Schools across the U.S. have altered policies and even landscapes in an attempt to make a repeat of last spring’s Palestine protests impossible. The result is a far-reaching war on free expression and the increased militarization of higher education.
I cannot help but be moved by the wave of protests taking over college campuses across the country. But the protests aren’t the story. Gaza is.
NYU president James Hamilton roundly condemned graduation speaker Steven William Thrasher for endorsing BDS against “apartheid” Israel in a speech at commencement Wednesday. Hamilton issued a statement saying remarks were one-sided and made some feel “unwelcome.” Astounding obeisance to Israel supporters! And not a word about Thrasher calling Trump a “fascist.”
Citing faculty and students who were denied entry into Israel, New York University’s Department of Social and Cultural Analysis passes a resolution that pledges non-cooperation with the university’s study abroad program in Tel Aviv.
“In light of the white supremacist violence in Pittsburg, I feel more compelled to pursue this resolution in the name of justice. I understand that my liberation, as a Jewish person, is tied up with the liberation of Palestinians. Our only safety is through solidarity.” – Rose Asaf, Senator at-Large and Jewish Voice for Peace-NYU
NYU Student groups pledge to boycott NYU’s Tel Aviv campus over Israel’s targeting of Arab & Muslim students and academic freedom in the US.
Last Friday at NYU, Noah Feldman, the terrifyingly-successful Harvard Law School professor and former Iraq…