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Boston's Morning Newsletter
3 views from inside Harvard on Claudine Gay's resignation
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Editor's Note: This is an excerpt from WBUR's daily morning newsletter, WBUR Today. If you like what you read and want it in your inbox, sign up here.
Our post-holiday gradual ease back into the work week came to an abrupt end yesterday with the shocking news of Claudine Gay’s resignation as president of Harvard after only six months on the job.
The announcement came a day after new plagiarism accusations against Gay surfaced, and amid continued pressure by pro-Israel donors and activists for her to resign over the school’s response to pro-Palestinian protests on campus. Listen here for a breakdown by WBUR’s Max Larkin on what we specifically know — and don’t know — about what led to her resignation.
While the news made international headlines, we wanted to know more about how it was being received by Gay’s colleagues here. WBUR reporters reached out to several members of Harvard’s faculty for their reactions to the news:
- 1. Ryan Enos, a professor of government at Harvard, said he has been “very critical” of some of Gay’s decisions. But he added the “general consensus” at Harvard was that allowing outside forces to have such influence over the school sets a “dangerous” precedent. “Quite frankly, this is somebody being forced out of a position by mob rule,” Enos said. “Regardless of what you think of the merits of her positions on international issues or … the accusations against her around plagiarism, those are all things that need careful debate and careful consideration, and this was certainly not an example of that.”
- 2. Omar Haque, a physician and faculty member at Harvard Medical School, called the pattern of duplication in Gay’s work — even if they weren’t her core ideas — “reckless” and said resigning as president was the right thing to do. “I think Harvard should hold presidents to higher standards than they hold their faculty,” Haque said. “And they should hold their faculty to higher standards than they hold their students, who are still learning how to write academic papers.”
- 3. Jaime Sanchez Jr., a political historian and post-doc fellow, said being president at an elite university means heightened scrutiny. But he added Gay faced even more scrutiny as a Black woman. “Anyone in a leadership position from a marginalized group has to prove themselves twice as much because there are already stereotypes and assumptions going against you,” he said. “That’s something I imagine Claudine Gay had up against her from the beginning of her appointment.”
For more on what’s next for Harvard, read Max’s full story and tune into Radio Boston today at 11 a.m.
All eyes on the Senate: Beacon Hill lawmakers return from their holiday break today. And as WBUR’s Walter Wuthmann reports, gun reform advocates have high hopes that state lawmakers will come to an agreement on a new gun control package. This month could shed new light on what the legislation will ultimately look like.
- The House already passed a sweeping gun control bill this past October that includes measures to strengthen the state’s assault weapons ban, track unregistered “ghost guns, and prohibit guns from being carried in schools and other government buildings.
- Senate leaders also want to pass restrictions on ghost guns, Walt reports. However, the Senate has yet to unveil a counterproposal to the House bill, which faced vocal opposition from gun owners and police. The gun control package was also the subject of a procedural clash between the two chambers last summer.
- What’s next: Legislators must report any proposed legislation out of committee by the first full week of February. Senate President Karen Spilka has also said she “definitely” believes they’ll work out a compromise by the end of the session this summer.
Cambridge’s new mayor is (once again) E. Denise Simmons. The longtime city councilor — who previously served non-consecutive mayoral terms in 2008 and 2016 — was elected by her fellow councilors this week. She replaces fellow Councilor Sumbul Siddiqui, who was re-elected by voters this past fall, but accused of creating a toxic workplace during her tenure.
- FYI: In Cambridge, the mayor serves as head of the City Council and School Committee, but otherwise is mostly a ceremonial post.
P.S.— That big Green Line closure we mentioned yesterday has officially begun. Check out the MBTA’s guide to alternative transit options here.
