Dear President Claudine Gay,
I write to you today with a heavy but hopeful heart. My heart is heavy as a result of the tragedies that have unfolded, and are continuing to unfold, in southern Israel and Gaza. My heart is also heavy because of the hateful rhetoric employed by some of my fellow Harvard students in the wake of the recent terror attacks. It is painful for me to reckon with the fact that individuals have sent fellow students memes advocating for the destruction of the Jewish state within the Harvard community. And yet I am still hopeful, President Gay. I am hopeful that Harvard students and Harvard administrators can come together to take a stand in support of diversity and the need to daringly engage with issues afflicting our global community.
I watched with enormous pride during your inauguration speech as you spoke about the potential that Harvard holds to serve as a beacon of justice in the world. I was particularly struck by your emphasis on the need to engage with those with whom we disagree. As you discerningly observed, “when we embrace diversity––of backgrounds, lived experiences, and perspectives––as an institutional imperative,…[i]t’s because we believe in the value of dynamic engagement and the learning that happens when ideas and opinions collide.”
The “institutional imperative” of diversity at this institution hangs in the balance. It hangs in the balance not as a result of noxious efforts aiming to mute diverse viewpoints––efforts appearing ever more frequently at institutions of higher learning across this country––but as a result of silence and indifference. A palpable feeling of embarrassment has gripped our campus, President Gay. I worry that such embarrassment may morph into cynicism and apathy: forces that douse the diverse intellectual engagement that we should be protecting here at Harvard. Harvard students, professors, and administrators of varying ethnic, religious, and political backgrounds sense an air of indifference from their Administration regarding terrorism and its recent eruption in southern Israel.
Now, to be clear, I acknowledge and appreciate the more forceful statement condemning terror that you released today, President Gay. But I’m still hurt by the Administration’s response to the recent outbreak of violence. And I’m even more pained by the discourse of palpable antagonism toward Israel that has been inculcating the Harvard student body. I’m also left wondering, though: Why did it take a public outcry to make you feel compelled to denounce terrorism? Why was your message not circulated to the Harvard community via email like your prior one? And why are you the lone signatory on today’s statement? Does the absence of other signatories suggest that they do not “condemn the terrorist atrocities perpetrated by Hamas” like you do?
The Harvard community deserves answers. If the United States, Europe, and Israel can characterize an organization as terroristic, why can’t Harvard’s Administration do the same with a unified and loud voice?
Issues surrounding the Israel-Palestine conflict are nuanced and seemingly intractable. I came to Harvard because of what Harvard used to represent to me: a place where students tackle apparently intractable issues with empathy, boldness, and hope. There is nothing bold or empathetic about displaying indifference towards the issue of terrorism and the student groups that refuse to condemn it.
Perhaps I was overly idealistic in my perception of Harvard. Perhaps we are not the source of goodness and justice that we claim to be. As I am sure you are aware, while speaking to Harvard’s Phi Beta Kappa Society Chapter in 1837, Ralph Waldo Emerson delivered what many have called our nation’s “intellectual declaration of independence,” an address in which he argued that “character is higher than intellect.” Today I am left wondering whether “character”–– the willingness to call out those who perpetrate senseless violence––is still crucial to Harvard’s mission.
President Gay, the weight of the Administration’s indifference is enveloping the intellectual and moral fabric of our community. How can one feel empowered to take on the world’s issues when their institution’s Administration fails to vehemently condemn a terrorist organization?
Sincerely,
William Goldsmith
*Opinions of Forum pieces belong only to the writer and do not reflect the values of the Independent.
William Goldsmith ’24 (willgoldsmith@college.harvard.edu) writes Forum for the Harvard Independent