Former Harvard president says he suffered pressure for being black

After resigning as president of Harvard University, in the United States, economist Claudine Gay, 53 years old, said this Wednesday (January 3, 2024) that she was the target of pressure because she is a black woman.

Claudine suffered a series of criticisms from politicians and the North American press at the end of 2023 due to signs of plagiarism in research and alleged leniency towards anti-Semitic students.

“It is not lost on me that I am an ideal target for the projection of all the anxieties about the generational and demographic changes taking place on American campuses: a black woman chosen to lead a renowned institution”said the former president of the university in an article published in the newspaper New York Times.

Claudine said the decision to resign was “painful”but “necessary” to stop the attacks on the university and itself. She claimed to have been threatened with death and called a “nigger” –the word is considered the biggest racial insult against the black population in the USA, and is even avoided in media outlets. There is a common sense among Americans that the expression carries an obvious connotation of racism, and whoever uses it has the purpose of insulting.

The economist, who is the daughter of Haitian immigrants, was in the position for only 6 months, this being the shortest term in the university's history. She was also the first black woman in charge of the university.

ANTI-SEMITISM

On October 7, when Hamas attacked Israel, Harvard students released a letter blaming Israel for the “ongoing violence”. Jewish students came forward to say they felt isolated and frightened by the letter.

Three days later, on October 10, Claudine said that students had the right to express themselves, but that they were not speaking on behalf of Harvard or its leaders.

“In my initial response to the atrocities of October 7, I should have stated more forcefully what all people of good conscience know: Hamas is a terrorist organization that seeks to eradicate the Jewish State.”said the former president of the university in the text of the New York Times published this Wednesday.

On December 5, Claudine participated in a hearing at the House Education Committee alongside two other university presidents to talk about how they dealt with anti-Semitism in academic environments after the start of the war between Israel and Hamas.

The then president of Harvard University refused to answer a question from the Education Committee of the US Congress about punishments for students for statements considered anti-Semitic. This Wednesday, Claudine stated that, on that occasion, she fell into a “well prepared trap” and called the “calls for the genocide of the Jewish people” in “abominable” It is “unacceptable”.

PLAGIARISM

Still in October, North American newspapers published excerpts from old academic works written by the former president of Harvard University, claiming that they contained plagiarism. The accusations appeared again on Monday (1st January) in a newspaper publication Washington Free Beacon and also in text of New York Times.

“My critics have found instances in my academic writings in which some material duplicated the language of other scholars without proper attribution. I believe that all scholars deserve full and appropriate credit for their work.”said Claudine.

The former president of Harvard University declared that, when she found out about the “errors”he requested “readily” corrections from the journals in which the articles were published.

“I have never distorted the results of my research, nor have I claimed credit for the research of others. Furthermore, citation errors should not obscure a fundamental truth: I proudly stand by my work and its impact on the field.”he said.

WHO IS CLAUDINE GAY

Claudine Gay is the daughter of Haitian immigrants. She graduated with a degree in economics from Stanford University in 1992. She received the Anna Laura Myers Award for best undergraduate thesis. In 1998, she completed her PhD (equivalent to a doctorate) at Harvard. She won the Toppan Prize for best dissertation in political science.

Afterwards, she worked at Stanford as a professor. In 2006, she was hired by Harvard. A year later, in 2007, she took a position teaching African and African American studies.

Since 2018, Claudine Gay has been director of FAS (Faculty of Arts and Sciences), which brings together courses in biological, physical, engineering, social sciences, humanities and arts.

HARVARD UNIVERSITY

The institution was founded in 1636 and is one of the most renowned educational institutions on the planet. At the ranking in best universities in the world 2022, from US News & World ReportHarvard is in 1st place.

The North American university has a endowment fund (perpetual reserve fund) that it arrived to US$50.9 billion (equivalent to R$248.9 billion at current prices) in 2022.