Harvard Faces Mockery Online Over Handling of Israel-Palestine Conflict on Campus
In the wake of the recent Middle East conflict between Israel and the Palestinian terrorist group Hamas, college campuses have become battlegrounds for intense debates and controversies. Many of these institutions have become hotbeds for anti-Semitism and sympathy for barbaric attacks against innocent Israeli citizens. But no college has stoked more controversy during this conflict than Harvard University.
Harvard first drew significant attention when more than 30 student organizations, led by the Harvard Undergraduate Palestine Solidarity Committee, issued a joint statement blaming Israel for the recent conflict. The letter accused Israel of being an “apartheid state” and stated that it was “entirely responsible for all unfolding violence.”
Harvard President Claudine Gay’s responses to the situation further stoked controversy. Two statements released by Gay failed to provide strong condemnations of the rhetoric from pro-Palestinian groups on campus. Consequently, wealthy Israeli donors resigned from Harvard University’s board, which included withdrawing a multi-million dollar donation. The incident even led to a formal complaint filed with the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights, alleging an unchecked rise in anti-Semitism at the university.
In the wake of these events, President Gay faced additional scrutiny for her responses at a congressional hearing on Tuesday. The House Education Committee questioned Gay for the anti-semitic and genocidal rhetoric being promoted on Harvard’s campus. When questioned, Gay refused to agree that this discriminatory rhetoric towards Jews and Israelis was a violation for Harvard’s code of conduct. The public backlash of this was so severe that the Harvard President felt compelled to release an additional statement after the hearing.
“There are some who have confused a right to free expression with the idea that Harvard will condone calls for violence against Jewish students,” Gay said in a statement. “Let me be clear: Calls for violence or genocide against the Jewish community, or any religious or ethnic group are vile, they have no place at Harvard, and those who threaten our Jewish students will be held to account.”
Harvard attempted to address the negative public perception by issuing this statement, but online mockery ensued, with the university being labeled as sympathetic to terrorist causes.
Barstool Sports Founder Dave Portnoy mocked the college in a now-viral post by creating a satirical graphic depicting a Harvard logo modified to say “Hamas.” The shirt graphic, which wasn’t actually sold on shirts, included a slogan that referred to Harvard as “The ISIS of the East.”
Adding to the controversy, Jewish students reportedly commissioned an airplane to fly a banner over the university this morning which displayed the Palestinian flag and the message “Harvard hates Jews.” According to the group that funded this act of protest, the message was intended to “respond to the runaway antisemitism on the campus and the shocking support for Hamas terrorism and rape obscenely vocalized by Harvard faculty and students following the Oct. 7th massacre in Israel.”
