To fight another day

Leading anti-Zionist dissident historian Norman Finkelstein now has no choice but to continue his fight at a different university:

For a man who has just lost his job after a highly public battle, DePaul University assistant political science Professor Norman Finkelstein is calm and accepting.

That’s because Finkelstein, whose tenure bid drew widespread interest because of the Jewish professor’s blunt criticism of Jews and the state of Israel — and the attack on those views waged by Harvard Law Professor Alan Dershowitz — stands firmly on the beliefs that may have got him fired.

“There is a song by the folk singer Keith Seeger, ‘Die Gedanken sind frei,'” the controversial academic reflected in a rare interview with the Sun-Times.

“That means, ‘thoughts are free.’ No one can deny that ‘die gedanken sind frei.’ They can deny me tenure, deny me the right to teach. But they will never stop me from saying what I believe.”

DePaul’s behaviour is unsurprising, though shameful. Finkelstein has been praised by two of the most prominent Jewish historians in the world, but clearly this wasn’t enough. His “crime” was challenging the Zionist narrative, and we all know that such thoughts are verboten in polite company.

Text and images ©2024 Antony Loewenstein. All rights reserved.

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