Speaker’s ideas cause concern

By Emily Roman

Published March 4, 2008

A speech focusing on the Israel-Palenstine conflict caused members of the Jewish Student Organization and others to express disapproval because of the speaker’s controversial views and beliefs.

The MU Peace Studies Program sponsored a speech by political analyst Norman Finkelstein on Monday night.

People came out to support Finkelstein while others questioned his facts and reasoning during the question and answer portion of the evening.

“How can you bring someone in who has extremist, anti-Israel, pro-Palestine, Holocaust revisionist views without bringing in someone from the other side?” Jewish Student Organization spokesman Scott Susman said.

According to an MU news release, Finkelstein has written five books about anti-Semitism, the Holocaust and the Israel-Palestine conflict in the Middle East. His latest work being “Beyond Chutzpah: On the Misuse of Anti-Semitism and the Abuse of History.”

He spoke mainly on the Israel-Palestine conflict. He brought attention to certain aspects of the controversy including the disputed territories, deaths of Palestinian men, women and children and Israeli terrorism against Palestine.

Finkelstein, who is Jewish, supports Palestine.

“How did Palestinians become refugees in 1948?” Finkelstein said. “How do you resolve the conflict?”

Peace Studies Program Director John Galliher said he decided to ask Finkelstein to speak at MU when he became aware that a “fine scholar was being banned from academia because of what he is saying.”

DePaul University denied Finkelstein tenure. He later sued and received a settlement, according to MU’s Center on Religion and the Profession Web site.

Galliher said he was appalled that a distinguished intellectual would be denied tenure because of his beliefs.

“I believe in diversity of ideas and the truth,” Galliher said.

When first scheduling Finkelstein to come in and speak, Galliher was “not originally aware it would bring up controversy,” he said.

Susman said JSO respects Finkelstein’s right to speak.

JSO held two meetings after hearing about Finkelstein’s pending visit. The first meeting brought in a large amount of students, Susman said. He said people seemed disappointed, confused and surprised.

In the end, JSO “decided that protesting an extremist would not promote our cause” of not supporting anti-Semitism, Susman said.

Instead, the organization sent letters to both Galliher and Chancellor Brady Deaton expressing their disappointment that only one side of the issue would be shown by bringing Finkelstein to speak. Susman hand delivered the letters Thursday morning, he said. JSO has not received an official response yet, Susman said.

Galliher said he encouraged the students to attend the talk and plans to send out an e-mail telling the opposing organizations and students to come up with names of other speakers to invite for the opposing side of Finkelstein’s beliefs.

JSO has begun a search for a “meaningful speaker” to talk about the other side of the anti-Semitism issue, Susman said.