University of Pennsylvania President Liz Magill resigned today in disgrace after testimony in the House Education and Workplace Committee Dec. 4, telling the committee that calling for Jews genocide was a matter of context whether it violated Penn’s code of conduct. Under cross examination by 39-year-old Rep. Elise Stephanik (R-N.Y), Magill was asked whether calling for Jews genocide violated Penn’s code of conduct. “If the speech turns into conduct it can be harassment, yes,” Magill told Stephanik. “It is a context-dependent decision, congresswoman,” Magill said Dec. 4. Magill couldn’t see the parallel with other hate speech including simply calling Blacks and LGBTQIA+ students names. Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro was horrified by Magill’s remarks, calling for her resignation. With Jews on Penn’s board of directors, it wasn’t long for Magill to resign.
Magill’s answer suggested that for Jews protests must turn violent with physical altercations before it violated Penn’s code of conduct. Whether or not Magill meant it that way or not, that’s the way it sounded to many. When it comes students protesting on campus what happens in Israel, what’s that got to do with anti-Semitism. Magill surely knows, working with Penn’s board, faculty and alumni, that American Jews are an integral, interrelated, historic party of the Penn community. When it comes to zealous Palestinian protesters, they have no right to protest anything against Jews because they happen to be the same religion as many Israelis. Magill couldn’t see the anti-Semitism. When protesters when after Goldy’s Israeli restaurant owned by a Philadelphia restaurateur, Magill should have stopped the demonstrations, even if they didn’t fall directly on the Penn campus.
All over the country, pro-Palestinian protests have missed the mark, protesting against Jews, when Israel is a independent, sovereign country currently at war with a terrorist group named Hamas. What does Israel’s battle with a blood thirsty terrorist group have to do with American Jews or, for that matter, Jews living anywhere? Palestinian protesters can’t protest in Israel but they could target protests at official Israeli locations like consulates and embassies. Jews living in the United State or any other country have nothing to do with Israeli foreign or domestic policy. Magill should know that any action by any group against Jews attending Penn was anti-Semitic and not tolerated under university policy. Penn’s board and government officials were appalled that Magil said that threats against Jews were “contex-dependent,” meaning they must involve actual violence.
No other protected class, including Blacks and LGBTQIA+ has any “context” required to violate Penn’s code of conduct. If any student, faculty or guess referred to any protected group with derogatory names, Penn would take immediate disciplinary action. Magill knew this but for some unknown reason saw fit to argue with Stephanik. One of Penn’s donors, Ross Stevens, threatened to cancel $100 million in donates because of Magill’s reckless statements. New York Gov. Kathy Hochul, 65, called on the State University System [SUNY] to address all issues related to anti-Semitism. But beyond universities, President Joe Biden, 81, should make some statement about Jewish Americans and and pro-Palestinian protesters targeting Jewish U.S. citizens. It’s outrageous that Arabs or Muslim groups think it’s OK to direct protests at Jewish Americans.
Magill reacted no differently to Stephanik than 53-year-old Harvard President Claudine Gay and 62-year-old MIT President Sally Kornbluth, both of whom saying that the universities give priority to Free Speech, something not true at all. All universities routinely ban invited guests that are too controversial based on arbitrary criteria based on political or sexual orientation. When it comes to anti-Semitism, apparently all three Ivy League presidents had blind spots. Claudine Gay, after realizing what she did before Congress, profusely apologized in the Harvard Crimson newspaper for embarrassing and misstating her position. Unlike Magill, she realized how she fell short of her obligation to provide a hate-free environment at Harvard for all students, faculty and guests. Magill refused to apologize for misstating Penn’s code of conduct when it came to anti-Semitism.
American public got a rude awakening when it came to hearing what constitutes anti-Semitism under university code of conduct codes. All three presidents could tell you what must be done to protect Blacks, Native Americans or the LGBTQIA* community, knowing that uttering any derogator word, let alone death threats, would be met with forceful discipline. When it comes to anti-Semitism, it’s time for pro-Arab protest groups to recognize that American Jews cannot be subject protests for Israeli policy in the Gaza Strip, West Bank or anywhere else. American Jews are U.S. citizens, protected by the Constitution, not subject to harassment by political group protesting a sovereign nation’s domestic, foreign policy or political agenda. Whatever happens in foreign lands or sovereign states has nothing to do with Jews living in American or elsewhere.
About the Author
John M. Curtis writes politically neutral commentary analyzing spin in national and global news. He’s editor of OnlineColumnist.com and author of Dodging The Bullet and Operation Charisma.
