{"id":2218076,"date":"2024-04-11T05:14:02","date_gmt":"2024-04-11T09:14:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/harvard-moves-toward-student-referendum-on-divestment-from-israel-led-by-rhodes-scholarship-recipient\/"},"modified":"2024-04-11T05:16:13","modified_gmt":"2024-04-11T09:16:13","slug":"harvard-moves-toward-student-referendum-on-divestment-from-israel-led-by-rhodes-scholarship-recipient","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/harvard-moves-toward-student-referendum-on-divestment-from-israel-led-by-rhodes-scholarship-recipient\/","title":{"rendered":"Harvard considers student referendum on divestment from Israel, led by Rhodes Scholarship recipient"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">26<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fharvard-moves-toward-student-referendum-on-divestment-from-israel-led-by-rhodes-scholarship-recipient%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2218076&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>Asmer \u200cAsrar Safi,\u200d a Pakistani Rhodes Scholar student at \u200dHarvard, initiated\u200c a \u200bpetition for a\u2063 referendum on divesting from Israel.\u2064 The Harvard Undergraduate Palestine Solidarity Committee supports this cause. Harvard, however, opposes \u2064boycotts against\u200c Israel. \u200cThe petition \u2062swiftly gained signatures and is set for \u2063a vote \u200dsoon, sparking discussions within the university community. Asmer Asrar Safi,\u200b a \u2064Pakistani Rhodes Scholar\u2062 student at Harvard, has spearheaded a petition calling for\u200d a referendum on \u200cdivesting from Israel. Supported by \u200bthe Harvard Undergraduate Palestine\u200b Solidarity Committee, the petition\u2062 has gathered momentum despite Harvard&#8217;s stance against Israel boycotts. The swift accumulation of signatures indicates a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/dems-explode-at-each-other-over-infrastructure-stalemate-its-the-effing-progressives\/\" title=\"Dems Explode At Each Other Over Infrastructure Stalemate: \u2018It\u2019s The Effing Progressives!\u2019\">forthcoming vote<\/a>, igniting conversations across\u2063 the university.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<div>\n<h2>&#8216;Harvard has a responsibility to listen to us,&#8217; says Asmer Asrar Safi<\/h2>\n<figure><figcaption> \t\t\t\t \t\t\t\tAsmer Safi (via asmersafi.me)\t\t\t<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div>\n<p>The Harvard Undergraduate Palestine Solidarity Committee, an anti-Israel <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/student-group-pledges-to-re-up-yale-lawsuit-tossed-by-biden-doj\/\" title=\"Student Group Pledges to Re-Up Yale Lawsuit Tossed by Biden DOJ\">student group<\/a>, passed a petition on Tuesday that started the wheels turning toward a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/tufts-university-activists-getting-jewish-has-been-biased\/\" title=\"Tufts University Activists: Getting Jewish HAS BEEN Biased\">student referendum<\/a> on whether Harvard University should divest from Israel. The student behind the effort is a Pakistani national who was recently named a Rhodes Scholar.<\/p>\n<p>Asmer Asrar Safi, an <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/u-c-berkeley-advised-chinese-government-on-economic-decisions\/\" title=\"U.C. Berkeley Advised Chinese Government on Economic Decisions\">international student<\/a> at the Ivy League institution, is listed as one of the two student organizers behind the petition, which triggers a referendum asking students whether Harvard should divest from entities linked to &#8220;Israel&#8217;s occupation of Palestine.&#8221; Months earlier, in November, Harvard <a href=\"https:\/\/news.harvard.edu\/gazette\/story\/2023\/11\/10-from-harvard-named-rhodes-scholars\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">congratulated<\/a> Safi for being named a Rhodes Scholar, noting that he plans to study &#8220;progressive political messaging&#8221; at the University of Oxford. Students must receive Harvard&#8217;s endorsement before applying for the Rhodes scholarship, a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.harvardmagazine.com\/2013\/10\/on-to-plan-b\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">selective process<\/a> in which half of Harvard&#8217;s prospective applicants are rejected.<\/p>\n<p>In an <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thecrimson.com\/article\/2024\/4\/10\/divestment-petition-israel-palestine\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">interview<\/a> with the <em>Harvard Crimson<\/em>, Safi said he helped draft the petition in response to similar resolutions from the Harvard Law School Student Government and Harvard Divinity School Student Association. Those resolutions call on the Ivy League school to divest from &#8220;illegal Israeli settlements,&#8221; and Safi said he hopes to &#8220;capitalize off of [their] momentum.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;One thing that we want to definitely emphasize is that Harvard has a responsibility to listen to us,&#8221; Safi said.<\/p>\n<p>At Harvard, prospective Rhodes applicants must receive approval from a two-tiered endorsement committee before they are allowed to apply. After securing Harvard&#8217;s endorsement, Safi <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thecrimson.com\/article\/2023\/11\/13\/rhodes-scholars-2024\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">flew<\/a> 7,000 miles to Pakistan for his interview and was subsequently <a href=\"https:\/\/www.rhodeshouse.ox.ac.uk\/scholars\/rhodes-scholars-class-of-2024\/asmer-safi\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">selected<\/a> as one of the nation&#8217;s two Rhodes Scholars.