Campus Watch reports the following from October 13-18, 2019:
Howler of the Month
“In the American media context, intifada has been used in connection with violence imagery. Just like other Arabic words. Intifada is actually 71 years old. It is resistance to occupation of a people’s land. It is like Native American resistance to white settlers. You have violent aspects in that, but you also have mostly peaceful resistance. You have to completely use the Native American example in the context of Palestinian resistance.”
Golbarg Bashi, a Middle Eastern studies professor at Rutgers University, explaining the inclusion of a section titled “I Is for Intifada” in her children’s book, “P Is for Palestine"; Bridgewater Courier News, October 14, 2019.
Campus Watch Research
Duke-UNC Vs. DOE: Riding a Wave of Mutual Antagonism (Winfield Myers): https://www.meforum.org/campus-watch/59614/duke-unc-vs-doe-riding-a-wave-of-mutual-antagonism
Prof Claims Islam Is Not the Root of Islamic Terrorism (Andrew Harrod): https://www.meforum.org/campus-watch/59609/prof-claims-islam-is-not-the-root-of-islamic
Campus Watch Blog
Prof Claims Islam Is Not the Root of Islamic Terrorism (highlights Harrod’s article): https://www.meforum.org/campus-watch/59613/prof-claims-islam-is-not-the-root-of-islamic
Columbia U’s Hamid Dabashi Blames ‘Israeli Fifth Column’ for Duke/UNC Federal Funding Controversy: https://www.meforum.org/campus-watch/59610/columbia-u-hamid-dabashi-blames-israeli-fifth
Princeton’s Near Eastern Studies Dept. Co-Sponsors Panel Featuring Anti-Semitism-Spewing Norman Finkelstein: https://www.meforum.org/campus-watch/59555/princeton-near-eastern-studies-dept-co-sponsors
Middle East Studies in the News
Melanie Phillips on the anti-Israel narrative that has taken hold in higher ed. and K-12 in the US and the UK: https://www.meforum.org/campus-watch/59616/from-congress-to-classrooms-reframing-the-israel
The San Diego Unified school board passes a resolution in support of a state bill adding a semester of ethnic studies to CA public high school graduation requirements (references the proposed state curriculum that was scrapped due to anti-Israel bias): https://www.meforum.org/campus-watch/59612/san-diego-students-required-to-take-ethnic-studies
On the first in an Academic Engagement Network lecture series on anti-Semitism at the U. of Delaware, co-sponsored by the Islamic Studies Program and featuring Günther Jikeli of Indiana U. Bloomington: https://www.meforum.org/campus-watch/59582/fertile-ground-global-antisemitism-after
Anadolu Agency (Turkey) on a three-day conference at Istanbul Sabahattin Zaim University on “civil-military relations” (incl. Rutgers prof Sahar Aziz): https://www.meforum.org/campus-watch/59583/istanbul-moot-muslims-need-to-bolster-civil
Brown U’s Middle East Studies program is renamed the Center for Middle East Studies and is housed within the Watson Institute for International and Public Affairs (incl. former MES director Beshara Doumani, Paul Kohlbry, Shahzad Bashir, Samine Tabatabaei): https://www.meforum.org/campus-watch/59596/middle-east-studies-program-becomes-center
Cornell U’s “Radical Collaboration” initiative makes six new hires, incl. Near Eastern studies prof. Parisa Vaziri: https://www.meforum.org/campus-watch/59617/civic-radical-collaboration-initiative-makes-six
St. Bonaventure U’s (NY) Center for Arab and Islamic Studies receives a $5,000 grant from the Islamic Society of the Southern Tier: https://www.meforum.org/campus-watch/59619/center-for-arab-and-islamic-studies-receives-grant
Usman Butt on Georgetown U. prof Jonathan Brown’s book, Slavery & Islam: https://www.meforum.org/campus-watch/59595/slavery-islam-a-detailed-exploration-of-slavery
UC Berkeley’s Center for Middle Eastern Studies hosts a prescreening kickoff for the Arab Film Festival: https://www.meforum.org/campus-watch/59594/ringing-in-2019-arab-film-festival-with
Letter to the editor lauds U. of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign chancellor for condemning SJP (incl. UC Berkeley’s Hatem Bazian): https://www.meforum.org/campus-watch/59622/letter-to-the-editor-ui-chancellor-acted
On an Arabic calligraphy workshop at Washington University in St. Louis (incl. Younasse Tarbouni): https://www.meforum.org/campus-watch/59600/arabic-calligraphy-workshop-preserves-cultural
