Shiran Canel
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Shiran has proven herself to be a bastion of Jewish identity and pride as she stands up against antisemitism in her master's program at the Art Institute of Chicago.
The Israeli American mother of two served as a military management officer in the Moran Special Artillery Unit of the IDF.
After the army, when Shiran applied to the School of the Art Institute of Chicago's art therapy program in 2023, she was initially rejected, only to have her rejection reversed after the school discovered that she was turned away not on merit, but likely due to antisemitic discrimination.
In her master's program, Shiran received extensive pressure to sign a statement accusing Israel of genocide and declaring that anti-Zionism is not antisemitism. She refused and, instead, circulated a rebuttal letter. Shiran went on to sue the school, describing it "a place of hostility towards Israelis and Jews." The lawsuit is one of the first Title VI suits in the country.
Even after encountering and enduring antisemitism, Shiran refuses to back down and leave the program, and continues to stand up and fight for equality for the people of Israel and for all Jews.
AGE:
35
PRONOUNS:
she/her/hers
PRIMARY GIG:
Full-time mom, master’s student in art therapy, artist, and Israel advocate
ON THE SIDE:
Starting a Jewish learning center and synagogue
SOMETHING MOST PEOPLE DON’T KNOW ABOUT ME:
After marrying my husband and moving to Chicago in 2018, my mom was diagnosed with an advanced and aggressive form of leukemia. I returned to Israel and served as her primary caregiver for much of 2019. Thankfully, my mother recovered and is doing very well. I discovered the healing power of art while working with therapists in the oncology wing of the hospital, and this experience motivated me to pursue a career as an art therapist.
A JEW WHO INSPIRES YOU:
My grandmother, Penina, was born in Izmir, Turkey, and fled to Israel as a child. She remembers dancing in the streets when Israel declared independence in 1948. My grandfather passed away when she was still quite young, but she managed to raise three children on her own, and instill in them deep commitment to Israel, Judaism, and the Jewish people. In addition to her three children, she now has nine grandchildren and 15 great-grandchildren. All of them look to Savta Penina as a light of love and optimism, and an example of tremendous strength.