<\/p>\n<p>Harvard in a Friday <a href=\"https:\/\/www.harvard.edu\/media-relations\/2024\/04\/05\/harvard-university-statement-apr-5\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">statement<\/a> dismissed Israeli boycott efforts, saying that its &#8220;leadership has made clear that it opposes calls for a policy of boycotting Israel and its academic institutions.&#8221; The university declined to comment on Safi&#8217;s petition and whether it stands by its decision to endorse the student as a Rhodes Scholar.<\/p>\n<p>Safi did not respond to a request for comment.<\/p>\n<p>The petition put forth by Safi and another anti-Israel student activist, Shraddha Joshi, gathered the required number of signatures within three hours of its launch. Once the signatures are verified by the Harvard Undergraduate Association&#8217;s electoral commission, the divestment vote will take place within the next three weeks.<\/p>\n<p>Safi&#8217;s Palestine Solidarity Committee is the student group behind the infamous Oct. 8 <a href=\"https:\/\/freebeacon.com\/latest-news\/harvard-dean-33-student-groups-blame-israel-for-war\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">statement<\/a> that blamed Israel for provoking Hamas&#8217;s terror attack. The statement said the Jewish state is &#8220;entirely responsible for all unfolding violence&#8221; and the &#8220;apartheid regime is the only one to blame.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Safi&#8217;s anti-Israel activism at Harvard goes back to 2021, when he authored an <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thecrimson.com\/article\/2021\/6\/24\/safi-progressive-except-for-palestine\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">op-ed<\/a> for the <em>Crimson<\/em>. He accused Israel&#8217;s &#8220;apartheid regime&#8221; of imposing &#8220;a hegemonic, authoritarian rule over Palestinians.&#8221; He also signed a divestment <a href=\"https:\/\/docs.google.com\/document\/d\/1NtNoEeGoHUFPhUJJxhw0EXKJTpC0n9fi_bXrx3YbVYU\/edit\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">statement<\/a> issued that year, which called on the university to remove its &#8220;nearly $200 million in public, direct and indirect investments in companies that are involved in the illegal Israeli settlement enterprise.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>In 2022, meanwhile, Safi appeared in a series of now-archived Palestine Solidarity Committee videos, in which he <a href=\"https:\/\/youtu.be\/8VSrmVi9_IQ?si=7AXq451DInkpA7y9&#038;t=58\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">told<\/a> listeners that it is their &#8220;duty&#8221; and &#8220;role&#8221; to &#8220;stand up, fight back, and stand in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/netanyahu-expects-ties-visit-by-morocco-to-israel-next-week\/\" title=\"Netanyahu expects ties visit by Morocco to Israel next week\">solidarity<\/a> with Palestinians.&#8221;\t<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Given the precise state-sponsored nature of the violence that ensues against Palestinians every single day\u2014and the fact of the matter is that the Israeli government sponsors a settler colonial project\u2014it is very pertinent for us to understand about how particular this power dynamic exists,&#8221; Safi <a href=\"https:\/\/youtu.be\/p1GZUdJDahc?si=VYo18YaF19blJxH6&#038;t=71\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">says<\/a> in one video. &#8220;And as a consequence of that, it is very important for us to realize that it is our job as allies to stand up and speak up in solidarity with Palestinians across the world.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Safi <a href=\"https:\/\/news.harvard.edu\/gazette\/story\/2023\/11\/10-from-harvard-named-rhodes-scholars\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">studies<\/a> social studies and ethnicity, migration, and human rights. He will graduate in the spring.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Asmer Asrar Safi believes Harvard must heed their voices. The Harvard Undergraduate Palestine Solidarity Committee, an anti-Israel student group, initiated a petition leading to discussions about a student referendum on Harvard&#8217;s potential divestment from Israel. This movement is spearheaded by Asmer Asrar Safi. Source: asmersafi.me<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2360,"featured_media":2218077,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/freebeacon.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/111323_Rhodes_Asmer_0338-e1712789501759.jpeg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[544],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2218076","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-free-beacon"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/freebeacon.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/111323_Rhodes_Asmer_0338-e1712789501759.jpeg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2218076","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2360"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2218076"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2218076\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2218077"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2218076"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2218076"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2218076"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}