Parkland Shooting Survivor Has Harvard Admission Rescinded over Old Comments By Alexandra DeSanctis
Parkland Shooting Survivor Has Harvard Admission Rescinded over Old Comments
This morning, Kyle Kashuv — a high-school graduate who survived the mass shooting last February in Parkland, Fla. — announced that Harvard University has withdrawn his offer of admission after his past racist comments came to light.
The comments in question appeared in a Google document that Kashuv had with friends in high school and that he wrote when he was 16 years old. Since the remarks were publicized, Kashuv issued a lengthy apology and cooperated with Harvard’s requests for further information. According to Kashuv, some of his political opponents then began to repeatedly contact Harvard and urge the university to rescind his admission.
After being notified of Harvard’s decision, Kashuv requested an in-person meeting with administration officials to discuss the situation, but the university declined. Here’s some of what Kashuv said this morning about his offer being rescinded:
Kyle Kashuv✔ @KyleKashuv
10/ Harvard deciding that someone can’t grow, especially after a life-altering event like the shooting, is deeply concerning. If any institution should understand growth, it’s Harvard, which is looked to as the pinnacle of higher education despite its checkered past.
Kyle Kashuv✔ @KyleKashuv
11/ Throughout its history, Harvard’s faculty has included slave owners, segregationists, bigots and antisemites. If Harvard is suggesting that growth isn’t possible and that our past defines our future, then Harvard is an inherently racist institution.
Harvard’s decision is incredibly disappointing. The rise of social media has made it possible for egregious comments such as Kashuv’s to linger forever, and we have yet to shape the norms we will apply for personal growth and recovering from mistakes. Harvard’s choice to deny Kashuv admission over his comments is more evidence that too much of our society isn’t willing acknowledge sincere repentance or allow for forgiveness. We’ve lost sight of the importance of grace.
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