Former Harvard president Lawrence Summers on the school’s silence on the Israel-Hamas war

World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, January 26, 2013. Photo Monika Flueckiger via Wikimedia Commons

In an earlier post today I noted that 31 Harvard University student groups have blamed the ongoing Israeli-Hamas war entirely on Israel. Lawrence Summers, the former president of Harvard University and Secretary of the Treasury at the end of the Clinton administration, is speaking out:

The silence from Harvard’s leadership, so far, coupled with a vocal and widely reported student groups' statement blaming Israel solely, has allowed Harvard to appear at best neutral towards acts of terror against the Jewish state of Israel.
— Lawrence H. Summers (@LHSummers) October 9, 2023

…or Dean Gay’s powerful statement on police violence, we have as yet – 48 hours later – no official Harvard statement at this time of moral testing. https://t.co/ePl9Z6cYcF
— Lawrence H. Summers (@LHSummers) October 9, 2023

I very much hope appropriate statements from the University and College condemning those who launched terrorist attacks and standing in solidarity with its victims will soon be forthcoming.
— Lawrence H. Summers (@LHSummers) October 9, 2023

A large number of Harvard Alumni feel the same way. @Harvard can’t ignore this.
— VF1🏁 (@TheVFCastro) October 9, 2023

UPDATE (October 9, 9:49pm): Harvard released a statement this afternoon.