Harvard removes webpage featuring ‘affinity celebrations’ amid scrutiny over antisemitism

Harvard University removed a webpage that highlighted various “affinity celebrations” for graduates with different identities.

Christopher Rufo, a senior fellow at the Manhattan Institute, reported on this removal. His report comes at a time when Harvard and other universities are under close watch due to reported instances of antisemitism on campuses across the U.S., coinciding with the conflict between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip, the Daily Wire reports.

“Harvard provided racially segregated ‘affinity group’ celebrations at its commencement event earlier this year,” Rufo posted on X, “The university has now deleted this page from its website.”

Items that made up the list for May included “affinity celebrations” for “LGBTQ+ Graduates,” “Arab Graduates,” “Indigenous Graduates,” “Graduates with Disabilities,” “Latinx Graduates,” “Black Graduates,” and “Asian, Asian American, Pacific Islander, Desi-American Graduates.”

According to Campus Reform, the original URL for the removed page now leads to a "Diversity and Inclusion" page on Harvard's website. However, an archived version reveals the page's previous appearance. The exact timing of the page's removal is not known, but the publication observed that it seemed to have been a standing page regularly updated with "affinity" events for each graduation cycle.

The Wayback Machine of the Internet Archive reveals that the webpage was accessible at least since 2022. Additionally, a "Frequently Asked Questions" section on the page suggested that these celebrations have been occurring for a number of years.

Rufo stated in his X post that “Whites and Jews were the only groups not provided with celebrations.” Harvard University describes “affinity celebrations” as “student-led, staff-supported events that recognize and celebrate the accomplishments of graduates from marginalized and underrepresented communities.”

Harvard University's president, Claudine Gay, faced criticism following her statement in a recent congressional hearing, where she suggested that the context determines whether advocating for the genocide of Jews on campus breaches the university's policies on bullying and harassment.

Harvard stood by Gay, releasing a statement on X that said: “There are some who have confused a right to free expression with the idea that Harvard will condone calls for violence against Jewish students. Let me be clear: Calls for violence or genocide against the Jewish community, or any religious or ethnic group are vile, they have no place at Harvard, and those who threaten our Jewish students will be held to account.”

Ian Miles Cheong

Contributor

Ian Miles Cheong is a freelance writer, graphic designer, journalist and videographer. He’s kind of a big deal on Twitter.

https://twitter.com/stillgray

COMMENTS

Be the first to comment

Please check your e-mail for a link to activate your account.