AFPClaudine Gay was widely criticized after a hearing on anti-Semitism on campuses
NOS Nieuws•gisteren, 21:39
The president of Harvard University, Claudine Gay, is resigning. At six months and two days, she is the shortest-serving president of the prestigious university ever.
Her resignation letter, published on Harvard’s website, states that she “parts the presidency with a heavy heart but with deep love for Harvard.”
Gay has received a lot of criticism in recent months. She is said not to have taken sufficient action against anti-Semitism on campus. She also came under fire for her performance in a congressional hearing. She was then accused of plagiarism when writing several academic papers.
Anti-Semitism and plagiarism
In early December, Gay, along with other presidents of leading universities, spoke at a U.S. Congressional hearing on anti-Semitism on college campuses. When asked whether calling for genocide against Jews violates university rules, she said it “depends on the context.” She came under fierce criticism. She later apologized.
In recent weeks, Gay has been accused of plagiarism in her academic papers. The university has now established that it has not provided sufficient source information in several cases.
In the resignation letter she does not make it explicitly clear why she resigned and whether she was obliged to do so. However, she calls it “frightening to be subjected to personal attacks and threats fueled by racial animosity.”
Reactions from republicans
Elise Stefanik, a Republican representative and Harvard alumnus who played a central role during the hearing, said in response that she believes the resignation should have taken place much earlier. “Claudine Gay’s morally bankrupt answers to my questions made history,” the New York congresswoman said in a statement.
On X, Congressman Kevin Hern writes “good riddance.”
Gay is the second president of an American university to resign after continued criticism following the hearing. The University of Pennsylvania’s board chair, Liz Magill, previously resigned following her testimony. Stefanik then responded to Magill’s departure with the words “one way, two more to go.”
2024-01-02 20:39:51
#Harvard #president #resigns #accusations #plagiarism #antiSemitism
