Excerpt: In recent weeks, controversy has arisen surrounding an upcoming course in Princeton’s Near Eastern Studies (NES) Department for its inclusion of a book on its sample reading list that claims the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) deliberately cripples Palestinians.
While free speech protections are vital to the University and the book’s removal should not be the first response in a case like this, that does not mean anything goes. A piece of work that has sparked academic scandal must be thoughtfully studied in that context. If Prof. Larson refuses to acknowledge the plethora of scholarship critical of Puar’s book and its unfounded allegations, then she will have strayed from the University’s truth-seeking purpose, and removal of the work as Steinlauf has urged may prove necessary.
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