'Antisemitism is not a bug': Barnard College faces criticism for inviting anti-Israel speaker

Barnard College, an undergraduate college of Columbia University, is facing allegations of antisemitism after hosting an event featuring noted anti-Israel UN Special Rapporteur Francesca P. Albanese.

Albanese has repeatedly likened Israel to the Third Reich, suggesting Germans and Italians should oppose Israel’s war in Gaza “because of their history” and calling Gaza a “Concentration camp of the 21st century.”

“The fact that Albanese was invited by the chairs of the Human Rights, Economics, and Anthropology departments is proof that at Columbia and Barnard, antisemitism is not a bug but a feature of our institution” Eden Yadegar, president of Students Supporting Israel Columbia University, told the Times of Israel.

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Alongside repeated accusations of genocide against Israel and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Israeli women have also been targets of her attacks.

After questioning the rape and beheading of October 7th victims, she stated on International Women’s Day that: “My thoughts also go to the Israeli women,especially [sic] the soldiers: what have you done,what [sic] have you become. Dears, when you realise [sic] it,you [sic] will be haunted forever.”

Barnard College defended its decision to welcome Albanese, “The College has long permitted academic departments to host discussions and debates on difficult topics with speakers who represent a wide range of perspectives and backgrounds,” a spokesperson told the New York Post. “This practice does not constitute institutional endorsement of any external speaker or the viewpoints they express.”

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The Anti-Defamation League chronicled an exhaustive list of Albanese’s problematic comments which have earned her charges of anti-Semitism, including her avid diminishment of the Oct. 7 attack on Israeli civilians, which prompted France and Germany to issue statements via X condemning her assertions about the attack as “scandalous” and “appalling.”

Albanese further earned the ire of United States ambassador to the United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield, “As UN Special Rapporteur Albanese visits New York, I want to reiterate the U.S. belief she is unfit for her role,” she said via X. “The United Nations should not tolerate antisemitism from a U.N.-affiliated official.”

While Barnard stuck by its decision to host Albanese, Congress did otherwise, canceling Albanese’s scheduled briefing with Congressional staffers.

Campus Reform contacted Barnard College for comment, this article will be adjusted accordingly.