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NEW YORK, June 7, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- AJC is surprised and saddened and by the decision of Yale University to close one of its premier projects, the Yale Initiative for the Interdisciplinary Study of Anti-Semitism (YIISA). The pending closure of the five-year-old institute was reported in The New York Post.

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"We hope Yale will review this unfortunate decision so that YIISA's critical work can continue," said AJC Executive Director David Harris. "In our experience working with YIISA, AJC has been impressed by the level of scholarly discourse, the involvement of key faculty, and the initiative's ability, through conferences and other programs, to bring a wide range of voices to the Yale campus."

Harris added that YIISA has been an important resource for understanding anti-Semitism, especially in its contemporary manifestations. "YIISA has made considerable contributions to the study of this immense contemporary challenge and lent Yale's considerable reputation to an issue that remains quite serious," he said.

"If Yale now leaves the field, it will create a very regrettable void," concluded Harris.

SOURCE American Jewish Committee

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