@MDparent22, is this kind of ugliness not also in non-elite schools? I did a quick search and saw demonstrations at UCLA, George Mason, Rutgers, UMass Amherst (where a student punched a counter-demonstrator holding an Israel flag and then spit on the flag), University of Michigan, University of Memphis, etc.
The studies I saw summarized suggest that those under the age of 30 have a much more negative position on Israel and are pro-Palestinian (and maybe pro-Hamas). I thought the original Harvard student organizationsâ blaming of Israel for the 10/7 massacre was not unusual but that it was newsworthy because it was Harvard.
Anywhere there is political activity regarding the Israeli / Palestinian conflict, it tends to get ugly, as extremists (Hamas-like and Kach-like) take over the debate and drive everyone else away. In some cases, they normally just yell at each other and everyone else ignores them. But recent events have given them much more attention.
Iâm sure itâs not limited solely to elites - thereâs exception to everything - but it does seem more prevalent in the news. Typical non elite schools - at least the ones weâve looked at - have mostly stayed out of the news. They had some vigils both sides but stayed âin boundsâ.
is it that elite schools encourage or promote this type of behavior? or is it that they tend to preferentially accept âactivistsâ from high school?
or some of bothâŠ
Again, as another poster pointed out itâs likely not limited to elite schools. I do think some schools have a greater concentration of more social justice minded/activist students - I think GW is in DC, for example, probably a lot of pre-law students or interested in politics.
My kids are very science focused - they donât even read the news. Good or bad, those kinds of kids just have different passions. If I tried to even debate political anything, I get shut down - theyâre not interested and neither are their friends. So not necessarily elite - probably not the right thing to say. More activist climate schools, which often include elite schools
As colleges go down the scale to less eliteness, they tend to attract more pre-professionally focused student cohorts (as indicated by the mix of majors being mostly liberal arts at more elite colleges but more obviously pre-professional like business at less elite colleges). Less elite colleges are also more likely to have a greater percentage of commuter students. So less elite collegesâ students may be less focused on political activism regarding things that do not directly affect themselves. If they do participate in non-college-related political activism, those who are commuters may choose to do it some place other than at the college.
No, not limited to elite (side note: a couple of schools you named are elite too) but the ones that have been most prominent in the news seem to signal they value activism, and hence likely attract a larger number of students who believe what theyâre doing is just and right. (Iâm not saying it is - just guessing how these students might view their actions)
Since you do not know her well, you may not realize that she is lock step with the cancel culture on the right with regard to these issues.
For me she has zero credibility because she does exactly what she claims she opposes. She supports censorship she agrees with, and either opposes or is silent on censorship with which she doesnât agree. And also because she is very selective or perhaps outright dishonest in her presentation of the issues. And also because she has positioned herself as a culture war propagandist. And lots of other reasons.
Of course, political activism is an extracurricular activity, and an elite college who wants to enroll âfuture movers and shakersâ (which seems to be an institutional goal of many elite colleges) may look favorably on an applicant whose political activism was a significant factor in some political decision (e.g. legislation passed).
andâŠ
⊠is it that elite schools have the name recognition that makes coverage of events there more eyecatching? An incident at the âAllegheny College of St. Jukesâ is less likely to bubble up to the ânational deskâ?
Another element might be human nature to see âkarmaâ, whenever âpeople in the high towerâ getting flak, which again will draw interest to a story.
Much of todayâs profitable TV productions feed on this; people of privilege living through âdramaâ in their ârealityâ. I have much more drama in my life, but I see no cameras around.
Can you imagine if you had a poster comparing people from Sudan to cattle? The outrageâŠ
And for those who donât realize it, comparing Jews to cattle is especially repugnant given that Jews were transported to the concentration camps inâŠcattle cars. I donât think the comparison was an accident.
Perhaps because âthe newsâ is less interested in the story at the ânon-eliteâ schools. If you have similar things happening at hundreds of places, your story will get more attention if you pick Harvard as your representative poster child.
The schools were informed about the investigations within the last 24 hours.
They include one K-12 school, the Maize Unified School District in Kansas,
and six colleges:
Lafayette College in Pennsylvania,
Cornell University in New York,
Columbia University in New York,
Wellesley College in Massachusetts,
The Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art in New York, and
the University of Pennsylvania.
A list of K-12 schools and colleges under investigation for possible discrimination based on shared ancestry or ethnic characteristics is now posted on the Department of Educationâs website and will be updated weekly.
As one would expect, that list is extensive (looking back to earlier in the year and last year) - as âAnyone can file a Title VI complaint with the Department of Educationâs Office of Civil Rights.â
Would it be surprising if a school had complaints filed by both Hamas-like students complaining about anti-Palestinian/Arab/Muslim discrimination and Kach-like students complaining about anti-Jewish discrimination? Extremists tend to think that anyone who does not agree with them is bigoted against their ethnicity/religion (even though they are typically the bigots).
Where are those Muslim students claiming theyâre too scared to attend class? Confronted with anti-Islamic projections on school buildings? Being told to avoid certain dining halls or school buildings? Posters comparing them to cows?
Blockquote
At Stanford University, a driver targeted an Arab Muslim student in a hit-and-run that authorities are investigating as a hate crime. At American University, where administrators have noted a rise in Islamophobia on campus, a note saying âGO BACK WHERE YOU CAME FROMâ and âDEATH TO ALL PALESTINIANS!â was found under a Palestinianâs staff memberâs office. A similar set of messages was written at Yale University on a whiteboard outside a dorm room.
At Princeton University, a staff member stole a studentâs phone and grabbed their hair at an off campus protest and also compared all pro-Palestinian protestors to Hamas. At the George Washington University, students have reported their hijabs being ripped off, while at Vanderbilt University, Muslim students have reported being called âterroristsâ and feeling physically unsafe on campus. In campuses across Georgia, âPalestine-specific incidents of Islamophobiaâ are on the rise, with students reporting they are experiencing hate simply because of their identities.
Yes. I remember encountering them when I was in college. Some of them even invited Meir Kahane to speak on campus (and there were predictable counter- and counter-counter- protests).