Harvard's interim president has condemned an antisemitic cartoon posted to a social media account for a pro-Palestinian university faculty and student group, among others.
The cartoon showed two men, one Arab and one Black, with nooses around their necks being held by a hand bearing the Star of David, the symbol imprinted with a star, interim President Alan Garber said in a statement Tuesday, calling the image "flagrantly antisemitic" and promising a university investigation into who posted the image and if any "further steps are warranted."
The Harvard Faculty and Staff for Justice in Palestine group said Tuesday that the "post featuring antiquated cartoons" was quickly pulled down, and reiterated that it "stands against all forms of hate and bigotry, including antisemitism."
The posting of the cartoon comes with Harvard under congressional investigation over allegations of antisemitism, including over how the school handled statements made by campus groups as the Israel-Hamas War unfolded. President Claudine Gay stepped down last month amid backlash over that, as well as allegations she plagiarized in some of her scholarly work.
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The cartoon was posted Sunday by two student activist groups at Harvard, according to The Boston Globe, and other groups, including Harvard Faculty and Staff for Justice in Palestine, posted it as well. The cartoon, the newspaper reported, noted the "historical roots of solidarity" between the "Black liberation movements and Palestinian liberation."
The response to the cartoon was swift, with Harvard initially releasing a statement Monday condemning the messages with "offensive antisemitic tropes and messages" as "despicable."
"Harvard rejects antisemitism in all of its forms. We are determined to combat any such hate and bias in our community," the first statement said.
Garber's follow-up statement went to greater length to decry the cartoon:
Perpetuating vile and hateful antisemitic tropes, or otherwise engaging in inflammatory rhetoric or sharing images that demean people on the basis of their identity, is precisely the opposite of what this moment demands of us. As members of an academic community, we can and we will disagree, sometimes vehemently, on matters of public concern and controversy, including hotly contested issues relating to the war in Israel and Gaza, and the longstanding Israeli-Palestinian conflict. But it is grossly irresponsible and profoundly offensive when that disagreement devolves into forms of expression that demonize individuals because of their religion, race, nationality, or other aspects of their identity.
In its post noting that the cartoon was taken down, Harvard Faculty and Staff for Justice in Palestine apologized "for the hurt that these images have caused and do not condone them in any way."
