and empowering a known radical antisemite to indoctrinate impressionable minds. Columbia has revealed itself to be complicit in this ideological agenda. I have also come to understand that Columbia’s role as an epicenter of the intifada movement in the United States is no accident but rather the result of years of institutional cultivation from within the university and external actors. To be clear, my disappointment is with Columbia University, not the business school.
I have diligently completed Columbia’s mandatory anti-harassment training several times, and I am confident that Massad’s statements about Israel, Jews, and Zionism violate these very policies. Had I created such “pain for many and contributed to deep controversy," my dismissal would have been swift and justified.
My post on Massad's appointment here:
Columbia University will offer a course on “Zionism” in spring 2025 taught by a professor who described terrorist attacks by Hamas against Israel as “awesome.”
Titled Palestinian-Israeli POLIT/SOC, the course covers “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.” It is intended to provide an overview of the “Zionist-Palestinian” conflict, according to the course description.
The professor assigned to teach the course is Joseph Massad, who also instructs Modern Arab Politics and Intellectual History at Columbia. Massad is known for writing an article for The Electronic Intifada the day after the Oct. 7, 2023, terrorist attack on Israel, in which he described the event as “astounding,” “incredible,” and a “stunning victory.”
