on hmTv. Please subscribe, share, and stay connected for more engaging conversations.
Until next time — take care and be well.