Two weeks ago, I returned to study at Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government (HKS). I had hoped that I would have had a calmer semester than the previous one and would have been able to focus more on my studies than on defending Israel’s right to exist. Hamas’s brutal and murderous attack on Israel sparked the war in Gaza, but it also opened a new front within America’s elite universities. One American political science professor said, “I’ve been teaching at Harvard for 35 years and I’ve never seen a situation like this before.”
When I was accepted to Harvard University, it was one of the proudest moments of my life. But after witnessing Harvard’s behavior in the weeks following the October 7th incident, I felt ashamed to be a member of this university. Harvard University seemed to have lost its moral compass. Instead of being a center of academic thought and dialogue around democratic values and freedoms, its leaders acted like bureaucrats concerned primarily with putting out fires and protecting endowments.
But I didn’t feel completely alone. Some professors showed courage and deep commitment to their work as educators at what is supposed to be the best university in the world. One such person is my professor of Middle East politics, Dr. Tarek Massoud. A veteran professor at HKS, Mr. Masoud is known for his high academic standards and unwavering dedication to open dialogue and the pursuit of truth. After the outbreak of war, he reached out to Israeli and Palestinian students on campus and had numerous conversations aimed at providing support and guidance.
On October 13, just one week after the outbreak of war, Professor Massoud launched the first academic committee at Harvard University to focus on the Gaza conflict. The event was held at the prestigious JFK Forum to a sold-out house. After an hour of relatively balanced discussion, time for questions from the audience began.
At that time, the Israeli students were still in shock and were not ready to ask questions to challenge the speaker. In contrast, pro-Palestinian students were prepared to ask pointed questions, clearly aimed at questioning not only Israel’s right to self-defense, but also Israel’s right to exist. Sensing that the panel discussion could not end like this, Masoud found a call to one of the Israeli students in the audience and allowed him to ask a final question to ensure that our voices were heard.
This week’s headlines are once again filled with controversy over Harvard University, this time with Massoud launching a series of events titled “Middle East Dialogue” and bringing together Palestinian president Dalal Saib, who has previously justified Hamas attacks. He is accusing him of providing a platform for Dr. Erekat. News outlets are quick to label Harvard University as “anti-Semitic,” ironically without considering the context. Pennsylvania Democratic Sen. John Fetterman, known for his support of Israel, tweeted on social media site X: , systematic rape, mutilation, and torture of children, the elderly, and girls and women. ”
Open academic discussion about war
For those who support Israel’s right to protect itself from the terrorist organization Hamas, it is easy to adopt the narrative that the world is against us and that critical voices are necessarily anti-Israel or anti-Semitic. Although we are deeply disappointed by what is happening on American campuses today, we must not let our frustration overlook the complexity and importance of open academic debate about Israel. Politicians and influencers who are quick to comment, while well-intentioned, complicate the job of educators to expose students to a diversity of opinions through rigorous academic questioning.
Massoud’s approach is fundamentally different from the types of events run by student organizations that invite speakers with a clear agenda against Israel. These are a series of meetings with prominent speakers from a wide range of political views on the Middle East.
The first speaker will be Jared Kushner, former President Donald Trump’s son-in-law and architect of the Abraham Accords. Additional speakers include former Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Salam Fayyad and Dr. Einat Wilf, former member of parliament and prominent voice on Israel and the conflict. Unlike many university events where there is no attempt to present a diversity of opinions and where the moderators act like talk show hosts, these events featured speakers who spoke to Massoud and the dozens of Israeli and Jewish students studying at the university. forced to answer tough questions from an audience that includes students. H.K.S.
Was it the right decision to invite Saib Erekat to the series? I’m not sure. Are her views on Hamas unacceptable and abhorrent? absolutely. Inviting a controversial speaker to a challenging interview doesn’t mean you support everything they say. However, it is important to note that, unfortunately, many Palestinians, and even some students at Harvard University, have similar views.
The most striking example was a letter signed by 34 student organizations immediately after the Hamas attack, in which the unraveling of the violence explicitly blamed Israel. As much as we would like to ignore them, these outrageous opinions exist. While condemning and isolating them, Harvard’s role should be to expose the flaws in these ideas and provide a forum for intellectual debate.
Most Harvard students are not familiar with the details of the conflict. Our role is to critically and openly engage with our students. As one of Massoud’s students, I can attest that he initiated the “Middle East Dialogue” to foster genuine dialogue, even if it was sometimes uncomfortable.
Israeli students on campus recognize the benefits of having access to opposing views. The HKS Israel Executive Board expressed its continued support for Mr. Massoud’s efforts to provide more effective learning opportunities for students, including this spring semester’s speaker series. In his recent LinkedIn post, he wrote: Have a serious discussion, not a carefully planned conversation. In such conversations, you declare to each other in a cheerful tone, agree with opposing opinions, and never get into the heart of the matter. Our students can receive it. Indeed, they demand it. ” As an Israeli student at Harvard University, I demand it.
While it is essential to denounce anti-Semitic activity and pressure universities to provide safe spaces for Jewish and Israeli students, that does not mean dissent cannot be addressed. We come from democracies and need to support open and challenging debate wherever possible. Combating anti-Semitism on campus does not mean silencing discussions that do not align with our views. That means taking strong action against those who discriminate against Jewish students. That means educating about anti-Semitism.
That means working hard to support a vibrant Jewish community. It also emboldens, rather than isolates, professors who engage seriously in academic debate at places like Harvard, confronting ethically bankrupt ideas, and defeating them in the open marketplace of ideas. It also happens.
The author is a former director of the Reut Institute and an expert on Israel-US relations and global Jewry. He is currently studying in the mid-career MPA program at Harvard Kennedy School.