It's telling that Srinivasan is alarmed by university administrators allegedly succumbing to “partisan political pressure from pro-Israel legislators and donors,“ but overlooks Qatar's extensive funding of Western universities. Indeed, Qatar stands out as the most significant foreign donor to American universities, despite being essentially imbued with the ideology of the Muslim Brotherhood, of which Hamas is an offshoot. This seems perfectly acceptable to Srinivasan, but she goes into a tizzy at the mere suggestion that individual donors might withdraw funding because their alma maters are filled with students who cheer on Hamas.
And it doesn't seem to bother her in the least that Students for Justice in Palestine, a group Srinivasan is quick to defend, is closely linked to and funded by another radical organization, American Muslims for Palestine, which in turn has links to the extremist Muslim Brotherhood. This inconsistency suggests not only an extreme and almost compulsive moral confusion, but also a deliberate disregard for significant realities.
This letter more closely resembles the genome editing case, highlighting targeted demands stemming from a deep consensus on fundamental issues. Additionally, it addresses a matter of genuine academic concern: academic freedom and international collaboration.
It's telling that Srinivasan is alarmed by university administrators allegedly succumbing to “partisan political pressure from pro-Israel legislators and donors,“ but overlooks Qatar's extensive funding of Western universities. Indeed, Qatar stands out as the most significant foreign donor to American universities, despite being essentially imbued with the ideology of the Muslim Brotherhood, of which Hamas is an offshoot. This seems perfectly acceptable to Srinivasan, but she goes into a tizzy at the mere suggestion that individual donors might withdraw funding because their alma maters are filled with students who cheer on Hamas.
And it doesn't seem to bother her in the least that Students for Justice in Palestine, a group Srinivasan is quick to defend, is closely linked to and funded by another radical organization, American Muslims for Palestine, which in turn has links to the extremist Muslim Brotherhood. This inconsistency suggests not only an extreme and almost compulsive moral confusion, but also a deliberate disregard for significant realities.
There is actually a very recent (14 May) and pretty good open letter signed by some 6000+ academics on Gaza, namely against the boycott of Israeli academics: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSc8NcgnDj_3z50ykNNenGMCRTqWkw4naiCNaYxtWgwC_PPXHQ/viewform?fbzx=1211434375163477353. The exception that proves the rule?
This letter more closely resembles the genome editing case, highlighting targeted demands stemming from a deep consensus on fundamental issues. Additionally, it addresses a matter of genuine academic concern: academic freedom and international collaboration.
There's almost as much to unpack in the footnote as there is in the actual essay!