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.

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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?

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