Essays On Brandeis Cowardice, Insulting Women's Advocate, Ayaan Hirsi

Louis D. Brandeis (1856-1941) "Those who won our independence believed liberty to be the secret of happiness and courage to be the secret of liberty."

[From article]
So when Ibrahim Hooper of CAIR and the Muslim student associations of Brandeis reminded the university that Ali’s views “makes Muslim students feel very uneasy” they were only stating a fact; not the fact that Islam was at war with its enemies — which it assuredly is — but only the fact that they felt uneasy in the presence of its foes.
[. . .]
That’s what soldiers and policeman are for. You know, the hired help. Proper people don’t do that sort of thing. And least they think of themselves as above it. And Brandeis — like Harvard, the Ivy League and most of academia — is nothing if not a club for proper people.
[. . .]
But the ideologues in the academy know the form. They can keep up appearances which in the end is really what makes them acceptable. In defense of universities, somebody has to provide a home for hypocrisy,
[. . .]
In Hirsi Ali’s case, her goal is clear. Brandeis on the other hand, has tried to be definitely indefinite; as little offensive and controversial as possible. But as Hirsi Ali points out in her response to the withdrawal of the honorary degree, by trying not to take sides Brandeis has taken sides anyway.
[. . .]
Now Brandeis is in the unenviable position of appearing subservient to CAIR, since left to themselves, Brandeis would have given Hirsi Ali the degree. But at CAIR’s behest — or someone’s — they had a sudden change of heart. They make not think they are CAIR’s flunkeys but that is what the optics suggest. Maybe the lesson here — as Mozilla might have learned — is to know your own mind and stick to your guns. An institution with no mind of its own will soon find people telling it what to do.

http://pjmedia.com/richardfernandez/2014/04/09/the-indefinite-man/

The Indefinite Man
April 9th, 2014 - 4:22 pm
Richard Fernandez


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[From article]
As Lori Lowenthal Marcus notes, Brandeis University has in recent
years bestowed an honorary degree on Tony Kushner, who called the
creation of Israel as a Jewish state "a mistake" and who attacked
Israel for ethnic cleansing and for causing "terrible peril in the
world." Brandeis has also honored Desmond Tutu, who compared Israel to
Hitler, attacked the "Jewish lobby" as too "powerful" and "scary," and
complained of the "Jewish monopoly of the Holocaust."
[. . .]
But when it comes to Ayaan Hirsi Ali, a courageous woman who has fought for human rights around the world—and who may actually like the state Israel—well, that's a bridge too far. In recent weeks, Brandeis president Fred Lawrence came under "pressure"—i.e., received complaints from some students and whining from some faculty—and promptly caved. He has disinvited Ayaan Hirsi Ali from receiving an honorary doctorate this year.
[. . .]
His justification for caving was pathetic. Lawrence announced that "we cannot overlook certain of her past statements that are inconsistent with Brandeis University’s core values. For all concerned, we regret that we were not aware of these statements earlier." Needless to say, he doesn't specify any of these statements. And he doesn't explain how Ayaan Hirsi Ali's life and thought—but not Tony Kushner's or Desmond Tutu's—has been in any way "inconsistent with Brandeis University's core values."
[. . .]
If you say nothing, if you do nothing, then aren't you an enabler of this surrender to the enemies of academic freedom and Jewish honor?
The cowardice of a university president isn't a surprise. The question is: Will less cowardly friends, associates and supporters of Brandeis meekly acquiesce in this shameful decision?

http://www.weeklystandard.com/blogs/note-supporters-brandeis_786708.html

A Note to Supporters of Brandeis
11:03 AM, APR 9, 2014

BY WILLIAM KRISTOL

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[From article]
Given that it only takes a Google search to find out everything one would need to know about her, including the controversial aspects of her views, it is laughable for Brandeis President Fred Lawrence to claim he had to withdraw the degree because of information he had only lately discovered. Ayaan Hirsi Ali said this afternoon that she was not surprised she came under attack from demagogic apologists like the Council on American Islamic Relations: She has come to expect such things.
[. . .]
What Lawrence has done here is the nothing less than the act of a gutless, spineless, simpering coward.

http://www.commentarymagazine.com/2014/04/09/the-shame-of-brandeis/

The Shame of Brandeis
John Podhoretz | @jpodhoretz
04.09.2014 - 5:04 PM

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[From article]
"She is a compelling public figure and advocate for women's rights, and we respect and appreciate her work to protect and defend the rights of women and girls throughout the world," said the university's statement. "That said, we cannot overlook certain of her past statements that are inconsistent with Brandeis University's core values."
Ali was raised in a strict Muslim family, but after surviving a civil war, genital mutilation, beatings and an arranged marriage, she renounced the faith in her 30s.

http://www.foxnews.com/us/2014/04/09/brandeis-university-withdraws-planned-honorary-degree-for-islam-critic-ayaan/

Brandeis University withdraws planned honorary degree for Islam critic Ayaan Hirsi Ali
Published April 09, 2014

Associated Press

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[From article]
Ayaan Hirsi Ali is the Executive Producer of Honor Diaries and founder of the AHA Foundation. Honor Diaries is the first film to break the silence on honor violence. In response to ongoing abuses of women’s rights, Ayaan Hirsi Ali and her supporters established the AHA Foundation in 2007 to help protect and defend the rights of women in the West from oppression justified by religion and culture.

http://floridafamily.org/full_article.php?article_no=343

CAIR condemns Brandeis University for awarding a brave woman’s fight against Islamist honor violence.