Rashid Khalidi, one of the world’s leading scholars on the history of the modern Middle East, is celebrating an important milestone. No longer this fall, will he teach a big intro-style lecture course at Columbia University. The university just recently reached a settlement agreement with the Trump administration. For Khalidi and many others, this new agreement is an even more alarming encroachment on academic freedom. After 23 years at Columbia, Khalidi now has stepped down. He intends to remain active with the public by presenting a series of public lectures in New York.
Khalidi is the Edward Said Professor Emeritus of Modern Arab Studies, Columbia University. He is perhaps best known for his scholarly work on the Middle East. He has studied this field for over 50 years and authored several influential works, including “The Hundred Years’ War on Palestine.” His courses provide an immersive experience into important historical topics and issues. They explore the Armenian genocide, absolute monarchies, military dictatorships throughout the Arab world and the undemocratic theocracy of Iran.
In his proposed course, Khalidi wanted to delve into some of the most urgent issues that continue to define the contemporary Middle East. The dictators in power His lectures would focus on the incipient dictatorial regime in Türkiye and the dangerous fanaticism of Wahhabism. Khalidi, on the other hand, focused his criticism on the university’s collaboration with the Trump administration. He’s concerned that it will chill legitimate debate over Israel and Palestine.
He laid out his concerns in a widely circulated open letter to Columbia’s Acting President, Mary C. Boyce. Khalidi maintained that the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) definition of antisemitism stifles debate on university campuses. He argues that it does so inappropriately by conflating legitimate criticism of Israel with antisemitism.
“Under this definition of antisemitism, which absurdly conflates criticism of a nation-state, Israel, and a political ideology, Zionism, with the ancient evil of Jew-hatred, it is impossible with any honesty to teach about topics such as the history of the creation of Israel, and the ongoing Palestinian Nakba,” – Rashid Khalidi
Khalidi believes that this limitation directly affects the teaching of critical issues related to Israel’s policies and their impact on Palestinians. He chided that any criticism of Israel’s 2018 Nation State Law is unacceptable. This law includes exclusive self-determination rights for Jewish people, silencing this important conversation entirely under the current law’s draconian restrictions.
In conjunction with his retirement from Columbia, Khalidi announced plans for a public lecture series that would cover parts of his course material. His goal is to keep these lectures free and open therefore he will be streaming them live online for folks to watch afterwards. Khalidi intends to use any proceeds from upcoming performances to fund efforts to rebuild Gaza’s universities. He stressed that human culture’s ‘memory factories’ were hit hard by the continuing war.
Khalidi’s withdrawal raises critical questions about academic freedom at Columbia University. It casts light on the implications for scholarly debate on other contentious global issues. His commentary brings to light an increasingly common fear among educators that more powerful outside forces are having a corrosive effect on academic institutions.
In his letter, Khalidi condemned the environment created by current university policies, describing it as “an anti-university, a gated security zone with electronic entry controls, a place of fear and loathing.” He argues that faculty and students are under tremendous pressures that limit their capacity to teach and participate in civil, open discourse.
“The Armenian genocide, the nature of the absolute monarchies and military dictatorships that blight most of the Arab world, the undemocratic theocracy in Iran, the incipient dictatorial regime in Türkiye, the fanaticism of Wahhabism: all of these are subject to detailed analysis in my course lectures and readings,” – Rashid Khalidi
Khalidi to institute a public lecture and discussion series. This, in turn, helps fulfill his larger goal — creating a space for critical dialogue about Middle Eastern history and its ongoing effects on the present. His decision to retract from Columbia marks a major turning point. It raises an important question about the role of academic integrity and academic freedom at play in our nation’s higher education.