Harvard University President Claudine Gay is apologizing for remarks she made before a congressional committee probing antisemitism.
Gay’s remarks during her congressional testimony sparked national outrage from those who insisted she should have taken a tougher stance.
“I’m sorry, she told The Harvard Crimson, the school’s student newspaper on Thursday. “When words amplify distress and pain, I don’t know how you could feel anything but regret.”
The Crimson noted that toward the end of the hearing Tuesday in front of the House Committee on Education and the Workplace Gay had a tense exchange with Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y.
“At Harvard, does calling for the genocide of Jews violate Harvard’s rules of bullying and harassment?” Stefanik asked.
“It can be, depending on the context,” Gay responded.
Stefanik pressed Gay for a yes or no answer about whether calls for the genocide of Jews constitute a violation of Harvard’s policies.
“Antisemitic speech when it crosses into conduct that amounts to bullying, harassment, intimidation — that is actionable conduct and we do take action,” Gay said.
But later Tuesday, she insisted her comments were misconstrued.
"There are some who have confused a right to free expression with the idea that Harvard will condone calls for violence against Jewish students," Gay wrote in a statement posted on Harvard’s X account.
"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.”
During the Crimson interview, she added: “When the committee invited me to attend the hearing, I didn’t hesitate to agree. It was an opportunity to just convey the depth of both my personal commitment and the institutional commitment to combating antisemitism.”
Jeffrey Rodack ✉
Jeffrey Rodack, who has nearly a half century in news as a senior editor and city editor for national and local publications, has covered politics for Newsmax for nearly seven years.
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