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The Middle East Studies Association (MESA) wrote to President Botstein. To Read MESA President Virginia H. Aksan's letter click on the link below.
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Between The Lines issues letter in support of Joel Kovel
Following his termination of contract from Bard College:
As the Canadian publisher of Joel Kovel’s book Overcoming Zionism: Creating a Single Democratic State in Israel/Palestine, we at Between the Lines in Toronto were dismayed to learn that Bard College has decided not to renew Professor Kovel’s appointment as Distinguished Professor of Social Studies. We welcomed the opportunity to publish Professor Kovel’s book because it is a serious contribution to a discussion of the issues around Israel and Palestine that developed an important, but seldom-heard, point of view. We agree with Professor Howard Zinn that it “is a valuable addition to the growing debate, in and out of American academia, that is re-examining long held assumptions about the sources of conflict in the Middle East.”
This is a time for broadening, not narrowing, discussion of difficult issues, especially if they are highly charged. Universities, like publishers, have an obligation to introduce people, especially young people, to the full range of relevant thinking and not to trim their offerings in the face of controversy. Economic pressures can too easily be used as an excuse to retreat from confronting views that challenge powerful interests and established conventions. Given the deep security, economic, and environmental issues of this time, it is the task of universities, publishers, and other guardians of public debate to respect and cherish the full range of voices and analyses.
Your decision not to renew a contract that had been honored for twenty years looks to us like a grave failure of public and academic responsibility. We call upon the authorities at Bard College to reconsider and reverse their decision.
Yours Sincerely,
Jonathan Barker, Paula Brill, Robert Clarke, Amanda Crocker, Anjula Gogia, Steve Izma, Voula Kraniou, Andrea Kwan, Mike Ma, Kelly Murphy, Peter Saunders, Aparna Sundar, Jamie Swift, Richard Swift, Jennifer Tiberio, Zoe Whittall
Members of the Editorial Committee, Between the Lines
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Dear President Botstein,
March 28, 2009
I write to express my disappointment, indeed outrage, at Bard’s failure
to renew the contract of Dr. Joel Kovel. It would seem that this action
is directly correlated with his public anti-Zionist stance. I have
several colleagues more knowledgeable than I about the history of
Zionism and the state of Israel who have found his book on the subject
of Zionism invaluable. Since I became informed of his case, I have
ordered the book and will read it with interest and an open mind.
One book of his I am familiar with is his /Enemy of Nature/. I have
assigned this book in my philosophy classes at SUNY Cortland where I am
chair of the Philosophy Department and a professor. I use it in
conjunction with others from conservative to liberal to radical left
perspectives on the subject of environmental ethics. Students found his
book compelling, and I felt pleased that I had provided them with a
range of political and ethical viewpoints. When scholars who write in
favor of ecosocialism and/or against Zionism are suppressed, I worry
that one important bastion of democracy—the academy—is seriously
threatened. In dangerous times as these we need to protect civil
liberties rather than weaken them. I believe the AAUP should take up his
case.
Bard College is supposed to be a model of liberal academe. I see that
your /Faculty Handbook/ stipulates that professors (note the root word
“profess” which bespeaks of presenting a viewpoint) have a "right . . .
to search for truth and understanding without interference and to
disseminate [their] findings without intimidation." Shame on your
administration for violating the spirit of liberal education and the
policy of your own institution! What hypocrisy!
I also am aware that you have claimed financial exigency drove you to
the decision not to renew Dr. Kovel’s contract. Quite frankly, such a
remark strains credulity. It is more reasonable to believe, as I do,
that you and your administration and board of trustees are using this
argument to obfuscate the truth. My conclusion is based on common sense
after a study of the congruence of the publication of his book on
Zionism and his nonrenewal. It is also supported by the egregious fact
that Professor Bruce Chilton did not recuse himself from the personnel
process.
I would hope that you consider J.S. Mill’s /On Liberty/ to be one of the
most important books in Western civilization. One would think that its
precepts on free speech would be held dear by the administration of a
college such as Bard. Your reputation as a liberal institution certainly
has been sullied by this violation of academic freedom.
In light of these considerations, I ask that the College rescind its
decision not to renew Dr. Joel Kovel’s contract.
Dr. Kathryn Russell
Professor and Chair
Philosophy Department
SUNY Cortland
Cortland, NY 13045
USA
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Professor Leon Botstein
President, Bard College
For several years we have enjoyed weekends at the Bard Music Festival and on several occasions had friends join us for the stimulating seminars and performances. In 2004, you acknowledged that it was reasonable for artists such as Shostakovich to be loyal to the Soviet Union, which represented to them the "big idea" of social equality. We were greatly impressed at this unconventional stance by a leading educator. We touted your intellectual and musical open-mindedness to whomever we could. It was, therefore, puzzling and more than disappointing when your program note for the recent "Music of the Other Germany" ASO concert echoed the standard anti-communist canard that any accomplishments of the GDR were illusions.
It now appears that this political devolution correlates with your support of ever-more openly genocidal Israeli Zionism. We have learned that Bard did not oppose a Zionist campaign against U.S. university-press distribution of an anti-Zionist book by one of your faculty. Subsequently, you also terminated the teaching contract of the author, Joel Kovel, after decades at Bard -- for non-political reasons, of course.
Whatever happened to "defending to the death" the right to utter the hated thought? In your pre-performance talk at the ASO concert, you said that we mustn't blame GDR artists for not attacking the regime with a flaming sword. Was this your apologia for joining the ranks of pro-imperialist academic witch-hunters?
No exclusivist state -- neither "Aryan," nor Christian, nor Muslim, nor Jewish -- can be secure or just. The historically progressive role of Jews was as internationalists. It wasn't as conquest-of-labor "socialist" ethnic cleansers. It isn't as field testers of flesh-eating weapons for the U.S. military. The Israeli misrulers -- blind Sampsons shaking the pillars to keep their privileged status -- endanger Jews everywhere. The U.S. corporate agenda is increasingly blamed on Zionists (read Jews) even among self-styled progressives. Stifling dissent on behalf of Israeli nationalists and of U.S. financiers betrays both academic freedom and the interests of most Jews.
We were looking forward to this year's Bard Music Festival but we consider it our duty to protest your actions concerning Professor Kovel. With reluctance, we will not subscribe and will discourage others from subscribing. Please rethink your support for suicidal Zionism. Join the growing movement of Israelis and Jews worldwide who have a bigger, better idea of social equality.
Rita and Barry Freed
Bronx, NY 10463
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To the President of Bard:
I am an Associate Professor of American Studies and Anthropology at Wesleyan University. I write to you regarding Bard's recent decision to not renew Professor Joel Kovel's contract on account of his political views, in particular those that run counter to the pro-Zionist sentiments that are upheld among some key members of Bard's administration and governing officials.
Your actions regarding Professor Kovel's contract send a loud and clear message across academia throughout this country and beyond--a message about Bard's unfair labor practices and, equally as repugnant, Bard's qualified commitment to academic freedom and how the institution penalizes political dissent in US society.
Please take a stand to protect Bard's reputation, and its stated commitments to the cherished values of academic freedom and political difference, and reverse your decision with regard to Professor Kovel.
Sincerely,
J.Kehaulani Kauanui, Ph.D.
Associate Professor
American Studies and Anthropology
Center for the Americas
Wesleyan University
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Dear President Botstein,
I have just learned that Bard College has terminated Professor Kovel's contract. I feel I must express the dismay and distress this decision causes me.
When I read last year about the campaing against OVERCOMING ZIONISM and the pressures exerted on the University of Michigan Press, I had the uncanny feeling of the worst aspects of America's past returning like the repressed to haunt its campuses. The reading and archival research I undertook for my recent book, HOLLYWOOD'S BLACKLISTS. A POLITICAL AND CULTURAL HISTORY (Edinburgh University Press, 2008), instilled in me an intense feeling of revulsion over McCarthyism and those who, in one way or another, espoused its credos.
