‘Punch A Zionist’ Tweeter Quits McGill Student Government
Graphic by Angelie Zaslavsky
MONTREAL (JTA) — The McGill University student who tweeted “punch a Zionist today” gave up his last remaining student government title, citing “personal reasons related to mental health.”
Igor Sadikov, 22, a political science major at the Montreal school, resigned last week from the Student Society legislative council.
Sadikov, who had described his Feb. 6 Twitter post as nothing more than a bad joke, had faced pressure to resign but refused. He cited his own Jewish roots and the fact that he had pro-Israel parents, and also issued a carefully worded apology.
But the McGill administration and pro-Israel students and organizations who considered him anti-Semitic or as inciting violence against Jews never relented. He resigned from the board of directors of McGill’s Student Society on Feb. 23, and pre-empted a move by the Student Society’s legislative council to impeach him on March 9 by resigning from the body a day earlier.
Did you know that only 2% of Forward readers donate to support our nonprofit newsroom? That 2% make it possible for millions to read the Forward without a paywall or subscription — removing any barriers to the full and fair Jewish story.
But while the Forward is free to read, it isn’t free to produce. Big stories — like deep dives into the antisemitism data, political scoops or reporting trips to college campuses — take months of research and fact-checking. All while we keep you informed of what you need to know each day.
— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Forward Publisher & CEO
Support our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.
