DePaul students demand professor apologize for 'Immoral Conduct' after pro-Israel Op-Ed

A student coalition called for DePaul University in Chicago to censure Philosophy Professor Jason D. Hill and for him to issue a public apology for an op-ed he wrote on Tuesday about Israel annexing the West Bank. The incident is the latest in an ongoing series of disputes surrounding free speech, Middle East policy and anti-semitism on college campuses nationwide.

In the op-ed published in The Federalist, Hill argued Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who recently won a historic fifth term in office, should make good on his promise to annex Jewish settlements in “occupied Palestinian territories.” He claimed Palestinians should not be able to vote, Israel has the “moral right” to wage war against Hamas, and that the only “viable option” for a policy toward the Palestinians is “radical containment or expulsion.”

On Saturday, Chicago Area Peace Action (CAPA) at DePaul created an online petition calling for the school to meet several demands including censuring Hill, having him release a public apology for the "immoral conduct" and attend racial sensitivity training.

“His comments create unsafe and uncomfortable spaces for everyone, especially Palestinian and Muslim students who now all refuse to enroll in a class that is taught by Professor Hill,” the petition said.

Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) told Newsweek they were "completely appalled and outraged" by the op-ed, but their anger later transformed into concern for their safety and comfort at the university.

"Regardless if DePaul chooses to meet our demands, the coalition will continue to organize, mobilize, and disrupt until our demands are met in order to promote justice and equality for all marginalized communities on campus," SJP explained.

Hill told Newsweek that he anticipated the op-ed would receive criticism after the positive treatment he gave Jewish and American civilizations in his 2018 book, We Have Overcome: An Immigrant's Letter to the American People.

“Some people hated that I thought Jewish civilization should be a model on which an aspirational identity could be developed. So I was not surprised by the backlash,” Hill told Newsweek about the reception of his book. “We still live in an age of deep anti-Semitism where people hate the Jewish people for their extraordinary success.”

SOURCE