Now I witness intolerance for any kind of criticism of Israel, from whatever quarter, turning into what I can only call a witch hunt. I therefore wish to state that I am proud to have had the support of Professor Kovel whom I solicited for an endorsement for my book, on the strength of his essential work RED HUNTING IN THE PROMISED LAND. That endorsement was immediately forthcoming and concluded with this sentence: "Reynold Humphries has not only, then, written a fine history, but also a cautionary tale for a new epoch of reactionary respression".
If those words concerned President Bush's so-called "war on terror" since "9/11", they can also, alas, apply to the treatment meted out to Joel Kovel. I respectfully ask you to reconsider your decision.
Yours sincerely,
Reynold Humphries
Professor of Film Studies (retired)
University of Lille III
France
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If we assume Professor Kovel, or should that be former Professor Kovel, is not diverging from the facts,that his account is substantially correct, and - it would appear - easy to substantiate I think it behooves you to refuse or at least return your 2005 Princeton Review award for being the second most progressive college...
sincerely yours
David Herz, Paris
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Dear President,
It is so important to have a variety of voices heard on critical international and human rights issues. For you to join the list of those driving off campuses voices critical of the Israeli government, US policy and the "official" version of Mid-East history is chilling toward the free speech and intellectual pursuit of peaceful alternatives in this region.
I hope you can reverse your decision and keep Professor Joel Kovel's voice on campus.
Sincerely,
Ginny Hildebrand, PA
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Joel Kovel,
Maybe you should go by Jeremiah not Joel.
You have always fought the good fight, and this one is just more ugly & foul than the others.
The entire world is being held hostage to the Zionist machine, and we watch it escalate by the day.
Kovel, Finkelstein and Freeman are the best & most pertinent evidence for the Zionists' money, power, & influence.
You taught many of us much of the best that we ever learned, and there is no denying your teaching & influence for good.
Many of us not only respect you, but realize that you have already made a difference.
Gerald Spezio in Santa Margarita, CA
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Dear President Botstein,
As a Jew and a fan of many cultural and other events at Bard College, I was extremely disturbed by the decision not to rehire Joel Kovel, an extremely dedicated, intelligent and generous teacher who is nothing but an asset to the academic community. The fact that his political views diverge from those of mainstream Israeli-government policies is not grounds for denying his continued employment as an intellectually rigorous and deeply devoted teacher.
As a Jew, I join Joel in refusing to stand by and in silence as the Israeli military employs weapons, most of them U.S.-made–including white phosphorous and Dense Inert Metal Explosives (DIME)–that human rights organizations such as Amnesty International deem to be a gross violation of human rights. It is critical that Jews not put blinders on when it comes to Israeli government policies: the Jewish community cannot afford to idly stand by and refuse to criticize such flagrant violations of civilians' human rights.
I respectfully request a reconsideration of the decision not to rehire Joel Kovel. Bard is extremely lucky to have such a dedicated, bright light of original thought in its midst.
Sincerely,
Sarah Plant
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Dear President Botstein,
I am deeply disappointed and appalled by your decision not to rehire Joel Kovel as a faculty member at Bard. Mr. Kovel is a brilliant and prolific writer and a gifted and caring teacher. He also has worldly experience and viewpoints that are not usually found in academia. Whether you personally happen to agree with him or not, it is obvious that he offers something to Bard students that they are unlikely to find elsewhere. For 20 years, he has been a valuable treasure and an asset to Bard, one of the real stars who attract bright young students to the college. Bard should consider itself lucky to have a professor of Joel Kovel's quality and should be eagerly trying to hold on to him, not discard him.
I am a writer, a teacher and a Jew, just as Joel Kovel is. And I can tell you without reservation, I have the highest respect for Mr. Kovel's accomplishments. I have read several of his books, and I consider him a thorough researcher, an original thinker and an outstanding writer. I have seen him teach firsthand, and I believe his students over the last 20 years share my enthusiasm for his teaching abilities. As a Jew, I also believe that Mr. Kovel represents and eloquently speaks for a considerable portion of the Jewish community who view current Israeli policy toward the Palestinians as cruel, tragic, and ultimately destructive not just for Palestinians but for Israel and Jews everywhere.
You may or may not agree with Mr. Kovel's views, but he has every right to articulate them in an academic setting. And Bard students are privileged to be exposed to Mr. Kovel's views, which most students in America never get to hear, let alone discuss and think about. It is a blow to academic freedom and to the quality of education at Bard for you not to rehire Mr. Kovel.
As an active and concerned resident of the Hudson Valley who frequently attends events at Bard, I urge you to reconsider your decision and rehire Joel Kovel.
Thank you.
Sincerely,
Zachary Sklar
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Dear President Botstein-
Bard's termination of Prof Joel Kovel causes me deep concern.
I have known Prof. Kovel for many years. He is an outstanding scholar and
has contributed much on a variety of critically important issues. His work
is challenging in this best sense of the word. Several of his books, which
I have, including "The Enemy of Nature" and "Overcoming Zionism" are of
great value. They have informed my own work in public radio and TV.
It seems to me he would be a boon for any college to have on its faculty.
I strongly urge you to reconsider your decision and retain Prof. Kovel.
Sincerely,
David Barsamian, Director Alternative Radio
http://www.alternativeradio.org
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Dear President Botstein:
I was deeply saddened to read of the termination of Joel Kovel from
teaching at Bard--sad for Professor Kovel, sadder for Bard, saddest
for Israel and all those who live there. I have been reading Dr. Kovel
with profit and admiration for some thirty years now. I do not agree
with all his views on Israelis and Palestinians; in any case, I don't
think his reputation or legacy will be damaged by Bard's actions. I
can't say the same for Bard or for Israel. I have always considered
myself a supporter of the people of Israel, and I support them today,
but I think Israel is being done a grave disservice by the continuing
efforts in this country to suppress debate over the policies of its
government. I view Dr. Kovel's dismissal as one more such effort,
though I don't count it among the most disturbing. So far, Dr. Kovel
has not, for example, been smeared as an antisemite or self-hating
Jew, as have so many other critics of Israel's government. It strikes
me as no coincidence that attempts to intimidate or silence these
critics have increased in effrontery and viciousness as its
government's policies do increasing damage to Israel's moral standing,
just as it seems no coincidence that Dr. Kovel received his letter of
termination only weeks after Israel's violent and destructive
operations in Gaza. Of course, whatever hardships he now faces are
nothing compared to the protracted, willful catastrophe suffered by
both Palestinians and Israelis, among whom I include the soldiers of
the IDF, who cannot but be brutalized by the service their government
has asked of them.
For almost twenty years the university was my life, and I continue to
believe in its ideals. Free expression is not only good in itself, it
is an essential condition for meeting difficult challenges with wise
decisions. No challenge today is more difficult or more urgent than
ending the conflict between Israelis and Palestinians; no response
more in need of the widest range of voices. Bard's decision regarding
Dr. Kovel adds its own modest bit of poison to an already noxious
intellectual and civic atmosphere.
My son applied to Bard; it was his first choice until he was put on
the waiting list. If he had attended, he would today be a sophomore.
I'm glad he was spared a more personal connection to this sorry event.
Sincerely,
Mark Pentecost
San Francisco
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Dear President Botstein and Executive Vice President Papadimitriou,
Joel Kovel had put Bard on the map because he is a man of integrity
and courage. Now that you have fired him, Dr. Kovel's reputation will follow him but Bard's has been diminished.
Akio Tanaka
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Dear President Botstein,
I am hoping that you will publicly provide reasons for your recent
dismissal of Joel Kovel from the Bard College faculty, seemingly for his
writings regarding zionism. This action appears to be a flagrant violation of
academic freedom and free speech upsetting to many of the public and academic community. Thank you for your attention to this serious matter.
Sincerely yours,
Baylis Thomas, Ph.D.
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Dear President Botstein:
I am disappointed and deeply disturbed to hear that Professor Kovel
has been terminated from employment at Bard.
Knowing his history as an esteemed professor and his contributions to
the academic world, I can only conclude as others have that it is
Professor Kovel's political views regarding Israel which doomed him to
censure and loss of employment. This is clearly antithetical to all
that the academic world, and indeed a decent society, must represent
and uphold.
