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Michael Berenhaus
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Michael Berenhaus
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Michael Berenhaus
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College Presidents seem ok with genocide of Jews

In “Republican Lawmakers Spar With University Presidents at Campus Antisemitism Hearing” (12/5/23), the Wall Street Journal wrote about the “tense exchange” by Rep. Elise Stefanik (R.,N.Y.) along with her fellow Republican lawmakers, with the President’s of Harvard University, the University of Pennsylvania, and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology “during a congressional hearing about efforts to curb rising antisemitism on their campuses.”

The most riveting testimony occurred, conspicuously absent from the WSJ article, when Stefanik asked each of the Presidents “does calling for the genocide of Jews violate their schools code of conduct or rules regarding bullying and harassment – yes or no?” The Presidents’ of each of the universities shockingly were unable to proclaim “yes”! Stefanik was understandably startled by their equivocation. She repeated the question several times to make sure the President’s understood the question and each time, they did not respond in the affirmative. One can’t help but wonder if the question was rephrased with another ethnic group how that would impact or alter how respondents answered the identical question.

The overwhelming tenor of the hedged responses from the Presidents’ was “it depends on the context.” It would have been so instructive to listeners of the hearing, and readers of the WSJ, if Stefanik was able to follow up with, “what context makes calling for the genocide of Jews ok?”

About the Author
Dr. Berenhaus has worked tirelessly as a watchdog for anti-Israel bias in the media. His efforts monitoring and responding to false media reports on Israel have compelled several news organizations to retract inaccuracies and publish letters clarifying the truth about Israel. He has been published widely in highly distributed newspapers and online publications including The Washington Post, The NY Times, The Economist, The Baltimore Sun, The Washington Jewish Week, and The American Thinker. He is a crusader in online/social media working to educate the general public as an advocate of Israel and against anti-Semitism. Dr. Berenhaus is a co-founder of ‘Boycott The Post’ and of ‘Eye on the Post’ - two non-profit organizations that monitor media coverage to ensure accuracy, fairness and truth as it relates to Israel. He is also a founder of The Pakistan Israel Peace Forum, an organization dedicated to creating peace between Muslims and Jews. Although many people in the Washington Jewish community know Dr. Berenhaus for his work in journalism, most don't know how generous he is to the Jewish community with both his time and money. Dr. Berenhaus has spent countless hours throughout the years volunteering for Israel and Jewish organizations. He went to Ethiopia and worked with the last remaining Ethiopian Jews. He has lectured to Interns and community groups providing direction and techniques for Israel Advocacy in the media. Currently, Dr. Berenhaus is working with JSSA to coordinate and donate eye glasses to the entire Washington DC region of needy Holocaust Survivors. That effort has now been expanded nationally.