San Francisco State University

Michael L.

I arrived back at my old alma mater, San Francisco State University, yesterday, and met with a number of individuals on that campus to discuss the recent hub-bub over the Great Killing of "Colonizers" Scandal of 2013.

As I walked onto campus I had a number of questions.  The first was whether or not people were satisfied with president Wong's response to the November 7 Edward Said mural event in which students from the General Union of Palestine Students (GUPS), and other groups, held up signs that read "My heroes have always killed colonizers." 

It should be obvious to any fair-minded person that when a Palestinian-Arab student holds up a sign calling for the killing of "colonizers" who they mean are the Jews of the Middle East.  But even if that can somehow be construed as not the case, is it not obvious that American universities should not be in the business of financing advocacy for the murder of any people or group or nationality?

Islamic peoples, of course, are among the most significant colonizers in recorded history and they colonized and exploited the Jewish land of Israel, the land of my people, for thirteen hundred years between the time of Muhammad until the fall of the Ottoman Empire during World War I.

For thirteen hundred years the Jews of Israel were a colonized people by Arab invaders and by the Ottoman Turks.

My second question was concerned with the potential for ethnic tensions on that campus.  There was, after all, a time at SFSU, not so long ago, where a student might get chased out of the quad for wearing a kippa or a Star of David.  

The final question was, what of GUPS president Mohammed Hammad who directly threatened violence?  In the case of Mr. Hammad we have a student leader who explicitly called for the murder of Jews.

Everyone that I spoke with on that campus was someone of institutional significance within the SFSU community.  However, the only one that I am putting on the record is the editor-in-chief of the student newspaper, Andrew Cullen, of the Golden Gate Xpress.  Andrew and I had a very interesting conversation as we walked from the offices of his newspaper to the Edward Said mural.

The first thing that I want my readership to understand, however, is that the likelihood of violence on this campus over ethnic tensions is practically non-existent.  There was a time, around ten years ago, when this was not necessarily the case, but I was there a little over ten years ago as a student and I never felt any threat of personal violence whatsoever.  I did, however, witness a confrontation against Jews by Arab students and therefore cannot discount the possibility entirely.

As for president Wong's response to the incident, the general feeling is mixed, although leaning in his favor.  President Wong is new to campus, having recently replaced president Robert Corrigan who was a friend to the Jewish constituency.  My tendency is to agree with editor Cullen that it is quite unclear just what Wong's office intends to do, although rumor has it that Mr. Hammad, president of the General Union of Palestine Students (GUPS) has been forcibly retired from his position... and from the university, as well.

That is a question that I will be looking into, you can be certain.

This story is winding down and I, for one, will be happy to let it RIP sometime soon.

Among the various things said to me was one particularly outstanding point.

Ethnic tensions against Jews at San Francisco State University have, over the course of many years, until this recent dust-up, been virtually non-existent.  

I have a personal interest in this story and will, therefore, from my little perch in the Oakland hills, keep an eye.