It is clear that the academic world must be vigilant in guarding
freedom of thought and speech. And our future truly depends on people
like Joel Kovel who speak truthfully about issues of justice and
oppression, who expose the actions of powerful governments and
institutions, particularly when they are shrouded in virtuous rhetoric.
Please reconsider your decision regarding Professor Kovel.
Thank you.
Yours truly,
Anne Silver
Berkeley, California
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Dear Professor Botstein,
As an academic I am deeply concerned about the termination of the position of Professor Kovel at Bard College. It is hard not to view the circumstances as part of a broader picture of intimidation of those who are willing to speak their consciences on Zionism. I firmly believe that it is not in the best interests of this country and the world for such events to take place.
I realize that you may have been under pressure about Professor Kovel, but ask you to search your conscience as to whether the complex and subtle idea of academic integrity has been served by your actions.
Kenneth W. Johnson
Professor of Mathematics
Penn State Abington
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Dear Mr. Botstein,
As a graduate of Bard's class of 1999, and former student of Professor Kovel, I am saddened and concerned by the college's decision to terminate one of the professors whose teaching deeply impacted me during my time there. Of particular concern is the apparent correlation between the college's decision and Professor Kovel's political views regarding Israel and Palestine. As a Bard alum, I am proud to have attended a school known for its political liberalism and, more importantly, tolerance of diverse viewpoints, and am worried that this decision undermines those crucial values.
I kindly request that the school furnish a response to the concerns you have received (or are yet to receive) in the form of an explanation of the college's decision, and moreover reconsider that decision in light of the widespread concern and desire for tolerance and diversity of professors and political views at Bard College.
Thank you for your time and attention to this matter.
Sincerely,
Marina Smerling
Class of 1999
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As an NYU trained attorney, as an American citizen, as a person of
"Jewish" heritage (on my father's side) I feel that Joel Kovel's insightful criticism of Zionism is extremely constructive and necessary. For a "progressive" institution such as Bard to dismiss him only further illustrates the degree to which the Zionist disease has infected every corner of our society.
This issue of Zionism is no small matter. The future of the world depends on a sensible resolution to the conflict in the Middle East. By stifling voices such as Kovel's, you are doing a disservice to the Bard community and to the larger human family. I strongly urge you to grant Kovel a full tenured position and stand up to whatever pressure has forced your hand against him.
Sincerely,
W.S.
W.S.'s response to President Botstein's response email:
Thank you for your thoughtful response. While Kovel's ideas may not be entirely novel, through him they gained momentum, and by his position at Bard, legitimacy. I appreciate the work you are doing in Palestine, but I am afraid that it is aimed at encouraging Palestinians to buy into what Professor Heidar Eid of Gaza calls "the two prison" solution. Have you read Zand? Zionism is grounded on nothing but delusion. Apparently Palestinians are closer to Abraham than the holocaust victims. Just because Hitler was deluded doesn't mean we ourselves must be. Please do not do anything that affirms or legitimizes Zionism. It is a blight on humanity and is counter to the true meaning of Judaism. I read the NYT piece and I see that you believe in the two state solution. Presumably you also get choked up, as I do, when MLK dreams of the day when Jews and Gentiles hold hands and declare their freedom from conditioned delusion; presumably you think Thurgood Marshall was right to proclaim "separate is inherently unequal". How can you square this with your support of Yiddish Colonial State of Us Against Them? Did you notice the part of Obama's inaugural address when he said, "The lines of tribe shall soon dissolve"? This is a fact that the IDF cannot stop, no matter how many Palestinians they kill. I know that contemplating one's personal heritage can give one a warm and fuzzy feeling. What about contemplating the trials and tribulations of our common ancestors who lived before Abraham? They endured near extinction 70K years ago after a huge volcanic eruption (or was it a meteor). Oy vay, that meteor was almost as bad as the kossaks. Have you contemplated the full implications of the discoveries of the human genographic project? Did you know that the San Bushmen of Southern Africa have the most direct lineage to our oldest common ancestry? Given your position at Bard, I can deduce that you are a brilliant and charming man. According to Bronner you are a polymath (I had to look it up in the dictionary.) This is very impressive, but do you have the courage to overcome the conditioned thinking that provides the basis for support of Zionism? Do you dare see through your eyes and not with them?
Sincerely,
W.S.
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Dear President Botstein and Executive Vice President Papadimitriou,
I am writing this letter to express my outrage at your recent decision not to renew distinguished scholar and writer Joel Kovel's contract with Bard College, and to demand his reinstatement.
I have followed the arc of Joel Kovels career over many years, from his trailblazing critique of psychoanalytic thought to his meticulous, brilliant unpacking of the links between capitalism and our planets possibly-fatal ecological crisis. In addition to hungrily devouring his books and articles, I have attended enough of Professor Kovel's public discourses to know how fortunate his Bard College students are to have sat in his classes and taken part in the energetic and thought-provoking, paradigm-challenging discussions he invariably stimulates.
What most appalls me about your decision is your stunning failure to recognize--or perhaps, your obdurate refusal to acknowledge--what a profound world-class thinker and once-in-a-lifetime sort of teacher you have in your midst. Kovel is the kind of professor students remember, 20 years later, as the catalyst who changed their lives by causing them to think about the world differently, to re-examine their own views and values. I have met some of his former students; I am not making this up.
Perhaps--I'm trying here to give you the benefit of the doubt-- neither of you has observed him in action. In that case, I encourage you to view the video "A Really Inconvenient Truth," which includes extensive footage of Kovel in the classroom, teaching and being taught by his students. What first strikes the viewer is the atmosphere of genuine respect on the part of professor for students and students for professor and for each other. The quality of the informal discussionpowered by a spirit of eager intellectual curiosityand the depth of his students' earnest and insightful questing is remarkable and reminds me of a comparable influence on my life back in the sixties, when I was in college.
You see, I had just such a teacher. In 1967 he was fired by the university I attended, because of his outspoken views on the Vietnam war. He was impassioned in his demand for justice and fearless in asserting what was still, at that time on that campus, an unpopular position. He stood virtually alone among the faculty at the time, which made him a kind of truth-telling prophet. I was privileged to be his student; his values, his personal integrity provided me with a role model that forever shaped the course of my life. Ever since, I have striven--in my writings, my lectures, my political activism, and in the small dailiness of my life--to follow in his footsteps. And now there are those who follow in mine.
Everything I have said here, describing my own college professor of 40 years ago, can be said of Joel Kovel. He is a fearless,truth-telling prophet, challenging an entrenched, fosselized system of thoughtZionismwhich has prompted a disastrous progression of events throughout the world. Zionism has been invoked to justify massive human rights violations, murderous aggression, and a stupifying level of suffering. And yet only a handful of the bravest are willing to publicly challenge it (look what happens when they do!), and even fewer are able to maintain Kovels cheerful and compassionate optimism, to offer, as he does, a clear proposal, a path to a just peace. It is that improbable, antidotal optimism which 21st-century American college students most need to hear, as they come of age in a relentlessly cynical and toxic culture of violence.
Confronted by your decision not to renew Kovel's contract, one cannot help but wonder: What are you afraid of? What kind of frightened mediocrity of mind would lead you to terminate one of the world's most courageous, singular, profound thinkers, scholars, researchers, and social critics?
A former resident of the Hudson Valley, I attended various Bard College events and generally regarded Bard, in those long-ago days, as a kind of outpost of sanity, of decent human values, a place where a marvelous, robust democracy of ideas could flourish unfettered by monied interests, governmental pressure, or right-wing ideologues.
I see I must revisit that view. This makes me very sad.
You owe Professor Kovel an apology from the deepest place in your hearts, and you owe him reinstatement. Make haste, for the world is a mess, as even you two puny cowards must acknowledge, and Kovel is one of the very few clear sighted ones who point a way forward.
Very truly yours,
Jean Stewart, California
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President Botstein, Vice-President Papadimitriou,
How disappointing to learn that Bard College has decided that it has no room for a professor who dares to speak out for human rights and equality and against racism and oppression. We refer, of course, to Joel Kovel. Whatever your opinion of his views on Zionism, it is clear, given the predictably hostile response to his expression of them, that he has acted with courage and has been guided by his conscience.
