Anti-woke Republicans attacked Columbia University. It capitulated | Alisa Solomon, Marianne Hirsch, Sarah Haley and Helen Benedict
In a congressional hearing, Republicans used specious charges of rampant antisemitism to advance an illiberal agenda on campuses
As Jewish faculty at Columbia University, we watched with alarm as our president, Minouche Shafik, appeared before the House education and workforce committee on Wednesday to answer questions about antisemitism on our campus. While we are deeply concerned about antisemitism, we are also disturbed by the ways the hearing – like those in December, and surely those to follow – used specious charges of rampant antisemitism to advance an illiberal agenda.
We were shocked that President Shafik capitulated to its mendacious premises and failed to stand up for fundamental academic principles of honest intellectual inquiry and free expression. Most galling was the absence of any acknowledgment of the relentless devastation in Gaza: the urgent reason for the student protests that the committee caricatures and condemns as antisemitic.
Alisa Solomon is a writer, professor of journalism, and the director of the arts and culture concentration at the Columbia Journalism School. Marianne Hirsch is the William Peterfield Trent professor of English and comparative literature at Columbia University and professor in the Institute for Research on Women, Gender, and Sexuality. Sarah Haley is associate professor of history at Columbia University. Helen Benedict is a novelist and professor at Columbia Journalism School.
Continue reading...Date: | |
Tag: | Republican Party |
Filter
-
Noem details 'weird' Haley conversation about mentoring
South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem (R) writes in her forthcoming book about a “weird” conversation she had with former GOP presidential candidate Nikki Haley, who she said called her and offered to be a mentor. “I have heard quite a bit about you, and ...The Hill - Politics
More from The Guardian
-
Hope Hicks tells hush-money jury of Trump’s control over 2016 campaign
Ex-president’s former communications director says Access Hollywood tape ‘was a crisis’ for his campaign. Hope Hicks, Donald Trump’s 2016 campaign press secretary, broke into tears on Friday while testifying in the ex-president’s New York criminal ...The Guardian - World - Donald Trump -
Israelis voice sadness and defiance over Gaza protests on US campuses
People in Jerusalem express little sympathy with anti-war demonstrators, with some accusing them of hatred for Israel. At the Jerusalem theatre on Thursday night, concertgoers and staff expressed a mixture of anger, sadness and defiance as weeks ...The Guardian - World - Israel -
Canadian police charge three over killing of Sikh activist
Prime minister said there were ‘credible allegations’ that India was behind killing of Hardeep Singh Nijjar. Canadian police have charged three members of an alleged hit team for their role in the assassination of the Sikh activist Hardeep Singh ...The Guardian - World -
Berlin wants to give away Joseph Goebbels’ countryside villa
Berlin’s finance minister says property owned by Hitler’s propaganda minister will be demolished if taker not found. Berlin’s government is offering to give away a villa once owned by Adolf Hitler’s propaganda minister, Joseph Goebbels, hoping to ...The Guardian - World -
Ukraine unveils AI-generated foreign ministry spokesperson
Victoria Shi is modelled on Rosalie Nombre, a singer and former contestant on Ukraine’s version of the reality show The Bachelor. Ukraine on Wednesday presented an AI-generated spokesperson called Victoria who will make official statements on ...The Guardian - World - Ukraine