Former Bernie Sanders campaign co-chairman and left-wing activist Cornel West blamed Harvard University’s decision to deny him tenure on his opposition to the Israeli “occupation” of Palestine.
West, a prominent left-wing political activist and philosopher, was a professor at Harvard from 1994 until 2002, and again starting in 2017. He was recently denied tenure after a standard five year review, according to the Boston Globe. West has also been associated with Princeton University and Union Theological Seminary.
“Is Harvard a place for a free Black man like myself whose Christian faith & witness put equal value on Palestinian & Jewish babies- like all babies- & reject all occupations as immoral?” West asked, after the denial was announced.
1/2 Is Harvard a place for a free Black man like myself whose Christian faith & witness put equal value on Palestinian & Jewish babies- like all babies- & reject all occupations as immoral? https://t.co/Wv8gcgEVtk
— Cornel West (@CornelWest) February 19, 2021
Israel removed all troops and settlers from the Gaza Strip in 2005. The Israeli Army Deputy Chief of Staff said at the time that the removal was very “complicated operationally and emotionally,” according to The New York Times. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced in Oct. 2020 that Israel would build new settlements in the West Bank. (RELATED: Rashida Tlaib Appears To Blame ‘Israeli Occupation’ For Israeli Teen’s Murder)
West has a history of inflammatory remarks. During the 2020 Black Lives Matter riots, West described America as “a failed social experiment.” He claimed that without “democratic sharing of power, resources, wealth and respect,” there would be “more violent explosions.”
In a testy exchange on “Hannity,” West told Fox News contributor Leo Terrell to “check yourself, negro” after Terrell accused West of supporting looting and defunding the police.
A Harvard University spokesman declined to comment to the Boston Globe on the reason for the denial of West’s tenure.