Three Insider Perspectives on the Fate of Jews on Campus

Harvard administrators last week had to condemn what they rightly described as a “flagrantly anti-Semitic cartoon” that student groups, with faculty support, had distributed on social media. On Sunday, a Jewish professor named Raffaella Sadun resigned as co-chair of the school’s anti-Semitism task force, apparently because she felt it did not have power to make even minimal changes.

Nearly three months ago, David Wolpe resigned from the same committee on similar grounds. He explains his experience, and his decision, in this interview with Dovid Bashevkin. Bashevkin also speaks with Talia Khan—a student at MIT who testified at the fateful December congressional hearing—about the harassment she and her fellow Jewish students have been subjected to, and the university’s callous, if not hostile, response. In the final segment, the Harvard linguistics professor Steven Pinker, a longstanding critic of the corruption of American higher education, discusses how it is possible to combat entrenched anti-Semitism while defending academic freedom. (Audio, 96 minutes.)

Read more at 18Forty

More about: Anti-Semitism, Freedom of Speech, Israel on campus, University

Hostage Negotiations Won’t Succeed without Military Pressure

Israel’s goals of freeing the hostages and defeating Hamas (the latter necessary to prevent further hostage taking) are to some extent contradictory, since Yahya Sinwar, the ruler of the Gaza Strip, will only turn over hostages in exchange for concessions. But Jacob Nagel remains convinced that Jerusalem should continue to pursue both goals:

Only consistent military pressure on Hamas can lead to the hostages’ release, either through negotiation or military operation. There’s little chance of reaching a deal with Hamas using current approaches, including the latest Egyptian proposal. Israeli concessions would only encourage further pressure from Hamas.

There is no incentive for Hamas to agree to a deal, especially since it believes it can achieve its full objectives without one. Unfortunately, many contribute to this belief, mainly from outside of Israel, but also from within.

Recent months saw Israel mistakenly refraining from entering Rafah for several reasons. Initially, the main [reason was to try] to negotiate a deal with Hamas. However, as it became clear that Hamas was uninterested, and its only goal was to return to its situation before October 7—where Hamas and its leadership control Gaza, Israeli forces are out, and there are no changes in the borders—the deal didn’t mature.

Read more at Jerusalem Post

More about: Gaza War 2023, Israeli Security