5 colleges facing accusations of anti-Semitism on campus after Hamas attack
Stanford University
Stanford University suspended a non-faculty instructor who reportedly singled out Jewish students in an undergraduate course and denied that Hamas is a terrorist group, referring to them as "freedom fighters."
Stanford President Richard Saller and Provost Jenny Martinez released a letter on Oct. 11 explaining that the school is investigating the situation. While the letter didn't reveal the instructor's name, it acknowledged reports that an instructor had targeted students based on their background as a way to address the ongoing conflict in the Middle East.
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"We want to make clear that Stanford stands unequivocally against hatred on the basis of religion, race, ethnicity, national origin, and other categories," the letter stated. "The expression of political views, in appropriate times and places, is important. Thoughtful, reasoned discussion of current issues is central to the life of the university."
According to The Daily Mail and Campus Reform, the instructor is believed to be 46-year-old Ameer Hasan Loggins. The instructor was a teacher to former NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick, who made headlines in 2016 by refusing to stand for the national anthem.
As The Forward reported, Rabbi Dov Greenberg, director of the Chabad Stanford Jewish Center, said three Jewish students told him about the event. During a session for the undergraduate course "Civil, Liberal and Global Education," the instructor allegedly asked Jewish students to identify themselves.
The instructor then told the Jewish students to stand against the wall with their belongings, and he told them that this is what Israel does to the Palestinians.
At one point, the instructor also asked how many Jews died in the Holocaust. When a student answered that 6 million Jews died in the Holocaust, the instructor said, "Colonizers killed more than 6 million. Israel is a colonizer."
Greenberg said that the instructor did not mention the aftermath of Hamas' assault against Israel on Oct. 7, an attack that killed around 1,400 Israelis and left more than 3,400 wounded. The terrorist group also seized around 200 individuals and transported them back to Gaza as hostages.
"He ignored that," Greenberg lamented. "He said, 'Hamas is a legitimate representation of the Palestinian people. They are not a terrorist group. They are freedom fighters. Their actions are legitimate.'"
According to the rabbi, the three Jewish students did not speak up due to fears that their grades would suffer as a result.
"This is what Jewish students face at Stanford and other places," the rabbi said. "They're feeling isolated, under attack and threatened."
Samantha Kamman is a reporter for The Christian Post. She can be reached at: samantha.kamman@christianpost.com. Follow her on Twitter: @Samantha_Kamman