It is equally clear that in terminating his contract you have acted with neither courage nor conscience, but rather as bullies and agents of repression. Your readiness to subordinate the principle of academic freedom of expression to your own political views also brings the college into disrepute.
Last month, Hampshire College, which was the first to divest from apartheid South Africa, became the first to divest from companies supporting Israel's illegal occupation. You, meanwhile, place Bard on the wrong side of history. In that history, Joel Kovel's work will be remembered. The best you can hope for is that the parts you have played in this squalid episode will eventually be forgotten.
- Michael Breen
- Louis R Godena
- James H. Romer, Unity, New Hampshire
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President Botstein:
As a product of such liberal arts institutions as Connecticut College, George Washington University and the University of California at Berkeley, I am dismayed by your action and that of the Bard College in summarily dismissing Professor Joel Kovel, in particular for the reason for this action. Because such actions have repercussions, my own response will be to try to discourage my grandson from applying next year to Bard. Furthermore, I plan to take the information surrounding the firing of this talented and respected educator to my grandson's private school to discourage other applicants from seeking admission to Bard. My reasons for doing so are as follows:
1) In stifling dissent on your campus by silencing Professor Kovel, you have betrayed the finest traditions of academic freedom. A teaching institution should honor all shades of opinion, as set forth in John Stuart Mill's "On Liberty of Thought and Expression", if for nothing else than setting an example for your students to honor. As president of an institution of higher learning, it would behoove you to re-read this germinal work, then hang your head in shame at having abrogated its dicta.
2) I join with Professor Kovel and millions of others around the world who deplore the Zionist policies of abrogation of human rights and the anti-humanitarian crimes perpetrated by Israel in the past sixty years. In its deliberate and stated policy of driving out the native Palestinian peoples from their United Nations-mandated lands, and occupation of those lands, culminating in the totally unjustifiable war against innocent civilians in Gaza, not to mention the use of prohibited arms and weapons against those civilians, the Israeli government has shown itself to be ranked with tyrannical systems throughout history. For Bard College to dismiss an educator who speaks the truth of these historical facts is not worthy of the name of "college", which denotes an atmosphere of free and open inquiry that promotes the exchange of even conflicting ideas. You fail this definitive test.
3) Having members of AIPAC on your Board of Trustees indicates that such policies as I have outlined above are generated by this powerful lobbying group which brooks no dissent. I hope that rescinding, or at least some revision, of your charter is possible, since lobbying organizations representing foreign nations should be made explicit to prospective students and their parents, who may not want their children attending so prejudiced an institution.
Finally, in summary, I quote from Professor Kovel himself,
"Israeli human rights abuses are deeply ingrained in a culture of impunity granted chiefly, though not exclusively, in the United States—which culture arises from suppression of debate and open inquiry within those institutions, such as colleges, whose social role it is to enlighten the public. Therefore, if the world stands outraged at Israeli aggression in Gaza, it should also be outraged at institutions in the United States that grant Israel
impunity. In my view, Bard College is one such institution. It has suppressed critical engagement with Israel and Zionism, and therefore has enabled abuses such as have occurred and are occurring in Gaza."
I am quite sure that Professor Kovel will find new, more rewarding, employment at a fine university. He will go with the good wishes of all those who stand for freedom of expression, and the freedom of peoples to self-determination, and from abuses by an occupying power.
I will also add that it is useless to accuse your accusers of anti-Semitism. Three of my family members whom I dearly love are Jewish. Secondly, the Palestinian people are a Semitic people. To be anti-Zionist is to be pro-Semitic. Such a stance invites the rapprochement between peoples that will bring true peace to both the Jewish citizens of Israel and the Palestinian people, and ensure the genuine security that so far has eluded successive Israeli governments with their policy of occupation and brutality. What a shame Bard College could not have nurtured an atmosphere that promotes such longed-for values by both Jews and Palestinians, Christians and Muslims.
Sincerely yours,
The Rev. Christine Groves Geer
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Dear President Botstein:
I write as a longtime admirer of your leadership at Bard College, recalling especially support for dissident writers and cultural figures during the cold war period. Part of my admiration for the college and its progressive identity was based on the existence of an Alger Hiss Chair in Social Studies, and even more so, because that professorship was held for many years by such an influential and distinguished intellectual presence as Joel Kovel, whose blend of excellent scholarship and engaged citizenship personified for me the glories of both an academic career and a liberal atmosphere of tolerance and respect for diversity. His books and articles were consistently challenging texts that changed the way I thought about a series of fundamental social and political issues, and were widely influential among serious thinkers and scholars.
It is against this background that I feel so disappointed by the news of Joel Kovel's non-renewal at Bard. I know there are some technical explanations, but these are not convincing for several reasons. Perhaps, most of all, because such action follows so closely upon Kovel's publication of a book critical of Zionism. I believe that Kovel's own statement is further indication that this decision was politically motivated, or at least perceived as such.
In these times when there are such organized attacks on university professors who voice opinions critical of Israel, it seems particularly important not to succumb to such pressures. As you are fully aware, the appearance of injustice is often as damaging as actual injustice, even assuming that the Kovel non-renewal was decided in good faith for institutional reasons.
I would encourage you to reconsider the decision, and thus avoid damaging Bard's reputation as a sanctuary for liberal scholarship.
with respect and best wishes,
Richard Falk
Albert Milbank Professor of International Law Emeritus, Princeton University
(since 2002) Distinguished Visiting Professor, Global Studies, UCSB
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Dear Professor Kovel,
We at the Palestinian Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel (PACBI) are very distressed and concerned about the decision of Bard College not to renew your contract. We are convinced that the College's decision is motivated by the same imperative entrenching itself among university administrators and trustees in the United States, which is to silence voices within the academy that challenge the longstanding hegemony of the Zionist narrative. Such voices, and yours is one of the most commendable and courageous, pose a danger to the defenders of the intellectual and political status quo, since they have a real chance of reaching the hearts and minds of students and fellow academics. The Zionist myth is eroding, and hence the strenuous attempts to stifle those who challenge the political program of Zionism. This is so particularly at a time of growing outrage in the West, including the United States, at the crimes committed by Israel in Gaza during the recent aggression including the massacre of hundreds of Palestinians.
We wish hereby to express our solidarity with you and what you represent. We are familiar with your scholarly and activist work, and admire your courage and perseverance in the face of the great odds against you. We hope that the growing campaign within the United States to defend your right of expression and your right to speak truth to power--whether in the classroom or elsewhere--will bear fruit and that you will return to your post at Bard College. Your students deserve no less.
Sincerely,
PACBI: Palestinian Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel
Ramallah, Occupied Palestine
info@boycottisrael.ps
www.pacbi.org
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Dear Joel: I am not at all surprised that you have joined Norman Finkelstein on the Zionist Enemies List. As an anti-Zionist Orthodox Jew I am well aware of how the Zionists (especially in relation to academic fundraising) want to shut everybody up or follow the thought police on issues of Zionism and its Holocaust Industry. I assume that some major contributor to Bard called up the Board of Trustees and gave them the ultimatum!
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Dear Mr. Papadimitrou
As the parents of a recent Bard graduate (Daniel Fishkin Dec'08), we were shocked to learn of the summary dismissal of Professor Joel Kovel. After reading his statement to the Bard faculty, forwarded to us by our son, there is little doubt in our minds that his dismissal was a result of his stepping on some very Zionistic toes. Colleges are supposed to be the guardians of free speech, and what we have always treasured about Bard is its tradition of social activism, liberal values, and advocacy of individual rights. How can you fire a professor after 20 years, because he supports unpopular views? Where does it end?
We are Jewish and Zionistic, though deeply troubled by many of Israel's recent actions vis a vis the Palestinians. We don't endorse all of Kovel's recommendations in his book, Overcoming Zionism, but we will defend his right to make them.
It is hypocritical in the extreme for Leon Botstein to castigate George Bush for marching into Iraq (Parents Weekend, 2005) and fire Kovel for holding similar views about similar behavior on Israel's part.
We are extremely disappointed to learn of this action against Kovel, We thought that Bard, and the folks who run it, were better than that.
