If We Had to Be Governed by the Harvard Faculty… Here’s a list of possible candidates. James Freeman
Observing unhinged campus reactions to Saturday’s murderous barbarity, some commenters on social media have been recalling William F. Buckley, Jr.’s opinion that he would rather be governed by the first series of names in a telephone directory than by the faculty of Harvard. Certainly one must be extremely wary of consenting to be governed by Harvard students. But not all of their instructors would necessarily oppress us.
On Tuesday afternoon the Journal published this disturbing report from Harvard doctoral student J.J. Kimche:
The university’s “Palestine Solidarity Groups,” a collection of some 30 student groups, issued a statement exculpating the terrorists for their acts of murder, rape, kidnapping and mayhem. “We, the undersigned student organizations,” it began, “hold the Israeli regime entirely responsible for all unfolding violence.” The signatories—groups such as the Harvard Islamic Society and Harvard Law School Justice for Palestine—made clear that they stand shoulder-to-shoulder with this “resistance,” fashionable doublespeak for those feverishly working to wipe Jews off the face of the earth. Harvard isn’t alone: Some 50 student organizations at the University of California, Berkeley declared their “unwavering support for the resistance in Gaza.”
Most Jewish students have harbored mixed feelings toward pro-Palestinian groups on our campuses. Some sympathize with their cause; others see them as hostile; most ignore them. By and large, we have been happy to regard members of such groups as fellow travelers on the journey of learning and discovery, with whom we share spaces and engage in respectful classroom discussion. But during a moment of stunning moral clarity—such as the live-streaming of masked terrorists gleefully machine-gunning Jewish families—one would expect fellow students of all political persuasions to unite in horror and condemnation. The deepest political differences can be tolerated if we all abide by a basic framework of decency.
Not only have our fellow students failed to condemn this proto-genocide; they have justified and celebrated it.
And what about the grown-ups who are supposed to be running the place? Mr. Kimche added:
The Harvard media office didn’t respond to my request for comment on Monday afternoon. That night, 18 administrators put out an equivocal statement titled “War in the Middle East” that only mildly criticized Hamas and made no mention of the student groups cheering its atrocities. Only on Tuesday did President Claudine Gay “condemn the terrorist atrocities perpetrated by Hamas.” She didn’t condemn the statement excusing Hamas, but merely distanced herself from it: “No student group—not even 30 student groups—speaks for Harvard University or its leadership.”
Now John Hinderaker writes at PowerLine:
I’m so old, I can remember when it would have been shocking to suggest that Playboy Magazine has more moral sense than Harvard University. Nowadays, maybe that doesn’t come as a surprise. In any event, it’s true. When former porn performer Mia Khalifa tweeted her support for Hamas’s mass murderers… Playboy promptly cashiered her…
That is a vastly clearer and stronger statement than anything that has come out of Cambridge. On the bright side, though, student groups at Harvard that rushed to support Hamas’s attack are in full retreat. Some groups have rescinded their approval of the pro-Hamas statement they signed, while students have been resigning from boards of directors of signatory organizations.
It seems that some affiliated students were unaware of the statements being issued by their organizations, or at least wish to be dissociated from the statements as they seek to present themselves as reasonable people to potential employers.
As for that old Buckley line about the school’s faculty, many readers might expect that living under their rule would be akin to citizenship in the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela. But believe it or not, it now appears that the school has managed to employ literally hundreds of people who are not clinically insane. An open letter above the names of numerous professors at the university notes:
We are faculty at Harvard who are deeply concerned about the events in the Middle East, as well as the safety of our students here on campus. On October 7th, Hamas launched a premeditated attack on the Israeli population. Hundreds of terrorists infiltrated Israeli towns and houses. Children were killed in front of their parents; entire families were executed. Grandmothers, mothers, and their babies were kidnapped. All in all, more than 900 Israelis were killed in a single day and the death toll is continuing to grow. There have also been deaths on the Palestinian side, including hundreds of terrorists and, tragically, civilians as well.
Every innocent death is a tragedy. Yet, this should not mislead us to create false equivalencies between the actions leading to this loss. Hamas planned and executed the murder and kidnapping of civilians, particularly women, children, and the elderly, with no military or other specific objective. This meets the definition of a war crime. The Israeli security forces were engaging in self-defense against this attack while dealing with numerous hostage situations and a barrage of thousands of rockets hidden deliberately in dense urban settings…
We recognize that Harvard has students and community members from all regions, including from the Gaza Strip. These are not easy times, and we pray for the safety of all our members and their families. The Israeli-Palestinian conflict has a long and complex history. We hold varying opinions, but none of us endorses all of Israel’s past actions. However, the events of this week are not complicated. Sometimes there is such a thing as evil, and it is incumbent upon educators and leaders to call it out, as they have with school shootings and terrorist attacks. It is imperative that our academic leadership, whose good faith we do not doubt, state this clearly and unequivocally.
Comments are closed.
