John Cheney-Lippold faces the music

Occasionally, actions have consequences, even for tenured professors.

John Cheney-Lippold, a tenured American and digital studies associate professor at the University of Michigan refused to write a letter of recommendation for a student wanting to study in Israel.    

The University has launched disciplinary proceedings against Cheney-Lippold. In an Oct 3rd letter, published in the Detroit News,  Elizabeth Cole, the acting dean of UM’s College of Literature, Science and the Arts wrote:

"Your conduct has fallen far short of the University’s and College’s expectations for how LSA faculty interact with and treat students...This letter is a strong warning that your behavior in this circumstance was inappropriate and will not be tolerated."

"In the future, a student's merit should be your primary guide for determining how and whether to provide a letter of recommendation. You are not to use student requests for recommendations as a platform to discuss your personal political beliefs."

According to information obtained through a FOIA request, the Detroit News reported that Cheney-Lippold  

will not get a merit raise during the 2018-19 academic year and can't go on his upcoming sabbatical in January or another sabbatical for two years...  He could also face additional discipline, up to and including dismissal, if a similar incident occurs in the future.

Since then, it has been reported that Lucy Peterson, a graduate student instructor at  the university  also denied a student a letter of recommendation for study in Israel.

George Galloway storms out of debate after learning his opponent was Israeli

Its a moment of appalling intolerance, from a man who's made it a career choice. George Galloway, from the UK's "Respect" party, stormed out of Christ Church after learning that the student he was facing in the debate was Israeli. In spite of Omar Barghouti's claim that the BDS movement targets institutions, not individuals, George argrily tweeted:

From the Cherwell website:

George Galloway, the Respect MP for Bradford West, has been accused by Oxford students of anti-semitism.

Mr Galloway “stormed out” of a debate at Christ Church on Wednesday evening, upon finding out that his opponent, Eylon Aslan-Levy, a third-year PPEist at Brasenose, was an Israeli citizen.
Mr Galloway had spoken for ten minutes in favour of the motion 'Israel should withdraw immediately from the West Bank', before giving way to Aslan-Levy.

Less than three minutes into Aslan-Levy’s speech against the motion, Galloway was made aware that his opponent was an Israeli citizen.

“I have been misled,” Mr Galloway then commented, interrupting Aslan-Levy’s speech. “I don’t debate with Israelis”. He then left the room with his wife, Putri Gayatri Pertiwi, and was escorted out of Christ Church by a college porter. When prompted to explain why Aslan-Levy’s nationality prompted him to abandon the debate, Galloway stated that “I don't recognize Israeli citizens.”

After the debate Aslan-Levy said that "I am appalled that an MP would storm out of a debate with me for no reason other than my heritage.

"To refuse to talk to someone just because of their nationality is pure racism, and totally unacceptable for a member of parliament."

Mahmood Naji, the organiser of the debate, told Cherwell that he "condemned Mr Galloway's walkout, on the basis of his opponent's nationality."

He went on to deny that he had "misled" the MP. "At no point during my email exchange with Mr Galloway's secretary was Eylon's nationality ever brought up or mentioned." He added, "nor do I expect to have to tell the speaker what his opponent's nationality is."

Cowardice and intolerance is a hallmark of the anti-Israel Cru. Just a few weeks earlier, Nancy Kricorian of Code Pink  hung up on a TV interview after she learned a representative of the Jewish community would also  be speaking

A clip of George Galloway's  very public tantrum can be viewed on youtube.



UPDATES:
Thanks to our friends at CIF Watch for the reminder of these "Best of George Galloway" moments.  Apologies for the clip show.

George Galloway giving cash to the Hamas terror group in Gaza:



George Galloway fawning over Saddam Hussein:

Anti-Semitism in an NGO? Who'd ever guess?

Theophil Pfister, a member of the Swiss People’s Party in the National parliament, submitted a legislative query about the Swiss funds being used to fund BADIL, calling the work of BADIL the “worst anti- Semitic propaganda.”

From an article in the J POST

The Swiss government froze its funding stream for a pro-Palestinian NGO because an anti-Semitic cartoon appeared on its website, according to a report in the Swiss daily Tages-Anzeiger on Wednesday.

Switzerland, Holland, Sweden and Denmark, which together fund the NGO Development Center (NDC), have contributed $270,000 since 2008 to BADIL: Resource Center for Palestinian Residency and Refugee Rights.

“By stopping funding to BADIL, NDC is acknowledging that NGOs sometimes misuse foreign government funding to pursue radical political agendas,” wrote Gerald Steinberg, the head of the Jerusalem-based watchdog organization NGO Monitor, in an e-mail on Saturday to The Jerusalem Post.

The cartoon, which was posted in Fall 2010, shows a caricature of a Jewish man holding a blood-soaked pitchfork and keys while standing over a dead Arab child.

BADIL, founded in 1998, advocates a boycott, sanctions and divestment (BDS) strategy against the Jewish state.

Amjad Audeh, a BADIL spokesman, told Tages- Anzeiger that the publication of the cartoon was a “slip up.”

The Swiss government has not ruled out future monies for BADIL. The four EU countries are seeking new conditions from the Bethlehembased organization in order to continue their financial support.

According to Steinberg, BADIL is in the middle of a three year, $575,000 grant from the NDC.

“They are a leader in the BDS movement, they published an anti-Semitic cartoon on their website and they reject multiple peace initiatives.

These actions are clearly out of step with their European funders, and the funding has rightfully been frozen,” Steinberg said.

He said an independent public analysis of the “antipeace and anti-human rights NGOs” that are funded by European governments is needed.

“The damage done by irresponsible funding under the NDC has been very costly,” Steinberg said.

BADIL said a posted text from the Australian Holocaust denier Frederick Töben on its website in 2008 was also an oversight.

According to an extensive 2006 Eye on the UN report, titled, “The UN-NGO Connection: Spreading the Message of Hate and Terrorism,” BADIL is listed as “advocating the end of the Jewish state” and equating “Zionism with racism.”

According to NGO Monitor, BADIL advocates the end of Israel as a Jewish State, and glorifies violence, martyrdom, and intifada.

Thank you Switzerland, for freezing funding. Its about time.