Lana and Ralph Fishkin
Lana FishkinMD
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Dear Pres. Botstein and Vice Pres. Papadimitriou:
You are dishonoring Bard College by not renewing Dr. Kovel's contract to continue his academic work as a member of the Bard faculty. Given the history of Dr. Kovel's relations with you and your administration, your choice to dismiss him now is an act deserving disgrace and shame. His intellect, passion, and courage in presenting us all with the morally outrageous and flagrantly murderous behavior of the Israeli government and the IDF towards the Palestinians and the support it has consistently received by the US government apparently hit you where it hurts. You ought to know better, and you would do well to reconsider your decision, if for no other reason than to keep Bard's liberal image clean.
Associate Clinical Professor of Psychiatry, Columbia U.
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Dear President Botstein and Vice President Papadimitriou,
Our family was shocked and dismayed at reading the account by Professor Kovel of his evaluation and termination from active faculty status at Bard. Our son took a course with him in his Freshman year and found it to be stimulating and worthwhile.
Professor Kovel's book is a scholarly, well documented, and well reasoned account of a terrible predicament for the Palestinian and Israeli people and deserves consideration by every intelligent person with a concern about the future of the world and its peoples.
As Americans and Jews, we have always been proud of Bard's seemingly high reputation for academic freedom in the arts and humanities, and we had assumed that the College also proudly supported Professor Kovel's right to pursue his work in an atmosphere of tolerance, support, and intellectual freedom. Of particular concern to us is his account of a long standing bias against his position and his work. We are now given to understand that Bard is, like any other all too human endeavor, subject to demagogic politics. We earnestly request that you submit this case to a nonbiased review process, and publish the results for all to see. Our future support for the institution, and Bard's credibility is at stake.
Sincerely,
Ralph Fishkin DO
Lana Fishkin MD
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Dear President Botstein,
From 1979 through 1984, I chaired the Basic Studies Committee at SUNY Cortland; our task was to reform the college’s general education requirements. During that period some members and I attended a SUNY New Paltz conference on higher education, at which you gave an eloquent and passionate defense of the liberal arts. Your insights served us well as we approved a dramatic change in our liberal arts program to replace the bankrupt cafeteria selections that once dominated our college.
I recalled that history as I read Joel Kovel’s “Statement Regarding Termination by Bard College” (February 24th). Judging from the past seven years at Bard, it is clear that his impending termination is an affront to the ideals of liberal education you articulated at New Paltz.
I first met Kovel in 1979 at a SUNY Cortland Conversations in the Discipline conference: it was an interdisciplinary discussion of Christopher Lasch’s important work, Culture of Narcissism. Kovel was one of the featured speakers, along with such scholars as Russell Jacoby of UCLA and Stuart Ewen of CUNY. In the subsequent 30 years, we have corresponded on mutual concerns and I have read a number of his outstanding works. In person and in writings, he personifies the grand tradition of speaking truth to power – which has evidently elicited a powerful reaction and attack on his academic freedom.
His scholarly publications, e.g., Age of Desire, Red Hunting in the Promised Land, Enemy of Nature and Overcoming Zionism, enhance liberal learning by their willingness to critique dominant paradigms through a serious engagement with mainstream views. His work is a courageous attempt to challenge deeply held views – putting into practice the ideals you asserted at New Paltz.
Although his intellectual achievements have earned him the respect of leading scholars in a number of fields from psychiatry to history, I believe his critical work on Israel and Zionism lies at the heart of his termination at Bard. “Political correctness” has evidently trumped liberal learning – a profound loss for students, faculty and the commitment to the liberal arts for which Bard has been acclaimed. I urge you and the Bard administration to revisit and reverse this unjust decision.
Yours truly,
John Marciano
Professor Emeritus, SUNY Cortland (1969-2001)
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President Botstein:
Thanks for the link to the article and for your investment in Palestinian education. What a shame that Israel can not recognize a degree from Al Quds until only your University will be linked to the degree. Doesn't that strike you as wrong? Perhaps racist? I was upbeat and optimistic with your efforts and statements until you declared "Zionism as compatible with a Palestinian state".
Zionism is starting to be widely seen as an exclusive, apartheid system. This idea is essential to appreciate in order to fully understand the political realities on the ground for your students in your sister university. I hope you will read your ex-professor's work (Kovel) with an open mind. His statements are presently cutting edge but it will not be long before we, as equality loving people, will look back in disbelief that anti-Zionists were ever punished for speaking the truth of the ills of Zionism. One of my favorite sayings is: 'The best explanation is the simplest, not simpler.' In this case: Inequality and injustice are the root of the problem, not anti-semitism.
Respectfully,
Nevin Sabet
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Dear President Botstein,
It is a sad commentary on the state of academia when a diversity of opinions is not permitted at Bard College. Joel Kovel is one of the clearest and most respected voices on the subject of Israel/Palestine issues. The loss of his intelligent presence at Bard College signals not only a reduction of dialogue on this subject at your institution but a philosophical shift away from the value of free and open debate. I hope that you and the Dean will act to renew his contract in order to afford Kovel his ability to teach there, to reclaim the image of Bard College in the eyes of the public and to continue the great tradition of vigorous intellectual dialogue which has characterized Bard in the past.
Professor Sheila Pinkel
Pomona College
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Dear President Botstein and Vice-President Papadimitriou,
I am deeply shocked and disappointed to find out that
you have decided, for political reasons, to terminate
Joel Kovel, one of the leading scholars and public
intellectuals of this country. Having read much of
Prof. Kovel's work and heard him speak in various
conferences, I can attest to the fact that his work
rises to the highest standards of scholarly and
intellectual integrity. By contrast, I believe that
your decision seriously compromises the academic
integrity of Bard College and call on you to
reconsider.
Best,
Costas Panayotakis
Associate Professor
New York City College of Technology (CUNY)
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Dear all,
The pro-zionist camp and their supporters are so desperate and resorting to all kind of bullying and intimidation.
Their latest shameless act is the firing of Prof. and brother Joel Kovel, A notable activist for Peace and Social Justice, A brave Academic and author of many articles and book including: Overcoming Zionism.
Brother Kovel, You have my full respect and support.
In Solidarity for Justice and Peace,
Ali Mallah
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Dear President Botstein and E.V. President Papadimitrou:
I write to protest, in the strongest terms possible, your decision to terminate the employment of Prof. Joel Kovel.
I won't insult your intelligence by wasting time reciting the great many exemplary qualifications of Prof. Kovel, or why it would be in the interest of any institution of higher learning to have him on its faculty. I am certain that in your heart-of-hearts you know perfectly well how eminently qualified he is to remain at Bared College. Nor will I waste time arguing over the reason why Bard College has decided to terminate Prof. Kovel. I know and, whatever you both may chose to say publicly about the matter, you both know that the only reason for his termination is the simple fact that he holds and expresses views on Zionism with which you both disagree.
I am well aware of how controversial the matter of Zionism, or the behavior of the State of Israel, can be within an organization. Indeed, as Co-Chair of the National Lawyers Guild's International Committee, I have watched as our own organization has painfully grappled with this controversy. At the end of the day some feathers were sorely ruffled, and perhaps a few members may have even resigned in protest over one or another statements issued by the Lawyers Guild on this topic. But no member of the National Lawyers Guild has been forced to resign, alter their own position, been demoted from any position they held within the organization, or been censored in any way over their expressed views on the topic of Zionism, or Israel. That is as it should be. And that is certainly as it should be at any college or university worthy of calling itself an institution of higher learning that upholds the sacred principal of "academic freedom." And so I would have thought that a college that has enjoyed the fine reputation over the years that Bard College has had in this regard, would not now find itself making this shameful dismissal of one of its most eminent scholars and professors. It is unworthy of Bard College.
For the sake of Bard College, for the sake of academic freedom everywhere, and for the sake of your own personal reputations, I urge you to forthwith rescind Prof. Kovel's scandalous dismissal.
