Commentary: Why We Shouldn’t Cancel Pro-Hamas Protesters

November 20, 2023 1 min read

1 Comment

Julian Adorney
Foundation Against Intolerance & Racism

Excerpt: In the wake of Hamas' brutal attack on Israeli civilians on October 7, many prominent individuals and groups leapt to defend Hamas. Thirty-four student groups at Harvard cosigned a petition saying that they "hold the Israeli regime entirely responsible for all unfolding violence." At the University of Pennsylvania, protestors chanted, "Israel, Israel, you can’t hide: We charge you with genocide." Columbia University professor Joseph Massad called the terrorist attack "awesome," and Cornell professor Russell Rickford said of the attacks, "It was exhilarating. It was energizing. . . I was exhilarated." (to his credit, Rickford has since apologized).

But some on the right have gone too far. They've gone beyond simply refusing to associate with the protestors and have tried to exert social pressure to get others to refuse to associate with them as well. In other words, they've been attempting to cancel the protestors.

Click here for link to full article

1 Response

S. in Pa.
S. in Pa.

November 22, 2023

This false moral equivalency is the reason I no longer give to FAIR. They look at a rapist and the rape victim, and all they see is two people who were involved in a rape. They’re willing to fight equally hard for either side, with a foolish idealism that willfully blinds itself to reality. Are pro bono legal resources so abundant that FAIR can spend half its time fighting for the bad guys, while hoping there’s someone else to help the good guys?

Leave a comment


Also in National Free Speech News & Commentary

Columbia ‘Incorporating’ IHRA Antisemitism Definition

July 17, 2025 1 min read

Ryan Quinn
Inside Higher Ed

Excerpt: Columbia University’s acting president says the institution is incorporating the controversial International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance definition of antisemitism into the Office of Institutional Equity’s work. That office investigates discrimination complaints against students and employees.

“Formally adding the consideration of the IHRA definition into our existing anti-discrimination policies strengthens our approach to combating antisemitism,” Claire Shipman said in a statement Tuesday announcing “additional commitments to combatting antisemitism.”

Read More
International Student Visa Issuances Dropped in May

July 17, 2025 1 min read

Ashley Mowreader
Inside Higher Ed

Excerpt: The U.S. Department of State issued 12,689 fewer F-1 visas in May 2025 compared to the May before, which could forecast a decline in international students able to attend U.S. universities this fall.

While visa issuances can help predict international student enrollment trends, they don’t tell the full story, said Rachel Banks, senior director for public policy and legislative strategy at NAFSA, the association of international educators. Still, the trend line isn’t positive. “We’re not really going to know until we get through September to know everyone who arrives, to know what the enrollment really looks like,” Banks said. “But it’s certainly not encouraging.”

Read More
The Manhattan Statement on Higher Education

July 17, 2025 1 min read

Christopher F. Rufo
City Journal

Excerpt: America’s colleges and universities have long been the bright lights of our civilization. For nearly four centuries, they have pioneered new fields of knowledge, brought the arts and sciences to new heights, and educated the men who built our republic. But over the past half-century, these institutions gradually discarded their founding principles and burned down their accumulated prestige, all in pursuit of ideologies that corrupt knowledge and point the nation toward nihilism.

Now, the truth is undeniable. Beginning with the George Floyd riots and culminating in the celebration of the Hamas terror campaign, the institutions of higher education finally ripped off the mask and revealed their animating spirit: racialism, ideology, chaos.

Read More