The climate at Harvard remains as hostile to the Jewish community as ever, despite the board’s commitment to fighting against antisemitism.
A rabbi at Harvard, Hirschy Zarchi, explained in a video this week how administrators told him to hide the campus menorah each night over the fear that it will be vandalized.
“We in the Jewish community are instructed, ‘We’ll let you have the menorah, you made your point, okay. Pack it up. Don’t leave it out overnight because there will be criminal activity we fear and it won’t look good,'” Zarchi said.
“You know when change is going to happen on this campus? When we don’t have to pack up the menorah,” he continued. “When the current dean of students is not able to tell me last Shabbat over dinner that a student confides in him, that he looks in the mirror before he leaves his dorm room to ensure that there’s nothing on his physical appearance that gives away the fact that he’s a Jew. That’s the reality of the Jewish community at Harvard today.”
Before lighting candles for the 7th night of #Hanukkah, Rabbi Hirschy Zarchi of @HarvardChabad shared a story about how he has to hide the menorah on campus each night out of fear from the university of criminal activity. “We in the Jewish community are longing for a day…that… pic.twitter.com/C35weuzqBA
— ICC (@israelcc) December 14, 2023
The rabbi’s remarks come after the Harvard Corporation expressed its support for president Claudine Gay after widespread criticism of her handling of the University’s response to Oct. 7, her disastrous congressional testimony, and allegations of plagiarism.
"Our extensive deliberations affirm our confidence that President Gay is the right leader to help our community heal and to address the very serious societal issues we are facing," the statement said in part.
"So many people have suffered tremendous damage and pain because of Hamas’s brutal terrorist attack, and the University’s initial statement should have been an immediate, direct, and unequivocal condemnation. Calls for genocide are despicable and contrary to fundamental human values. President Gay has apologized for how she handled her congressional testimony and has committed to redoubling the University’s fight against antisemitism.