It has seemed to me that a vast double standard regarding what constitutes prejudice exists on American college campuses. There is hypersensitivity to prejudice against most minority groups but what might be called hyper-insensitivity to anti-Semitism.
At Bowdoin College, holding parties with sombreros and tequila is deemed to be an act of prejudice against Mexicans. At Emory, the chalking of an endorsement of the likely Republican presidential candidate, Donald Trump, on a sidewalk is deemed to require a review of security tapes.
The existence of a college named after a widely admired former US president has been condemned at Princeton, under the duress of a student occupation.
At Yale, Halloween costumes are the subject of administrative edict.
The dean of Harvard Law School has acknowledged that hers is a racist institution, while the freshman dean at Harvard College has used dinner place mats to propagandize the student body on aspects of diversity.
Professors acquiesce as students insist that they not be exposed to views on issues, such as abortion, that make them uncomfortable.
This is inconsistent with basic American values of free speech and open debate.
It fails to recognize that a proper liberal education should cause moments of acute discomfort as cherished beliefs are challenged.
But if comfort is elevated to be a preeminent value, the standard should be applied universally. Unfortunately, there is a clear exception made on most university campuses for anti-Semitic speech and acts.
This article was originally published in the NY Post
Lawrence Summers, the Charles W. Eliot university professor at Harvard, is a former treasury secretary and director of the National Economic Council in the White House.