Campus Watch October 26, 2023

Two Pro-Palestinian Protesters Allegedly Attempt to Steal UC Berkeley Student’s Israeli Flag

Two people can be seen on video allegedly attempting to steal a student’s Israeli flag during a pro-Palestinian rally at the UC Berkeley campus on October 16.

Stop Antisemitism posted a video of the incident to X, formerly known as Twitter on October 19, claiming that the two protesters assaulted the student. Dan Mogulof, assistant vice chancellor for executive communications at UC Berkeley, said in a statement to the Journal that according to university police, “the targeted student did not, in his report to police, allege that he was struck. He did allege that force was used in an effort to take his personal property, an Israeli flag, which would be robbery or attempted robbery. Those are serious crimes.”

Mogulof also said that “the campus and the police department are taking this very seriously. We are working to identify those involved. We have a long-standing commitment to ensuring appropriate consequences are imposed when laws are broken and/or the Code of Student Conduct is violated.”

Cornell Professor Apologizes for Calling Hamas Terror Attack “Exhilarating”

Cornell University Professor Russell Rickford issued an apology on October 18 for calling the Hamas terror attack “exhilarating” at a pro-Palestinian rally on October 15.

Writing to The Cornell Daily Sun, Rickford stated: “I apologize for the horrible choice of words that I used in a portion of a speech that was intended to stress grassroots African American, Jewish and Palestinian traditions of resistance to oppression. I recognize that some of the language I used was reprehensible and did not reflect my values … I am sorry for the pain that my reckless remarks have caused my family, my students, my colleagues and many others in this time of suffering. As a scholar, a teacher, an activist and a father, I strive to uphold the values of human dignity, peace and justice. I want to make it clear that I unequivocally oppose and denounce racism, anti-semitism, Islamophobia, militarism, fundamentalism and all systems that dehumanize, divide and oppress people.”

UC Davis Professor Threatens “Zionist Journalists”

A UC Davis professor appeared to threaten “Zionist journalists” in an October 10 social media post.

Screenshots of the post on X shows an account purportedly belonging to UC Davis Assistant Professor of American Studies Jemma DeCristo stating: “One group of [people] we have easy access to in the US is all these zionist journalists who spread propaganda & misinformation they have houses [with] address, kids in school they can fear their bosses, but they should fear us more.” The post then featured emojis of a knife, axe, and blood drops. As The Forward has noted, DeCristo’s UC Davis page appears to have been taken down. DeCristo’s purported X account has also been moved to a private setting.

University Chancellor Gary May issued a statement on October 19 denouncing Decristo’s posts. “I find the comments revolting in every way, and I disagree wholeheartedly with them. Regarding DeCristo’s employment status at the university, May said that “the status of complaints lodged against faculty members are confidential personnel matters, so we are unable to publicly comment on the steps we are taking.”

Columbia Professor Blasts University President As “Coward” Over Response to Pro-Palestinian Protests

Columbia University Professor Shai Davidai blasted his university in a viral video on October 18 for failing to denounce “pro-terror student organizations.”

Speaking at a vigil for the Israelis being held hostage by Hamas, Davidai shouted that the “pro-terror student organizations” view his seven-year-old son and two-year-old daughter as “legitimate target[s] of resistance” because they’re Israeli. “President Minouche Shafik of Columbia University, you are a coward,” he said, calling out Shafik’s silence on the matter. Davidai later said that he “would never send [my daughter] to Columbia … because I know that she will not be protected there because the president of the university allows pro-terrorists to march on campus.”

Michigan State Suspends Employee Over Hitler Image on Videoboards Before Football Game

Michigan State University (MSU) announced on October 22 that an unnamed employee has been suspended over an image of Adolf Hitler being shown on the football stadium’s videoboards before the October 21 football game.

The Associated Press reported that the videoboards were streaming The Quiz Channel, which featured a series of 40 questions. One of the questions asked where Hitler was born, and Hitler’s image was displayed alongside the question. The employee is being paid in the interim while the school investigates the matter. The school did not vet the video in its entirety before it was shown on the screen and will stop relying on third party content for videoboard content.

Interim University President Teresa Woodruff issued a statement apologizing over the image being displayed calling it “unacceptable.”