The News Not Noise Letter: Never Again, Depending on the Context?
Pressure on university presidents after disastrous testimony on Jewish genocide. Plus: world leaders consider Gaza’s “day after,” and the Texas AG sues to block a medically-necessary abortion.
Dr. Claudine Gay, President of Harvard University; Liz Magill, President of University of Pennsylvania; Dr. Pamela Nadell, Professor of History and Jewish Studies at American University; and Dr. Sally Kornbluth, President of Massachusetts Institute of Technology, testified at a House hearing to investigate antisemitism on college campuses. (Photo by Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)
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University Presidents Under Pressure: “It’s unbelievable that this needs to be said: Calls for genocide are monstrous and antithetical to everything we represent as a country.” That was White House spokesman’s response to the Congressional testimony offered by the Presidents of Harvard, MIT and Penn during a hearing about antisemitism on campus. In an exchange that’s gone viral, the presidents were asked dozens of times whether calling for the genocide of Jews violates university policy against bullying and harassment and each president said, “it depends on the context.” They parsed and equivocated rather than stating that calling for the genocide of anyone – Jews included – is a form of bullying and harassment and against university policy.
Context About the Context: The exchange came during questioning about campus calls to “globalize the intifada.” Intifada is an Arabic word that translates to “uprising” or “shaking off.” (Here’s Al Jazeera’s definition; here’s the ADL’s.) In the current context it refers to two uprisings in which Palestinians used violent resistance — and in the second intifada this included suicide bombings by Hamas – to attack Israel and resist Israeli rule. Harvard President Gay did say that the language is “personally abhorrent to me” and “at odds with the values of Harvard” but protected by free speech.
The News Not Noise Take: Defending free speech is traditional in American academia. But in this context, and everything happens in a context (clears throat), critics say it is hypocritical. That’s because in recent years Harvard, Penn and MIT have come under withering criticism for suppressing free speech on campus to protect oppressed groups from “triggering” language. (See reporting about Harvard; Penn; and MIT.) If words can be considered a form of violence, even when there is no explicit call for violent action, you’d think an actual call for genocide would be considered a threat. The question critics ask: are there different standards when Jews are the target?
Apologies: Penn’s President Magill has since released a carefully worded apology video in which she recants her prior position. Harvard’s President Gay has since apologized twice, most recently in an interview with The Harvard Crimson. Neither of them has resigned.
Support: In contrast,MIT’s President Kornbluth has the “full and unreserved support” of the university’s executive board.
Gaza’s “Day After”: Secretary of State Antony Blinken met with leaders from the Palestinian Authority and many Arab nations to discuss plans for Gaza after the war. US officials including VP Harris say post-war plans must lead to a two-state solution, with the unified West Bank and Gaza administered by a “revitalized” Palestinian Authority. The US and EU are pressing the idea of allowing an international peacekeeping force to ensure security in Gaza during a transition period. Arab nations would play a vital role. But many Arab leaders have expressed reluctance or downright refused to join such a coalition, despite their vocal calls for an end to the war and protection of Palestinian civilians. For his part, Israeli PM Netanyahu said Israel will maintain security control of Gaza after the war.
UN Security Council: The UN Security Council voted today on a measure to call for a permanent ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war. The US vetoed the resolution, and the UK abstained, but all 13 other members voted in favor. The Security Council is made up of five permanent members with veto power (the US, the UK, France, Russia, and China) as well as ten other member states with rotating two-year terms. While some Security Council resolutions are considered legally binding, the UN’s capacity to enforce them is limited and largely contingent on the willingness of powerful member states to take action.
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Settler Detained: Israel is detaining without trial two Jewish settlers suspected of attacking Palestinians in the West Bank. They are being held under the same military detention system that is used for Palestinians in the West Bank. It’s worth noting that – regardless of one’s views on the ethics of the administrative detention system – these Jewish violent actors are receiving the same treatment in this legal system as non-Jewish violent actors.
Settler Bans: As violence in the West Bank picks up, Belgium, Germany, and France are all calling on the European Union to ban violent Israeli settlers from entering the EU. The US announced Tuesday it will bar extremist settlers from receiving US visas.
Texas Abortion Ruling: A Texas judge ruled this week that the state must allow a woman with a life-threatening pregnancy to get an abortion at 20-weeks. But Texas’ Attorney General is appealing the decision. The AG is asking the state Supreme Court to block the woman’s abortion. The Center for Reproductive Rights, which is representing the woman, asked the Supreme Court to ignore the AG’s petition.
Hunter Biden: Hunter Biden was indicted in California on 9 new state tax charges. He is now facing two trials: one case is focused on federal gun charges (after Biden allegedly lied about his drug use in order to obtain a firearm); the California case is focused on missed tax payments (the back taxes have since been paid). In a podcast interview recorded before the latest charges were filed, the President’s son said his father’s critics are “trying to kill me knowing it will be a pain greater than my father could be able to handle,” and “destroy a presidency.” House Republicans have subpoenaed Biden to testify; his lawyer says he’ll come only if the testimony is public to ensure the committee does not “distort” his words to “misinform” the public.
Soft Landing for Christmas: After two years of talk about a potential recession, the latest jobs report offers glimmers of hope. Employment is rising, though at a steadier and slower rate than earlier this year; unemployment is very low, at 3.7%. In the words of Politico, the Fed may have pulled off the once-inconceivable “soft landing” to avoid a recession. Though the jury’s still out; Fed chief Jerome Powell says it’s too soon to know when the time will be right to lower interest rates.
Jamaal Bowman Censured: The House voted to censure Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D-NY) for pulling the fire alarm while the House was in session. Republicans say Bowman pulled the fire alarm intentionally to delay a vote on a government funding package to buy time for Democrats to read the legislation, but Bowman maintains he triggered the alarm by mistake while trying to open a door. Despite this, he pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor for pulling the alarm, paying a $1,000 fine and serving time on probation. Bowman is the third Democratic Congressperson to be censured this year, after Rep. Rashida Tlaib and Rep. Adam Schiff.
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