Columbia University professor resigns after teaching colleague who is pro-terror

On By Littum

An adjunct professor at Columbia University announced his resignation Monday in response to a report by The Jerusalem Post that an academic who praised the October 7 massacre will teach a course on Zionism.

Adjunct Professor of International and Public Affairs Lawrence Rosenblatt sent a resignation letter to the Columbia administration in response to Prof. Joseph Massad’s planned teaching in the bachelor’s course, History of the Jewish Enlightenment in the 19th century Europe and the Development of Zionism.

“I hereby resign my position as a member of the Columbia University faculty, effective immediately,” Rosenblatt said. Massad “has advocated the destruction of the state of Israel and celebrated the October 7 attacks.”

Rosenblatt said that having Massad, who authored an Oct. 8 electronic intifada article positively describing Hamas operations as “stunning” and retaliatory, teach a course on Zionism was “akin to having a white nationalist to teach about the American civil rights movement and the struggle for black equality, to have a climate denier teaching about the effects of global warming, or a misogynist teaching about feminism.

“While Massad has the right to think what he thinks and say what he thinks, Columbia has a responsibility to teach objectively and fairly,” Rosenblatt wrote.

A pro-Palestinian protester holds a sign reading ”Glory to the Martyrs, Victory to the Resistance” on the campus of Columbia University, on the one-year anniversary of the October 7 Hamas attack, amid ongoing Israel-Hamas. conflict, in New York City, United States, October 7, 2024. (Credit: REUTERS/Mike Segar)

“At best, one might tolerate a class on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict taught jointly from the many different Israeli and Palestinian perspectives, though not by someone advocating the extermination of a group of people.”

Massad’s course

The course, to be taught by Massad, will provide “a historical overview of the Zionist-Palestinian conflict” and “the current peace process between the State of Israel and the Arab states and the Palestinian national movement.”

Massad wrote in the October 8 article that “the greatest achievement of the resistance in the temporary takeover of these settler colonies is the death blow to any confidence that Israeli colonists had in their military and its ability to protect them.

“In the interest of protecting their lives and the future of their children, the colonists’ flight from these settlements may turn out to be a permanent exodus,” Massad said. “They may have finally realized that living on land stolen from another people will never make them safe.”

Rosenblatt said that for the past 15 months he had continued to teach at Columbia, which has been the subject of the anti-Israel camp protests, because he believed the institution’s values ​​were not the same as the destructive values ​​of some students and staff.

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“Columbia has lost not only its moral compass, but also its intellectual one,” Rosenblatt said.

“The institution of Columbia has officially sanctioned this class and this professor, harming the academy it once was. With it gone, I cannot stay. My hope is that Columbia will correct this travesty, and if so, will I would be open to returning.”

Rosenblatt is not a tenured faculty member and was not scheduled to teach in the spring semester.

Massad’s course drew criticism from the Israeli embassy in the US on Saturday, which asked on X/Twitter how many students the professor had “managed to indoctrinate.”

A Columbia spokesperson issued the following statement in response: “Professor Massad’s statements following the October 7 terrorist attack caused pain to many in our community and contributed to the deep controversy on our campus. We have consistently condemned any celebration or promotion of violence or terror We remains committed to the principles of free speech and the open exchange of views and perspectives through opportunities for constructive dialogue and understanding throughout our campus community, and we seek to provide a learning environment and classrooms that promote intellectual inquiry and analytical thinking along with civility, tolerance and respect.”

“Professor Massad’s class is one of three courses Columbia students can choose to take next semester on the subject of Zionism and the history of Israel, two of which are offered through Columbia’s Institute for Israel and Jewish Studies. Professor Massad’s class is limited to 60 students and is not a compulsory course,” the statement concludes.

Mathilda Heller contributed to this report.