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SACUA Statement Concerning President Ono’s Summons to Washington

Dear President Ono,

of anti-Semitism, Islamophobia, and anti-Palestinian racism. At Columbia and other

institutions, the hearings have occasioned unseemly and controversial crackdowns on

pro-Palestinian student protestors.

As you prepare for your interview, SACUA offers this advice: (1) defend the University’s

mission of scholarship, research, and teaching and uphold its commitment to intellectual

and academic freedom; (2) object to the House Committee’s unduly expansive definition

of anti-Semitism, which is being used to stifle criticism of Israeli military operations in

Gaza; and (3) bear in mind our university’s mistakes of the 1950s before acquiescing to

pressure from legislators, donors, and alums that would misalign us with the university’s

freedom of expression as necessary for “nurturing a diverse, equitable, and inclusive

community.” The activism of the more than 100 students who were until

recently encamped on the University’s Diag stands within a distinguished history of

political action here at the University. Like today’s protesters, the anti-apartheid activists

of the 1970s and 1980s encamped on the Diag. Like the students of the Black Action

Movement, today’s protesters’ interrupted the regular running of University affairs.

Early in the morning on May 21, police outfitted in riot gear descended on the

encampment and, on short notice, broke it up. Students were tear gassed and manhandled

by police; several were hospitalized; and four protestors were arrested. By using force,

The administration’s sudden actions of May 21 have undermined the good will

engendered by the cautious and diplomatic approach taken up to that point. We call upon

you to commit to dialogue with the student protesters and to defend our common mission:

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to enable vigorous and meaningful dialogue about the most controversial matters in

public life.

(2) Object to the House Committee’s disingenuously using the term “anti-Semitism”

to stifle criticism of Israeli military operations in Gaza

We agree with the view of the American Civil Liberties Union that the activities of the

House Committee serve to “chill free speech on college campuses by incorrectly equating

criticism of the Israeli government with anti-Semitism.” Branding any pro-Palestinian

Israel’s ongoing military campaign in Gaza.”

Our faculty and students have many reasons for standing in solidarity with Gaza’s people.

The state we serve is home to the largest community of Arab-Americans in the United

States. Dearborn is by no means ‘America’s Jihad Capital.’ It is full of patriotic, proud

Michiganders whose family ties extend to Palestine. Palestinians are among our students;

and friends and relatives of University of Michigan students have been among the more

than 35,000 people killed in Gaza by the Israeli military since the original October 2023

attack on Israel by Hamas.

In 1954 Professors Chandler Davis, Mark Nickerson, and Clement Markert were called

before the House Un-American Activities Committee, which was investigating alleged

Communist influences in American universities. Instead of supporting the faculty, the

president fired Davis and Nickerson and suspended Markert. These decisions sent a chill

across campus, impacting hiring decisions, emboldening bullying, and leading scholars to

shy from producing politically controversial research for decades.

The University should not repeat the mistakes of the past. We urge you to uphold the

right to free expression on campus. Moreover, we urge you to work with the Association

of American Universities to rally university presidents against this nationwide assault on

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their efforts would be better spent in brokering a viable, peaceful solution to the conflict

in Gaza that does not involve attacks on civilians or mass starvation.