Brandeis University slammed by Orthodox Jews for saying ‘it’s anything but orthodox’

An advertisement highlighting Brandeis University’s Jewish roots has backfired with some Orthodox students and Jewish leaders.

The ad, which was spread over a double page of the New York Times Magazine on Sunday, notes “Brandeis was founded by Jews. But, it’s anything but orthodox.”

The ad goes on to say that “It’s a natural mistake to make. After all, Brandeis was founded by American Jews in 1948, including Orthodox, Conservative and Reform Jews. But when we say that Brandeis is anything but orthodox, we’re referring to its character.”

The ad campaign has been appearing in the Wall Street Journal and the Atlantic as well as the New York Times.

“Disappointing ad from Brandeis,” tweeted Dovid Bashevkin, a rabbi and director of education at National Conference of Synagogue Youth, the youth wing of the Orthodox Union. “But with all that actual Orthodox Jews face I find this seriously distasteful.”

Bashevkin continued: “This kind of pun might be cute on a podcast or a JCC [Jewish Community Center] or even a [Jewish] Federation meeting. Not a cute pun as an advertisement in the New York Times.”

Orthodox Brandeis student Eitan Marks also took to Twitter to denounce the ad. “I agree, this is yet another publicity blunder by my school,” said Marks, who is president of Brandeis Hillel. “Brandeis and Brandeis Hillel remain the best campus for orthodox students.”

Malka Simkovich, chair of Jewish studies and director of the Catholic-Jewish Studies program at Catholic Theological Union in Chicago, also blasted the ad: “In this ad, ‘Orthodox’ clearly means rigid, antiquated, monolithic, and unevolving. Since Orthodox Jews would reject these adjectives in their self-definition, this line is problematic,” she tweeted.

“The distasteful feature is that in the era of hyper sensitivity about ‘diversity’ and ‘inclusion,’ especially at universities, 1 tiny minority group is considered fair game to be the butt of a joke. They would never, ever mock Muslims … or blacks this way,’ said another Twitter user.

The ad is part of an ambitious rebranding campaign for the Waltham, MA-based university on the occasion of its 75th anniversary this year.

The school was founded in 1948 by members of the Jewish community at a time when they faced discrimination at other post-secondary institutions in the country. It is named for Louis Brandeis, the first Jewish Supreme Court justice who had died seven years earlier, and its motto is “truth” in Hebrew.

“At American universities, Jewish applicants were met with closed doors rather than open arms,” according to another ad in the campaign.

“According to then-Harvard President A. Lawrence Lowell, ‘Where Jews become numerous, they drive off other people.’ And those universities that did allow Jews imposed strict quotas to limit their numbers.”

The ad campaign was designed by New York-based DeVito/Verdi. Ellis Verdi, one of the principals of the firm, is a 1977 graduate of the university, whose alumni also include actor Debra Messing and “Tuesdays with Morrie” author Mitch Albom.

The company, which once worked on Hillary Clinton’s New York Senate campaign, is known for its irreverent ads.

It earned the enmity of former Mayor Rudy Giulilani when it created bus ads for New York Magazine noting that the magazine was “Possibly the only good thing in New York Rudy hasn’t taken credit for.”

“Brandeis is engaged in a branding campaign that is highlighting Brandeis’ Jewish roots and values as well as the fact that we have always been welcoming to students, faculty and staff from all backgrounds,” said Julie Jette, interim senior vice president of marketing and communications for the university.

“This Sunday’s ad headline was a play on words meant to highlight Brandeis’ unique story and history of innovation.”

Jette added: “Brandeis is deeply committed to our Orthodox community members, and the ad was intended not to offend, but to underscore both the diversity of our community and our unusual origin story.”

About 35 percent of the student body at Brandeis is Jewish, according to the Forward. Students are not required to disclose their religion and the number of Orthodox students is not known.