Republicans are now threatening Harvard with a congressional subpoena over what they describe as an ‘abysmal’ response to anti-Semitism on campus and are requesting a slew of new documents in their probe.
House Education and Workforce Committee Chair Virginia Foxx, R-Va., deemed Harvard’s response to the House GOP probe ‘unacceptable’ and accused the university of withholding documents.
‘Upon initial review, Harvard’s production to the Committee in response to its antisemitism investigation is woefully inadequate,’ Foxx said.
‘Rather than answering the Committee’s request in a substantive manner, Harvard has chosen to provide letters from nonprofits and student handbooks, many of which are already publicly available.’
House Education and Workforce Committee Chair Virginia Foxx, R-Va., deemed Harvard’s response to the House GOP probe ‘unacceptable’ and accused the university of withholding documents
‘This is unacceptable. Harvard must produce the remaining documents in a timely manner, or risk compulsory measures,’ she warned.
The investigation was prompted after a now-infamous committee hearing where former Harvard President Claudine Gay refused to say that calls for genocide on college campuses constitutes harassment, citing the First Amendment.
The Education and Workforce Committee is now also demanding all documents related to anti-Semitism on the University of Pennsylvania’s campus.
This includes: reported antisemitic incidents, disciplinary documents, any record of settlements in response to discrimination and harassment and all meeting minutes from Penn’s Board of Trustees dating back to January 1, 2021.
The request also seeks documents related to funding for the university from foreign governmental agents, particularly Qatar.
Harvard president Claudine Gay and Penn President Liz Magill were both forced out after thier appearance at a momentous anti-Semitism hearing on Capitol Hill
The anti-Semitism hearing that prompted Gay’s resignation also forced out Penn President Liz Magill, who had similar answers on whether calls for genocide constituted harassment.
Gay said it ‘depends on the context’ of whether calling for genocide violates Harvard’s conduct rules, though calling such words ‘abhorrent.’
It would only be actionable, she said, if the hate speech crossed into ‘conduct’.
After ferocious backlash and a donor boycott, Harvard’s Gay released a statement insisting she’d been misunderstood.
‘There are some who have confused a right to free expression with the idea that Harvard will condone calls for violence against Jewish students.
‘Let me be clear: Calls for violence or genocide against the Jewish community, or any religious or ethnic group are vile, they have no place at Harvard, and those who threaten our Jewish students will be held to account,’ she said.