Malaysian PM Mohamad Invited to Speak at Columbia U; Calls Himself ‘Proud Anti-Semite’
UWI Staff
The Jewish Voice
Mon Sep 23 2019
In 2012, the prime minister declared, “I am glad to be labeled anti-Semitic.”
The 94-year-old Mohamad is known for his public denial that six million Jews were murdered in the Holocaust as well as spreading anti-Semitic stereotypes and anti-American sentiments.
The petition, entitled “No to antisemitism at Columbia! No to Dr. Mahathir Mohamad,” denounces the speaker for his “distasteful anti-Semitic views” and bigoted statements. While the petition has nearly 1,200 signatures, it seeks at least 1,500.
It notes that Mohamad “has a right to his opinions and to express them, no matter how repugnant they are,” but should not be allowed to present them on a university campus. “It is granting the credibility of one of America’s most prestigious universities to a vile anti-Semite and shakes even further the already fragile sense of safety and belonging of Columbia’s Jewish students.”
The petition states that speaking at a university “is a privilege, not a right. This is not a matter of free speech, or of scholarly freedom. It is a matter of basic academic decency.”
It ends with a call to Columbia University President Dr. Lee Bollinger to ensure the “safety and well being of Columbia’s Jewish students.”...
