It’s not often that a college freshman finds himself in this position. In fact, it’s not often that any college student finds himself in this position.
As he looked around the conference room in Israel’s Knesset building, Brother Noah Lederman (Columbia, 2027) took in his surroundings. In addition to himself and a group of other American college students, he was able to make eye contact with Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, President Isaac Herzog and other members of Israel’s Knesset (parliament).
“I basically told them that I understood that there’s a war going on that’s being fought on the battlefields of Gaza by the IDF soldiers but there’s another war – a proxy war — that’s happening on college campuses, also in school boardroom meetings, and most importantly on social media. I told them that ‘you guys should fight Hamas and let us fight SJP (Students for Justice in Palestine). Let us be your warriors in this proxy war that’s going on in the United States because if you don’t, you may win the war in Gaza but if you lose the war in the West, it’s going to mean very little.”
Strong words to the leaders of Israel. How did we get here? How did college freshman Noah Lederman end up in Israel for this meeting, meeting President Biden and leading House Speaker Johnson on a tour of Columbia? Let’s take a step back.
“I’m from Orange County, CA. I always thought I was going to go to UCLA. It’s where my whole family went and it’s where I wanted to go. But then I got into Columbia, and I realized that it might be good to go across the country and try something new for once and not have sunny weather 24-7 all year. I got my first snow this year, but I also got a lot more.”
Among the unexpected things that Noah confronted in his freshman year was the idea of joining a fraternity. “If you had asked me a year ago, I would have told you that I was never going to be in a fraternity. I would have told you that that’s not for me. And then I got to Columbia with that same mindset. Some of the other fraternities here fit my stereotype of what I thought a fraternity was.”
“We had a family friend in California – Michael Finger (Houston, 2001) who has been pushing AEPi on me since I was like three or five years old. I haven’t seen him in several years but AEPi was always in my subconscious. Of course, a bunch of my friends and their Dads were Brothers.”
“But the Brothers of AEPi (at Columbia) were just so amazing and they were so passionate about things I was passionate about – whether it was a passion for Judaism, for activism or for advocacy. I was just drawn in. AEPi has now become a big part of my college experience.”
Another unexpected moment: “In September – this is before October 7 – I was at a rally in New York City down by the U.N. protesting some things that the Netanyahu government was proposing. It was my first big rally and I remember thinking to myself, ‘Wow! I love how many Israelis are here and I love all of the Israeli flags.’ Little did I know that I would be getting a lot more of that than I ever wanted in my life – protests and rallies with Israeli flags.”
By November, Noah – and many of his AEPi Brothers — were involved in advocating for Israel in the post October 7 world. “In November – on the day that SJP was banned at Columbia – there was a picture taken of me for New York magazine in which I was holding this giant Israeli flag. It was a very anti-Zionist article, so I don’t even know how many of my friends even saw it.”
“So, fast forward a few months and I’m coming back to school from winter break. I went to a pro-Israel protest – which had become sort of a routine for me. And, on my way back, I was attacked. I was assaulted by someone wearing a mask. They immobilized me and pinned me against the while a bunch of masked individuals surrounded me and were chanting for the death of Jews.”
That incident turned into a catalyst for getting the message out about what was beginning to happen on the Columbia campus. Noah was inundated with media requests from all over the world and his story became one of the leading examples of the antisemitism and anti-Israel activity at Columbia and, of course, college campuses around the country.
“My name was out in the public sphere, and I was asked to join the student delegation that attended the Congressional hearings where (Columbia) President Shafik was questioned by Congresswoman Stefanik. I was sitting right behind the president on the TV coverage.”
After returning from D.C., the encampments and building takeovers were taking place at Columbia and Noah became a leading voice for the increasingly threatened Jewish student community at Columbia. “I went on TV all over – from CNN to Fox News and everything else – and told the truth. Jewish students were scared for their safety and the university wasn’t doing enough.”
“I had one quote that ended up going viral. Someone asked me if the University was doing enough, and I said that the simplest way to make Jewish students feel safe on Columbia’s campus and get rid of the encampments was to turn on the sprinklers. Harvard ended up doing that briefly and I took credit for it!”
Shortly after that round of interviews, the office of House Speaker Mike Johnson reached out to Noah and asked him to help arrange a visit by the Speaker to Columbia. “When he came to campus, I took the point in introducing him to AEPi Brothers and around campus.”
Another unexpected occurrence.
“A few weeks after all of these news appearances (and the Speaker’s visit), I was invited to the White House (in late May) and to a pre-event briefing. I happened to be with Jay Feldman (Managing Director of the AEPi Foundation), and I said that I still had the Speaker’s contact information, and we arranged a meeting in his office. I told the Speaker, ‘We have chapters all over the country and we want to help you by showing what is really happening on campuses.’ I think he’s going to take us up on that in the Fall!”
“Once my name got out there so much, I was on a roll. Someone contacted me and asked if I wanted to be a part of a delegation of student leaders going to Israel and would I want to go speak to the Knesset.”
The trip was led by Olami, and Noah was recommended by a number of people, including the Columbia campus Rabbi. “I was the youngest person in that delegation by far. There were grad students and more upperclassmen. When we first got to Israel, we prepped our presentations. We wanted to make clear what was happening and how we can combat it.”
“There was one other AEPi on this trip – my brother from Columbia Eli Gelb. But when we went out on the street, on Ben Yehuda street, we met tons of AEPi Brothers! It was a great experience to meet guys from all over, sharing the Israel experience…especially at this time.”
“SJP had a conference (in Michigan) recently and they said that they were ready for the fall. They have the money and the playbook, and they want to keep Jewish students scared. I’m doing my part. I have a friend who is coming to Columbia as a freshman this fall. I want her to feel safe to wear her Jewish star earrings and her Chai necklace. If the first thing she sees is groups of people chanting, ‘Go back to Poland!’ or ‘Gas the Jews!,’ her natural reaction might be to try to fit in and not identify as Jewish.”
“We can’t let that happen.”
Noah is spending his summer with his family in California until he heads to South Florida later this month for AEPi’s 111th International Convention. “I told you that I live in LA, and I was in a grocery store last winter wearing one of my AEPi shirts and this guy comes up to me and introduces himself as Elan Carr (a Past Supreme Master of AEPi). He and Jay (Feldman) have been helping me raise my voice and fight this fight since I met them. I can’t wait to get to convention and meet more of my Brothers and work together to make Jewish campus life safer and better.”
#ProudtobeaPi