“Zionism and Anti-Zionism in Historical Perspective”
Presented by Dr. Yaakov Lipsker
Wednesday, October 29, 2025, at 7 p.m.
Turchin Center for the Visual Arts 1102 and Online
BOONE, N.C. — Appalachian State University's Center for Judaic, Holocaust, and Peace Studies (CJHPS) invites the public to a free lecture by Dr. Yaakov Lipsker, Assistant Professor of Practice in Humanities and Jewish Studies at Davidson College, on Wednesday, October 29, 2025, at 7 p.m. in Turchin Center for the Visual Arts 1102, located on Appalachian State's Boone campus.
The lecture will also be offered online via Zoom. To join via Zoom, register at bit.ly/YLipsker.
Dr. Lipsker's research lies at the intersection of Eastern European Jewish social, political, and cultural history and the study of nations and nationalism. His research has been supported by the Association for Slavic, East European, and Eurasian Studies and the Memorial Foundation for Jewish Culture. He is currently working on a book project about the social and cultural history of Zionism in Eastern Europe in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.
“As visual evidence of starvation pours out of Gaza and increasing numbers of scholars and human rights groups deem Israel’s war a genocide, we are seeing a significant shift in U.S. popular views on Israel across partisan lines,” explained Lipsker. “It is no wonder that there is a surge of interest in Zionism and anti-Zionism, both in the U.S. and internationally. In opinion columns, podcasts, and social media posts, Zionism is invoked as both a defense of Israel’s actions in Gaza and as the deeper cause of their punishing impact. In this talk, I will take a step back and discuss key junctures in the history of Zionism and opposition to it among both Jews and Palestinians, from its beginnings in the 1880s to Israel's legitimating ideology since 1948.”
Sponsored by CJHPS and the departments of History and Philosophy and Religion, Lipsker's talk is free and open to the public. For a disability accommodation, visit odr.appstate.edu.
For more information, visit holocaust.appstate.edu/events/dr-yaakov-lipsker. Questions can be directed to CJHPS Director Dr. Davis Hankins by email at hankinscd@appstate.edu or by phone at (828) 262-6610.
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About the Center for Judaic, Holocaust and Peace Studies
Appalachian State University’s Center for Judaic, Holocaust and Peace Studies was established in 2002 to develop new educational opportunities for students, teachers and the community. Located administratively within the College of Arts and Sciences, the center’s vision promotes tolerance, understanding and respect for all human life. To accomplish this vision, the center works to strengthen tolerance, understanding and remembrance by increasing the knowledge of Jewish culture and history, teaching the history and meaning of the Holocaust and utilizing these experiences to explore peaceful avenues for human improvement and the prevention of further genocides. Learn more at holocaust.appstate.edu.
About the College of Arts and Sciences
The College of Arts and Sciences (CAS) at Appalachian State University is home to 17 academic departments, two centers and one residential college. These units span the humanities and the social, mathematical and natural sciences. CAS aims to develop a distinctive identity built upon our university's strengths, traditions and locations. The college’s values lie not only in service to the university and local community, but through inspiring, training, educating and sustaining the development of its students as global citizens. More than 6,800 student majors are enrolled in the college. As the college is also largely responsible for implementing App State’s general education curriculum, it is heavily involved in the education of all students at the university, including those pursuing majors in other colleges. Learn more at cas.appstate.edu.
About Appalachian State University
As a premier public institution, Appalachian State University prepares students to lead purposeful lives. App State is one of 17 campuses in the University of North Carolina System, with a national reputation for innovative teaching and opening access to a high-quality, cost-effective education. The university enrolls more than 21,000 students, has a low student-to-faculty ratio and offers more than 150 undergraduate and 80 graduate majors at its Boone and Hickory campuses and through App State Online. Learn more at appstate.edu.
Dr. Yaakov Lipsker is an Assistant Professor of Practice in Humanities and Jewish Studies at Davidson College. Photo submitted
Dr. Yaakov Lipsker is an Assistant Professor of Practice in Humanities and Jewish Studies at Davidson College. Photo submitted