Staff Reports
Columbia University appears to be kicking off another semester with a spectacular display of intolerance, as an imam has reportedly instructed students to “take out” a Jewish professor. Shai Davidai, a professor at Columbia and proud Israeli national, is the unfortunate target of this latest act of academic aggression. It seems the academic environment at Columbia is thriving, provided you aren’t a supporter of Israel or, heaven forbid, a Jew.
The drama unfolded during a recent webinar titled “Islamic Political Activism,” led by none other than Imam Tom Facchine, who also dons the hat of research director at the Yaqeen Institute for Islamic Research. In this enlightening seminar, Facchine was caught on video proposing that students cook up a plan to put Davidai in hot water at the university. His delightfully diabolical scheme seemed aimed not just at silencing one professor, but at creating a chilling effect on all of his colleagues—because the real goal, of course, is to ensure that academia remains an echo chamber for anti-Semitic sentiments.
Hey @Columbia,
Are you OK with a pro-terror student organization inviting a Hamas-supporting imam that's telling students to "take out" one of your Jewish professors?
A thread with damning videos.
— Shai Davidai (@ShaiDavidai) August 24, 2024
Facchine encouraged creativity among students, suggesting that they carefully consider their priorities and target the “biggest threat.” For those keeping score, a Jewish professor advocating for Zionism is evidently at the top of the list in a place where students are more concerned with appearances than reality. The irony here is palpable; the very students searching for intellectual freedom have shackled themselves to the radical views they think are daring and edgy, all while dismissing facts that don’t align with their world view.
It might be tempting to think that college students would be capable of critical thinking or unimpressed by ideological groupthink, but this is the new reality. Young people today, particularly in institutions like Columbia, have traded nuanced debate for mob mentality. Just as they swallow campus-approved narratives whole, they also seem to take their cues from history’s more notorious examples of youth indoctrination—because what could be more progressive than embracing a philosophy that has been known to trample dissent?
This situation also raises questions about the broader implications for academic freedom and expression. When a professor is banned from portions of the campus and openly threatened by radicals, it’s a sign that something has gone vastly wrong. While Columbia Students for Justice in Palestine found itself permanently banned from Instagram—perhaps due to this chilling chatter—one has to wonder if there will come a day when the tableaux of needless harassment and intimidation receives the attention it deserves.
In the long run, what’s truly alarming is how easily college campuses have become breeding grounds for totalitarian tendencies, mirroring dark historical episodes. The parallels are striking: whether it’s the students of Khomeini or the Hitler Youth, history has repeatedly shown that young minds are fruitful soil for extremist ideologies, especially in settings that foster groupthink. This troubling trend is hardly unique to Columbia, but perhaps it is a microcosm of something much larger—a society that increasingly fails to honor free speech and the delicate nature of debate.
