The president of Rutgers University in New Jersey defended the free speech rights of three faculty members who have recently come under intense criticism for their comments on Israel and Jews.
Speaking in a town hall sponsored by the Rutgers student government on Thursday, President Robert Barchi noted ongoing media attention focused on Michael Chikindas, a microbiology professor who published multiple antisemitic, homophobic and misogynistic social media posts; Jasbir Puar, a womens studies professor whose latest book accuses Israel of injuring Palestinians in order to control them; and Mazen Adi, an adjunct professor of international law who accused Israeli officials of trafficking childrens organs while serving as a spokesperson for the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.
Barchi began his address by illustrating the difference between free speech and harassment, noting that placing a swastika on the side of a building on campus would not be a violation of the First Amendment, even if it might breach university policies against vandalism.
His argument drew an objection from a woman in the crowd, who said to applause, it is not free speech.
If you take that swastika and put it on the door of a dormitory, thats not protected, Barchi argued in return, but if it is a general building on the university, by first amendment rights, its protected.
He went on to address the ongoing controversies surrounding Chikindas, Puar, and Adi, noting that the one thing that is common to all of these is that they were all brought forward by The Algemeiner.
Barchi called The Algemeiner a newspaper in circulation for over 40 years a blog out of New York, which is the follow-on to what was a Yiddish-language newspaper that folded 10 years ago. They are the ones that have researched each one of these stories that have been picked up elsewhere.
Barchi acknowledged that Chikindas who described Judaism as the most racist religion in the world made crude jokes about Israel, Judaism, women, homosexuality, a whole lot of things which most of us would find repugnant.
On the other hand, they are also things that are covered by his First Amendment right to free speech, the president argued. You may not like what the guy says, but you have to like the fact that he can say it.
He's not wrong about the first amendment comments, but that's not exactly a reason for why these professors were not at least disciplined by the university. ---