Sincerely,
James Lafferty
Director, NLG/L.A., Co-Chair, NLG/International Committee Fellow, Institute for the Humanities, The University of Southern California
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Dear Mr. President,
I am disappointed to hear about the recent termination of Joel Kovel. I urge you: reconsider the procedure which led to this action, restore his position, celebrate his triumph in the work 'Overcoming Zionism' and ally yourselves with Joel's unending passion for human rights and truth. Having been raised in the culture of Zionist temples myself, I found Joel's work illuminating, emancipating and in harmony with the world at large. And of course filled with hope for the people of Israel and Palestine. The separatist, apartheid mentality which attempts to legitimize the colonial zionist state of Israel through "normalcy", has found a formidable challenger in Joel Kovel.
Your attempts to restore "normalcy" are at odds with the truth, and I advise you to take a larger look at what's going on here.
Andrew Felluss
Owner, Radian Records
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Professor Kovel,
I've recently heard the news of your termination from Bard College, and find the whole thing both depressing and exhilarating. I wanted to e-mail you to explain my support and also to ask what needs to be done from here.
I wholeheartedly support both your cause and anything else you will be doing with the rest of your career. I've read "Overcoming Zionism" and am interested to see if you're going to be working on any other projects going forward. You know better then I do that what's happening to you is nothing new. Paul Findley wrote a great book about the subject, so I won't try to explain it more effectively then he did. But it makes the Zionist cause more predictable. When you speak up, you will be punished and focus will be paid to your actions. That focus is taking away from what many Arabs and Jews seek, peace (as you so eloquently wrote in "Overcoming Zionism").
With all that in mind, my question is simple. What is it that my generation (I'm 25) should be doing to further the cause? I have kept the discussion alive with friends and family, have looked at what it would take to create a scholarship fund for Palestinians at Birzeit University (where my grandfather used to teach), and do what I can to support those, like yourself that work their whole lives for the cause of peace. I know I can do more, but am spending my time trying to find out what that is.
Is there anything I can do to help your cause since you've helped us (humanity) so much? What more should I be doing to help the cause of the one state solution?
Thanks,
Ghassan Rafeedie
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I just wrote to Dimitri. I doubt that it will amount to much, but it made me feel better.
I have been reading Lou Proyect's denunciations of Bard, but still I thought that it would be a more open place.
Anyway, you should be rewarded for standing up to Fascism.
Michael Perelman
Economics Department
California State University
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Michael Perelman
Economics Department
California State University
Dear President Botstein:
After reviewing a set of documents concerning the termination of the contract of Professor Joel Kovel, a man I do not know personally, I want to register my dismay at this action, which seems to have had your support and which, from all appearances, seems to have been motivated in large part by Professor Kovel’s critique of Zionism in his writings and talks. If true, this is doubly appalling in view of Bard College’s longstanding reputation as a bastion of free and unfettered inquiry, in the best tradition of liberal arts education.
I know you are Jewish (so I am) and have a warm affection for the state of Israel. I profoundly hope that these allegiances played no part in your and Bard’s decision to cashier Professor Kovel. On the face of it, however, this looks like still another Zionist-motivated attack on a professor who has been an outspoken critic of Zionism — hardly a case of academic fair play.
I hope you can convince me that these inferences are without warrant. Unless and until you can, I will have to assume that Professor’s Kovel allegations of unfair and discriminatory treatment are justified and, if so, I will continue to speak out on this issue and draw attention to it so that other academics may look into it for themselves and draw their own conclusions. In any case, at this point, this does not look as if this whole affair will reflect well on your college.
Yours sincerely,
Kenneth Ring, Ph.D.
Professor Emeritus of Psychology
University of Connecticut
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Dear President Botstein,
I am writing to protest your termination of Professor Joel Kovel. In addition to having read several of his books, I had the pleasure and honor last year of appearing on a panel with Joel discussing aspects of the issue of Zionism and am therefore well acquainted with his scholarship and his intellectual distinction, and I am deeply disturbed that you've chosen to suppress his voice from what appear to be blatantly political motives. I am familiar with your stated reasons for not renewing his contract, but I find them to be so obviously specious as to be laughable. The economics of terminating one part-time faculty member in order to maintain a full-time faculty are highly questionable, even in hard economic times. Equally questionable is the notion of terminating an eminent scholar on the basis of what are reported to be a few unfavorable evaluations from students. You have made clear your own political disagreement with Kovel over Zionism, and I am aware that you deny a connection between your views and the termination. But the timing of your action against him, in the nearly immediate aftermath of the publication of his book Overcoming Zionism—and upon the first contractual opportunity to move against him—is too obvious to be denied.
It is deeply troubling that an educational institution, and a notably progressive one at that, has chosen to silence a dissident viewpoint—a viewpoint, incidentally, that is gaining increasing currency in both the United States and Israel. Whatever happened to the university tradition of allowing, and indeed encouraging, freedom of discourse and intellectual questioning? You have badly sullied Bard College's reputation as an institution that allows free and open discourse.
Kathleen Christison
Author, Perceptions of Palestine: Their Influence on U.S. Middle East Policy
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Dear President,
I write to protest the decision of the Bard College administration not to renew the contract with professor Joel Kovel because of his articles, book and lectures that were rightfully critical of zionism. I find it deeply shocking and troublesome that the evaluation committee set up to evaluate Kovel's work as well as the administration of the Bard College have not based their conclusions and decision to fire prof. Kovel on objective and professional grounds, but rather resorted to misuse of their positions in order to stifle open debate, prevent impartial and objective scientific research and silence criticism of zionism and Israeli war crimes, crimes against humanity (such as ethnic cleansing, deliberate attacks on civilians and apartheid) and other human rights violations that have been going on for decades against Palestinians.
I believe professor Kovel is right when he feels that as an intellectual he should speak out against the injustices happening in the world, particularly if these injustices are supported and made possible and peace made impossible by one's own government. All intellectuals have the responsibility to speak out on such injustices and crimes as are racism, apartheid, ethnic cleansing, collective punishment, grave breaches of Geneva conventions etc. but on the particular topic of Israel/Palestine and zionism American and Jewish intellectuals, such as Joel Kovel, especially have the right and responsibility to speak out against grave breaches of international humanitarian and human rights law, against war crimes and crimes against humanity, such as ethnic cleansing, apartheid and collective punishment perpetrated by successive Israeli governments and army. It is sad enough that the faculty staff at Bard College reportedly do not oppose these Israeli crimes and violations of international law and human rights, but to actually punish one of the rare courageous voices for speaking out his mind and his conscience is pure censorship of his freedom of speech and academic freedom and yet another vain and low attempt to silence the unstoppable truth: that zionism today is an unacceptable criminal racist ideology that indispensably embraces ethnic cleansing, apartheid and brutal oppression of millions of people on the basis of their ethnic origin and religion.
I urge you to review the decision to fire Joel Kovel and make an impartial evaluation of his work based on professional, rather than political, criteria, not only in the interest of Joel Kovel, but also in the interest of Bard College students and in the interest of academic freedom and the right to free speech.
Sincerely,
Aleksandra Martinovic
Croatia
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Dear sir,
While not an academic myself, and thus not claiming familiarity with the administrative workings of universities, I'm nonetheless compelled to protest your dismissal of Joel Kovel. Having viewed the documentary 'A Really Inconvenient Truth', which includes footage of Kovel interacting with students in a classroom, having attended a very effective talk of his here in Victoria BC, and having read with great interest his 'Ending Zionism', his competence and worth as an educational communicator seems more than adequate. Clearly, this dismissal reflects a shameful acquiescence with Zionism, particularly in the USA, as Mr Kovel points out so well in his work. In the longer view, I would say that Bard has shot itself in the foot by this action, as it shows its own collusion with and apologetics for Zionism therefrom. There are more people now who can see through this kind of treatment of figures such as Kovel and Norman Finkelstein, and this should be taken seriously. This sell-out of universities in general is distressing and very socially self-destructive. Yours responsibly, George McFetridge
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Dear Mr. Kovel:
I'm a Bardian by proxy--my wife has her MFA from Bard--and I'm shocked by what happened to you. Apparently, your detractors aren't familiar with Uri Avnery or Amira Haas. You have a lot of support.
