Posted on Oct 14, 2023
U.S. students are clashing over the Israel-Hamas war. What can colleges do?
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https://www.npr.org/2023/10/14/ [login to see] /israel-gaza-college-campus-protests-statements
The violence in Israel and Gaza has heightened tensions on college campuses across the U.S., as students, staff, and administrators grapple with how to respond.
Pro-Israel and pro-Palestinian student groups are weighing in online and in person, with many of their statements and protests provoking strong reactions from the other side.
Take the controversy at Harvard, where dozens of student groups signed onto a letter from the Harvard Palestine Solidarity Committee (PSC) on Oct. 7 — the day Hamas launched its surprise attack on Israel — holding Israel "entirely responsible for all unfolding violence."
The violence in Israel and Gaza has heightened tensions on college campuses across the U.S., as students, staff, and administrators grapple with how to respond.
Pro-Israel and pro-Palestinian student groups are weighing in online and in person, with many of their statements and protests provoking strong reactions from the other side.
Take the controversy at Harvard, where dozens of student groups signed onto a letter from the Harvard Palestine Solidarity Committee (PSC) on Oct. 7 — the day Hamas launched its surprise attack on Israel — holding Israel "entirely responsible for all unfolding violence."
U.S. students are clashing over the Israel-Hamas war. What can colleges do?
Posted from npr.org
College
Israel
Palestine
Violence
Harvard University
Posted 7 mo ago
Responses: 2
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PO1 William "Chip" Nagel good day Brother William, always informational and of the most interesting. Thanks for sharing, have a blessed day!
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PO1 William "Chip" Nagel
..."What if colleges stopped weighing in altogether?
Alex Morey, the director of campus rights advocacy at civil liberties nonprofit FIRE, said universities are under pressure — and competing demands — to weigh in on current events.
She says institutions were in a similar position in 2020, with the confluence of racial justice protests, a raging pandemic and a high-stakes presidential election. Since then, it's been common for schools to release statements about all sorts of issues.
"But then they get to things like the war in the Middle East, where there's really no correct answer, yet they have put themselves in a situation where not saying anything is unusual for them," Morey adds. "And so when they don't say anything, what does that mean?"
She says universities are now in a "no-win position" because of this trend. But she sees a way out — and it's following the footsteps of places like Stanford and Northwestern, and removing themselves from the debate.
Morey would like more of them to say: "We are a university that plays host to these debates of issues that are of incredible importance. We are not going to put our thumb on the scale as the university one way or another because that will chill the environment for free expression, for scholarly inquiry."
She says those institutions will get pushback in the immediate term, but will make their lives much easier in the medium- and long-term.
She says there are other ways university leaders can support students when difficult things are going on in the world, like offering condolences and counseling services.
"The best thing they can do when these divisive issues come up is do their university thing," she adds. "That's what they do best: Host these debates, have students come together in a way that is constructive and in a way that students feel like they have a place to be heard and that the debate can go on in a scholarly, civil way."
..."What if colleges stopped weighing in altogether?
Alex Morey, the director of campus rights advocacy at civil liberties nonprofit FIRE, said universities are under pressure — and competing demands — to weigh in on current events.
She says institutions were in a similar position in 2020, with the confluence of racial justice protests, a raging pandemic and a high-stakes presidential election. Since then, it's been common for schools to release statements about all sorts of issues.
"But then they get to things like the war in the Middle East, where there's really no correct answer, yet they have put themselves in a situation where not saying anything is unusual for them," Morey adds. "And so when they don't say anything, what does that mean?"
She says universities are now in a "no-win position" because of this trend. But she sees a way out — and it's following the footsteps of places like Stanford and Northwestern, and removing themselves from the debate.
Morey would like more of them to say: "We are a university that plays host to these debates of issues that are of incredible importance. We are not going to put our thumb on the scale as the university one way or another because that will chill the environment for free expression, for scholarly inquiry."
She says those institutions will get pushback in the immediate term, but will make their lives much easier in the medium- and long-term.
She says there are other ways university leaders can support students when difficult things are going on in the world, like offering condolences and counseling services.
"The best thing they can do when these divisive issues come up is do their university thing," she adds. "That's what they do best: Host these debates, have students come together in a way that is constructive and in a way that students feel like they have a place to be heard and that the debate can go on in a scholarly, civil way."
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