JW’s Hugh Fitzgerald on Tariq Ramadan’s sympathetic take on Paris Islam convert Mickaël Harpon, who stabbed four of his police colleagues: https://www.meforum.org/campus-watch/59580/tariq-ramadan-sympathy-for-the-psychotic-mikael
On the Duke-UNC Consortium for Middle East Studies receiving its ’19-20 Title VI funding, despite a DoE warning that it’s not meeting the requirements:
The Chronicle of Higher Education (incl. Middle East Studies Association): https://www.meforum.org/campus-watch/59602/education-department-will-fund-middle-east
The Washington Post (op-ed): https://www.meforum.org/campus-watch/59586/the-real-threat-to-free-speech-on-campus-isnt
University Affairs (U. of Waterloo prof Shannon Dea): https://www.meforum.org/campus-watch/59618/middle-eastern-studies-greta-thunberg
On the Supreme Court declining to review a case brought by the Thomas More Law Center on behalf of Maryland public high school student Caleigh Wood alleging that the school promoted Islam while disparaging Christianity:
Thomas More Law Center: https://www.meforum.org/campus-watch/59604/us-supreme-court-declines-to-resolve-public
Jurist: https://www.meforum.org/campus-watch/59599/supreme-court-turns-away-challenge-to-high-school
Life Site News: https://www.meforum.org/campus-watch/59605/supreme-court-lets-stand-court-ruling-oking
Bloomberg Law: https://www.meforum.org/campus-watch/59606/islam-in-public-school-challenge-rejected-by
Patheos: https://www.meforum.org/campus-watch/59607/us-supreme-court-rebuffs-student-islamic
World Net Daily: https://www.meforum.org/campus-watch/59624/supremes-have-no-problem-with-teacher-forcing
Clarion Project: https://www.meforum.org/campus-watch/59603/supreme-court-declines-to-hear-case-promoting
Jihad Watch (Christine Douglass-Williams): https://www.meforum.org/campus-watch/59623/us-supreme-court-teacher-who-forced-student-to
For the archives: 2018 Crisis Magazine article on “Islamicization in Schools” referenced by JW: https://www.meforum.org/campus-watch/59625/islamization-in-the-schools
On the Jersey Jewish Public Affairs Committee/Zachor Legal Institute lawsuit against Highland Park (NJ) and its library over the latter’s planned reading of Rutgers prof Golbarg Bashi’s children’s book “P Is for Palestine":
JNS: https://www.meforum.org/campus-watch/59584/children-book-reading-prompts-legal-action
Bridgewater Courier News (NJ): https://www.meforum.org/campus-watch/59585/p-is-for-palestine-event-in-highland-park-faces
Arutz Sheva (Israel National News): https://www.meforum.org/campus-watch/59620/p-is-for-palestine-controversy-goes-to-litigation
On a UCLA student and StandWithUs filing a Title VI anti-Semitism complaint against UCLA in which SFSU’s Rabab Abdulhadi is named:
Campus Reform: https://www.meforum.org/campus-watch/59593/ucla-student-files-federal-complaint-against
Breitbart: https://www.meforum.org/campus-watch/59592/ucla-student-files-federal-antisemitism-complaint
Moonlighters
On the fallout from Norman Finkelstein’s anti-Semitic comments on a “Black and Palestinian Solidarity” panel at Princeton University co-sponsored by the Department of Near Eastern Studies and covered initially by the Daily Princetonian:
The Daily Princetonian (members of co-sponsor, the Alliance of Jewish Progressives, issue a condemnation): https://www.meforum.org/campus-watch/59589/a-condemnation-of-finkelstein-conduct-from
The Daily Princetonian (Finkelstein responds and critiques the DP’s coverage): https://www.meforum.org/campus-watch/59587/a-response-from-norman-finkelstein-gs-87-incl
Israellycool Blog (video of exchange between Finkelstein and an IDF veteran in the audience): https://www.meforum.org/campus-watch/59581/watch-norman-finkelstein-in-antisemitic-outburst
Fousesquawk (Gary Fouse notes CW’s blog on the subject): https://www.meforum.org/campus-watch/59611/the-comical-decline-of-norman-finkelstein
On U. of Detroit-Mercy prof and anti-Israel activist Amer Zahr being chosen to serve as an official surrogate on Bernie Sanders’s 2020 presidential campaign:
JNS (Jonathan Tobin): https://www.meforum.org/campus-watch/59621/when-israel-enemies-endorse-a-jewish-candidate
Jewish Journal: https://www.meforum.org/campus-watch/59601/pro-israel-democratic-group-deeply-disturbing