Richard Klin
Stone Ridge
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Dear President Leon Botstein and Executive Vice-President Dimitri Papadimitriou:
Your decision to end Joel Kovel’s teaching career at Bard College consummates a marriage to the inseparable twins of intellectual cowardice and vulgar vendetta. Were this a forced marriage, you might have interest in receiving evidence, hearing reason, and adhering to due process. But having read the chronology of your plotting, I grant you malice aforethought.
So I will limit myself to a prediction.
I entered upon my doctoral studies at the University of California when the sun was setting on McCarthyism in its anti-communist get-up. I believe your McCarthyism, in its anti-Palestinian get-up, now is beginning a parallel period of decline. The censorious fury of which you are part, evidence a desperateness that parallels that of your golden calf.
The damages you both inflict now memorialize your shame, not your victory.
Mordecai Briemberg
Burnaby, Canada
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Dear Prof. Kovel
I'm a journalist and an activist in support of Palestinians' national, civil, and human rights. I posted your statement "Regarding My Termination by Bard College" on my web site www.thecornerreport.com and also sent it out to individuals and a few activist lists as an action request, urging people to write to the Bard president and vice president.
Overcoming Zionism is an enormously important book. Thank you so much for your integrity and for your courageous work. It's pathetic that a professor of your stature needs to be courageous in the U.S. in the 21st century to speak out against a fundamentally fascist and racist ideology. But I'm extremely grateful that you do.
With all good wishes and salaams
Gale Courey Toensing
Staff Reporter
Indian Country Today
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Dear Bard College Administration:
I am writing you in response to the recent media reports about the termination of Prof. Joel Kovel from Bard’s faculty. It is with deep sadness that I hear of his forced departure from the campus, and I would like to urge you to reconsider your decision.
I am a proud alumna of Bard ('95), where I had the exceptional opportunity to begin my studies in German Jewish literature and history, and to take an excellent independent study with Prof. Kovel on the works of Theodor Adorno and the Frankfurt School. Kovel’s seminar was typical of the ambitious project I encountered everywhere at Bard: a fervent belief in the complete and in-depth education of undergraduates through a direct engagement with their critical thinking. My unique study at Bard culminated in my acceptance into graduate school at the University of Chicago where I completed my PhD in German with a focus on German Jewish culture. Today I am a professor in the same subject.
Given my scholarly interests, I want to let you know at I am particularly troubled by the timing of Prof. Kovel’s firing with the recent release of his book on the subject of Israeli policies toward Palestinians made under the banner of Zionism.
I have been a student of the history of pre-state and post-1948 Zionism for over 10 years, and I have spent a significant amount of time in Israel and with Israeli peace organizations in the US and in Israel.
In fact, I don’t agree completely with Joel Kovel’s argument in his book, “Overcoming Zionism” since I believe it remains to be seen whether a single-state can possibly be crafted in the current political climate. Still, his work is compelling and necessary because of his thoughtful consideration on the subject and because it remains faithful to the spirit of the origins of Zionism, which envisioned a multi-ethnic Israel. Furthermore, I feel Kovel is completely correct that the Jewish-only state idea is utterly out of step with the increased ethnic diversity in the rest of the developed world and I fear this fact alone could undermine the future of Israel and the collective desire for a safe haven for Jews around the world.
If Kovel’s firing was due to issues other than his most recent book, I would still like to demand his reinstatement because I believe that, despite whatever shortcomings the committee found in his academic work, his presence on the faculty at Bard is a testament to the value the college places on the importance of diversity in the debate on Israel and in intellectual life in general.
Bard has always been known and recognized for its true adherence to the liberal arts and the loss of Prof. Kovel will seriously jeopardize that reputation. I fear we will all suffer as a result.
Sincerely,
Ashley Passmore
Visiting Assistant Professor, German
The University of Nevada, Reno
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Dear Dr. Botstein,
I teach about many of the subjects Prof Joel Kovel has written about in his 13-plus books and hundreds of scholarly and more popular articles. I have used his writing in my university and community activities for over four decades.
Prof. Kovel is a national and indeed an international treasure; a humanist with a rare critical creativity and a gift of communication. This termination of his university teaching position via an obviously cooked 'evaluation' undermines basic rights and due process on very many levels. It discredits all who sit silently in acquiescence and those directing the persecution.
Re-hire Joel Kovel and re-establish the independent, high quality academic reputation of Bard College.
Currently, as a result of this attack on the livelihood of an eminent global scholar and humanist theorist, your administration is seen by many internationally as complicit in the atrocities being perpetrated by zionist state and private actors against a subject people.
This complicity in atrocities colors all your funders, faculty and student graduates now and until justice is done.
In the severe collapse of an entire economic system such as the current collapse there are inevitably sharp polarizations both right and left. For Bard to terminate Joel Kovel is to join the right and expand its legitimacy in this very unstable period.
Rescind this anti-human, anti-democatic position and join the creative, democratic forces for a peaceful future in a one-state Palestine-Israel that is secular and anti-racist.
Rescind this termination of Prof. Kovel and stand with basic academic freedom that is the defining viscera of the university and college themselves.
Sincerely,
Terisa Turner
Professor of Sociology and Anthropology
University of Guelph, Canada
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Dear Vice-President Papadimitriou,
I graduated from Bard College in 1998 with a degree in Political Studies. During my studies at Bard, I took several classes with Joel Kovel. He was without a doubt my best professor at Bard, and my studies with him had an enormous influence on my personal and intellectual development. His course on media, which I took my freshman year, dramatically changed my way of seeing the world. During my senior year, Professor Kovel took the time to teach me a one-on-one tutorial on Marxism, a course that was the most challenging and rewarding intellectual experience of my time at Bard. Professor Kovel was also a committed and critically supportive advisor for the second semester of my work on my senior project.
When I have talked to friends over the past ten years about my time at Bard College and why it was so special for me, and why I would recommend to others to attend Bard College, I have almost invariably talked about Joel Kovel. I have described Bard as one of the rare colleges that offer intellectual freedom for critical, anti-capitalist voices like that of Joel Kovel. When I have recommended his books, especially Enemy of Nature, to friends and colleagues, I have told them with pride that Joel Kovel was my professor and continues to teach at my alma mater, Bard College .
As an anti-zionist Jew, I have greatly appreciated Professor Kovel´s writings and activism on Zionism. As a Bard graduate, I have continued to respect Bard for defending Professor Kovel’s academic freedom to speak out on this important and controversial topic.
And so I was horrified and disappointed to learn that Professor Kovel has been punished for his views on Zionism with dismissal from Bard College . I urge you to reinstate Professor Kovel immediately. The first step would be to recognize that Professor Kovel has, indeed, been fired for political reasons, and take action to remedy the mistakes that have been made. The evaluation process should be repeated with unbiased committee members, and Profesor Kovel’s contract should be renewed.
I hope that another generation of Bard students will be able to benefit from Professor Kovel’s commitment and intellect. I hope that I will still be able to speak with pride about my alma mater.
Sincerely,
Eric Schwartz
Bard College 1998
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I am deeply and profoundly unimpressed by the spinelessness of those representing Bard College in the matter of Joel Kovel’s effective dismissal. Nothing could better reinforce the strength of his arguments than that you felt it necessary to dismiss him for making them. On the upside I had never heard of Bard College or Joel Kovel before. It has had the effect of generating a great deal of publicity for which I am grateful.
Sincerely,
Miles Stuart.
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Dear President Botstein,
It is never too late to do right. So I am writing you now to tell you how impressed I was 30 (?) years ago when you wrote me a long personal letter in response to the letter I wrote you criticizing a decision not to give tenure to a China scholar, whose work I knew but whose name I now forget. Sadly, it is not the only such letter I have written, but your's was the only reasoned response that I have received. I appreciated that, and have told this story many times, usually to defer some criticism of what you are supposed to have said or done. You were, I insisted, a man of principle who tried to use his authority in a measured and fair way, no matter his personal convictions on the subject at hand.
