Columbia defends letting professor who celebrated Hamas terrorist attacks teach course on Zionism

Columbia University, a hotbed of anti-Semitism and leftist extremism, will have a professor who celebrated the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas terrorist attacks teach a course on Zionism in the new year.

Joseph Massad is a professor of modern Arab politics at Columbia University who has a special interest in "theories of nationalism, sexuality, race, and religion" and regularly contributes to the Middle East Eye, a radical blog apparently owned by a former official for both Al Jazeera in Qatar and the Hamas-affiliated al-Quds TV, Jamal Bessasso. Massad has also long contributed to the Electronic Intifada, a pro-Palestinian propaganda website.

On Oct. 8, 2023 — one day after Hamas terrorists massacred over 1,100 Israelis — Massad penned an article titled "Just another battle or the Palestinian war of liberation?" wherein he expressed amazement and apparent delight at the so-called "victories of the resistance."

"What can motorized paragliders do in the face of one of the most formidable militaries in the world? Apparently much in the hands of an innovative Palestinian resistance, which early on Saturday morning launched a surprise attack on Israel by air, land, and sea," wrote Massad. "Indeed, as stunning videos show, these paragliders have become the air force of the Palestinian resistance."

In addition to suggesting the terrorist attacks were provoked, Massad spoke highly of the terrorists' "success."

"Perhaps the major 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," continued the Columbia professor. "In the interest of safeguarding their lives and their children's future, the colonists' flight from these settlements may prove to be a permanent exodus. They may have finally realized that living on land stolen from another people will never make them safe."

At one stage in the article, Massad insinuated that the victims were "cruel colonizers" and stated, "The sight of the Palestinian resistance fighters storming Israeli checkpoints separating Gaza from Israel was astounding."

Whereas Massad described the terrorist attacks as "remarkable," "stunning," "striking," and "astounding," he referred to the Israeli response as "barbaric."

According to the university's directory of classes, Massad will teach a course on "the history of the Jewish Enlightenment (Haskala) in 19th century Europe and the development of Zionism through the current peace process between the state of Israel and the Arab states and the Palestinian national movement."

The listing further notes that the Hamas apologist will also provide "a historical overview of the Zionist-Palestinian conflict to familiarize undergraduates with the background of the current situation."

Nearly 50 students are already enrolled in the class, which is unsurprising granted the anti-Israel sentiment that abounds on campus.

Just last week, anti-Israel radicals marched around campus calling for a "free and liberated Palestine" and carrying banners that reportedly read, "Globalize the Intifada," and "Within Our Lifetime."

Blaze News previously reported that on the first anniversary of the Oct. 7 terrorist attacks, pro-Hamas protesters chanted, "Resistance is justified." One video of the demonstration showed protesters chanting, "One solution! Revolution!"

The university has apparently been reluctant to do anything meaningful to curb pro-terrorist sentiment on campus.

The House Committee on Education and the Workforce complained in August that the university had failed to expel any of the students responsible for the volatile demonstrations and encampment takeover in April, where Hamas-endorsed radicals illegally camped outside Columbia University for more than a week, destroying property, repeating genocidal rhetoric and demanding the institution divest from Israel.

'This would be akin to having a White Nationalist teach about the US Civil Rights movement.'

In the face of such unchecked extremism, one Jewish student tried to force Columbia's hand, filing a lawsuit accusing the university of allowing "a small group of fringe demonstrators to target Jewish students and faculty with harassment, hate speech, and violence for the sole reason that they are (or appear to be) Jewish." Columbia agreed to increase safety measures in June as part of a settlement.

The Israeli Embassy to the U.S. responded to the news of Massad's course, asking on X, "How many people has he already managed to indoctrinate?"

Amid backlash over the course, the university issued a statement Tuesday, denouncing his controversial comments but indicating he would teach the course anyway.

"Professor Massad's statements following the terrorist attack on October 7 created pain for 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," said the statement. "We remain committed to principles of free expression and the open exchange of viewpoints 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."

Columbia noted further that Massad's course is one of three that students can take next semester on the subject of Zionism and the history of Israel.

This did not sit well with Lawrence Rosenblatt, an adjunct professor of international and public affairs at Columbia, who submitted his resignation, reported the Jerusalem Post.

"I hereby resign my position as a member of the Columbia University faculty, effective immediately. I do so in response to learning (and seeing listed on the Columbia class registry) that a course on Zionism and the State of Israel will be taught this coming semester by Joseph A. Massad, who has advocated for the destruction of the State of Israel and celebrated the October 7 attacks," wrote Rosenblatt. "This would be akin to having a White Nationalist teach about the U.S. Civil Rights movement and the struggle for Black equality, or having a climate denier teach about the impact of global warming, or a misogynist teach about Feminism."

Rosenblatt, who was reportedly not scheduled to teach in the spring semester, noted that Massad is entitled to his opinions and has a right to express his opinion, but "Columbia has a responsibility to teach objectively and fairly."

"At best perhaps one could tolerate a class on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict co-taught from the many diverse Israeli and Palestinian perspectives, though not by someone who advocates for the eradication of a group of people. But that is not what is happening here," continued Rosenblatt. "Columbia has lost not only its moral compass, but its intellectual one."

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