Gottheimer urges Rutgers officials to block 2 ‘notorious antisemites’ from speaking event

Rep. Josh Gottheimer sent a letter to Rutgers President Jonathan Holloway about speakers Marc Lamont Hill and Nick Estes.

Matt Trapani

Dec 6, 2023, 1:24 AM

Updated 370 days ago

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Rep. Josh Gottheimer is calling on Rutgers University officials to block two people he says are “notorious antisemites” from speaking at a university-sanctioned event this week.
The Democratic congressman sent a letter to Rutgers President Jonathan Holloway about speakers Marc Lamont Hill and Nick Estes. He points out that Lamont Hill was dismissed from his role as a CNN commentator for using a rallying cry right out of Hamas’s charter, which calls for killing Jewish people.
The Anti-Defamation League also says that Estes is known for antisemitism and bigotry.
"While differing views are a critical part of building cultural understanding, they cannot provide a bully pulpit for those who seek to divide others and spew hate,” Gottheimer wrote in the letter. “…if the university's goal is to promote mutual understanding and bring students together, it will fail so long as antisemites and anti-Israel advocates are given a sanctioned platform on your campus to promote.”
A spokesperson for the university said that the event will not be canceled.
"This is an academic seminar supported by Mellon Foundation funding. Rutgers University has a longstanding policy protecting academic freedom, which allows our faculty members, in the discharge of their duties and within the bounds of the law and University policy, to express their ideas and to challenge the ideas of others without fear of retribution. This includes the expression of viewpoints that others within the university community may not share and, in fact, may vigorously oppose—as many do in this case," the spokesperson wrote in part.