We come now to the Kovel case. I know Kovel and his writings very well. I consider three of his books, the one on psychology and Marxism, the one of the ecological crisis and the one on Zionism, among the very best scholarly Marxist works in these areas. There are few scholars, Marxists or others, anywhere, who have this range. It is no surprise then that Kovel is widely recogn ized as one of the world's leading Marxist scholars - certainly in the top ten. I always thought, therefore, that Bard was very lucky to have a person of Kovel's abilities and standing on its faculty. And I also considered Kovel very lucky to be working at a college led by such an enlightened president. This is why I was so shocked and disappointed when I learned about Kovel's dismissal. I knew, of course, that you were a Zionist and that you didn't like his recent book or his public role as a critic of Zionism, but I never thought this would lead you take such extreme ac! tion. (Yes, I heard that Kovel's student evaluations have not been so good lately and that there are economic considerations at play, but no one is going to believe that this is why Kovel was terminated - I certainly don't).
My question to you now is - Do you really want to end your distinguished career on such a note, a career that led even those who disagree with you on many things - as I do - to admire your integrity and the academic achievements it helped make possible? I thought not, and I still dare to hope not. Also, I cannot forebear to ask whether you have thought long and hard enough about the damage that this sad episode will cause Bard and the reputations and even lives of all those connected with it. As for the admirable partnership you have developed with Al Quds University, you can probably forget about that too. I can't imagine that the students and faculty at Al Quds will want to be connected in any way with a college that has just fired one of the world's leading critics of Zionism - once they hear what has happened, as they inevitably will. Isn't all this too high a price to pay for firing Kovel?
As I said at the start - it is never too late to do right, to Kovel, to Bard, and, yes, to yourself.
Sincerely,
Professor Bertell Ollman
Joel -
The response I just got from my letter to Botstein is identical to the response another person who wrote a letter to him just got, it seems that he has decided not to read any of these letters. My take on him now is as follows:
Let us assume - for the sake of argument - that the economic situation that is now being put forward as the reason for your firing is the real one. Even that doesn't let Botstein off the hook, for it was very easy to see, given the history of your problems with Bard, that few would believe it, and that the storm of protests that are just getting started would be huge and very damaging to Bard and to Botstein as well as to you. Ceasar's wife, as we recall, had not only to be virtuous but beyond all suspicion of not being virtuous, because the effects of either would be the same. So it is with college presidents and others in high positions in public life, and they all know it. Therefore, if Botstein really fired you for economic reasons knowing the terrible price he and his college would have to pay for it, he was being terribly irresponsible and is unworthy of holding his position. If, on the other hand, he fired you for economic reasons, and didn't foresee the dire consequences that lay up ahead, he is clearly incompetent and should not hold any position of authority. So - if Botstein has been honest with us - he is also confessing that he is either irresponsible or incompetent, and should resign his position immediately. I don't see any way out for him, other than - of course - to confess that he has been dishonest all along, and to make amends.
-Bertell
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Dear President Botstein and Vice-President Papadimitriou,
I am a graduate of Bard College, class of 1970. I recently learned that Professor Joel Kovel lost his job at Bard, and I heard that the reason for this may have been his criticism of Zionism and Israel. I have also learned that Bard stands behind Israel in many ways of which I was unaware. I find all of this deeply disturbing.
Please be assured that I am in no way anti-Semitic -- more than half of my dearest friends, lovers, and teachers over the years are and have been Jewish, and I have tremendous sympathy for what the Jewish people suffered in the holocaust. I can totally understand that many Jewish people were refugees after the war and that many others simply wanted to get away from Europe and find a safe haven with other Jews. However, the land the Jewish people got was not a land without a people. The Palestinians have suffered an unbelievable horror that I have been witness to all my life. I am not in any way sympathetic to suicide bombings or rocket attacks against Israel, but I can totally understand what drives people to undertake such desperate actions, and this so-called "terrorism" against Israel in no ways begins to compare to the terror and violence that Israel has perpetrated against the Palestinians. The on-going occupation is a crime against humanity, and the most recent brutal Israeli invasion of Gaza was an atrocity every bit as horrific as the holocaust in my opinion. The fact that the US supports this on-going evil with my tax dollars is something I find almost unbearable. As we all know, the Israeli lobby in this country is so powerful, and US economic and political interests in the Middle East are such that it takes tremendous courage for anyone in this country to speak truth about Israel. I am so grateful for the courageous work of people such as Joel Kovel in speaking out about this and other vital issues.
I first discovered Joel Kovel when I saw the excellent movie, A Really Inconvenient Truth. I was proud to see Bard College in the movie and to discover that Kovel was on the faculty. I next saw him on Free Speech TV on a panel discussing the possibility of a one state solution in Israel/Palestine. I found the discussion very compelling. It seems to me that Bard should be proud to have someone like this on the faculty.
I am writing to express my deep opposition to any support for the state of Israel as long as it continues its policies of occupation, terrorism and apartheid. I am also writing to express my support for Joel Kovel, and my disappointment with Bard for letting him go.
Given what I have learned, I am no longer so proud to be a graduate of this college.
Sincerely,
Joan Tollifson
Class of 1970
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Dear President Botstein,
I was disappointed to hear of the nonrenewal of Joel Kovel's contract after 20 years. I
have heard that the reason for this was fiscal constraint, which we are all facing.
It is precisely at this time that universities and colleges must make a special effort to
support figures that offer reputable, well-reasoned expansion of controversial issues. It
is at this time that our institutions should be making whatever sacrifice necessary to
maintain a commitment to such figures whether they are full-time, part-time, tenured or
on a year-to-year contract. It frankly stretches credulity that an institution like Bard
could not find the resources to continue a contract with a distinguished figure such as
Professor Kovel.
The notion of academic freedom is a construction of trust and is very fragile. Bard
cannot avoid the appearance of having betrayed that trust, sending the message that even
distinguished scholars should think twice before publicly developing unpopular positions.
Sincerely,
Claire Pentecost
Associate Professor, Photography
The School of the Art Institute of Chicago
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Dear President Botstein and Vice-President Papadimitrou:
Your dismissal of Professor Joel Kovel for his political beliefs is being widely publicized through the Internet 'underground press', and is doing immeasurable damage to the reputation of Bard College as a 'progressive' institution.
Although few Zionists seem yet to be aware of what is happening around them, the recent Zionist atrocities in Gaza have shocked the world into a new and expanded awareness. The nakedly brutal nature of these atrocities has focused the attention of quite literally billions of people on the starkly evil designs of this fanatical religious/political movement called 'Zionism'. You would do well to try to become aware that the waters are rising around those who project mendacious apologies for what all reasonable and moral people easily recognize as horrific atrocity.
The vast Zionist conspiracy is trying, (with rapidly diminishing success), to convince people not to believe what we can clearly see with our own eyes. But the difference between the stark atrocities committed by the criminal State of Israel, and the ongoing and ever more absurdly ridiculous claims of 'self-defense' that Israel has tried to spread as a palliative over the evil aggressions of Zionism, is steadily becoming much clearer to ever larger numbers of people.
The world's minuscule population of barely 13 million Jews should try to realize the tragedy of hatred against all Jews that is being fomented in the hearts of literally billions of people by the racist evils of Zionism. Jews everywhere should try to realize that they are bringing this tragic hatred down on their own heads with their continued support for the horrific atrocities committed by Israel in the name of Zionism.
People like Joel Kovel are trying to awaken Jews, whose own suffering has torn at our hearts, to their historic moral sensibilities. When we see Jews commit atrocities against defenseless people, exactly as the Nazis once committed such atrocities against them, we can only shake our heads in overwhelming sadness at the staggering enormity of this tragic irony. People who present apologies for Zionism, as well as people like yourselves who punish those who dare to tell the truth about Zionism, are only succeeding in threatening the future of Israel, and bringing the tragedy of widespread hatred down on Jews everywhere.
With your politically motivated dismissal of Professor Kovel, who has had the moral courage to tell the truth, you have identified yourselves, and Bard College, as supporters of this evil cancer on Humankind that is called Zionism. You are staking out a position on the wrong side of History, and large numbers of people, all across America, are taking note that Bard College will punish those who tell the simple truth.
You are making a cruel and absurd joke out of any consideration of Bard College as a 'progressive' institution.
R Zwarich