On Wednesday, December 6th, the Presidents of Harvard, the University of Pennsylvania, and MIT were called to a Congressional Hearing following student comments on their campuses. Because of their answers to some questions, they have since received harsh backlash. 

Specifically, criticism came when they were asked about whether “calling for the genocide of Jews?” was punishable as harassment and bullying on campus. The Presidents seemed to evade the question, giving very legalistic replies, stating that their response depended on the context of the situation. This is an especially divisive and emotional topic as the amount of antisemitic, anti-Arab, and anti-Muslim incidents are rising throughout the United States. 

Since the hearing, many people have spoken out, calling for the presidents’ removal, including students, Faculty, alums, and members of the White House.  As of Saturday, December 9th, Penn president Liz Magill resigned from her position, saying it was “an honor to work with our faculty, staff, alumni, and community members.” 

However, on Monday, December 10th, the Harvard Alumni Association expressed their support for Harvard President Claudine Gay. Additionally, according to the Harvard Crimson, over 650 Harvard faculty members signed a letter urging for Gay to be kept as president. Other people have also vocalized their support for the presidents, arguing that punishment violates schools’ stance on free speech. 

On Tuesday, December 12th, Harvard officially announced that Gay will continue to be their president, stating they are confident that “President Gay is the right leader to help our community heal and to address the very serious societal issues we are facing.”

Additionally, MIT has expressed support for its president and, as of the publication of this article, has made no indication that she will be stepping down as president.