Sat. Dec 14th, 2024

Why a White Billionaire Slammed Harvard’s First Black Woman President as a So-Called Diversity Hire<!-- wp:html --><p>Photo Illustration by Thomas Levinson/The Daily Beast/Getty/Reuters</p> <p>Since the start of <a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/keyword/israel">Israel</a>’s war against <a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/keyword/hamas">Hamas</a>, student-led pro-<a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/keyword/palestine">Palestine</a> protests on U.S. college campuses have been <a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/elise-stefaniks-calculated-demagoguery-on-antisemitism-and-free-speech">accused of spreading antisemitism</a> and threats to Jewish students, and a number of pro-Palestinian voices and organizations have been silenced or shut down.</p> <p>As a result, university leaders are being asked about what they’re doing to protect both Jewish and Muslim students. Those are rightful questions and more needs to be done to ensure student safety and sense of belonging.</p> <p>However, Dr. Claudine Gay—<a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/keyword/harvard-university">Harvard University</a>’s first Black president in its 368-year history—is facing a more sinister challenge. Look no further than the billionaire Pershing Square CEO <a href="https://twitter.com/BillAckman/status/1732632488227303784">Bill Ackman’s recent post on X</a>, in which he claims to have “heard from someone with firsthand knowledge that the Harvard president search committee would not consider a candidate that didn’t meet the university’s DEI requirement.”</p> <p><a href="https://www.thedailybeast.com/why-a-white-billionaire-slammed-harvards-first-black-woman-president-as-a-diversity-hire">Read more at The Daily Beast.</a></p><!-- /wp:html -->

Photo Illustration by Thomas Levinson/The Daily Beast/Getty/Reuters

Since the start of Israel’s war against Hamas, student-led pro-Palestine protests on U.S. college campuses have been accused of spreading antisemitism and threats to Jewish students, and a number of pro-Palestinian voices and organizations have been silenced or shut down.

As a result, university leaders are being asked about what they’re doing to protect both Jewish and Muslim students. Those are rightful questions and more needs to be done to ensure student safety and sense of belonging.

However, Dr. Claudine Gay—Harvard University’s first Black president in its 368-year history—is facing a more sinister challenge. Look no further than the billionaire Pershing Square CEO Bill Ackman’s recent post on X, in which he claims to have “heard from someone with firsthand knowledge that the Harvard president search committee would not consider a candidate that didn’t meet the university’s DEI requirement.”

Read more at The Daily Beast.

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