The Crimson Staff Does Not Speak for Us

To the editors:

The departure of Fletcher University Professor Cornel R. West ’74 for Princeton is undoubtedly a major blow to Harvard University. However, in the aftermath of his decision to leave, what is most shocking is not that West has chosen to leave, but rather the level of disrespect he and his supporters are being shown by members of this community. Nowhere is such insolence demonstrated more than in the Crimson staff’s editorial “A Childish Departure” printed April 18, 2002. The piece is little more than a shallow misrepresentation of student sentiments regarding West and his decision to leave for Princeton.

Why would any responsible newspaper staff assert that “the Harvard community will not miss Cornel West?” The Crimson staff knows that over 1,200 students, faculty and alumni signed a petition asking him to remain at Harvard. West also received at least 50 personal notes from students and alumni thanking him for sharing his gifts as a leader and scholar with both the Harvard community and the national community. The audacity of the Crimson staff to speak on behalf of Harvard students in this misrepresentative manner is reckless and disrespectful to every individual who signed that petition, wanted to sign that petition, or wrote a personal note to West.

Furthermore, the staff has no right to interpret the mood or feelings of the Black Students’ Association (BSA) in the aftermath of West’s decision to leave for Princeton. I do not recall seeing a Crimson poll circulating amongst BSA members asking what they thought of West’s perceived lack of communication with the organization. If their staff had taken the time to run a simple poll, they would have found that many BSA members have not interpreted West’s actions as “insulting” or having stemmed from “thoughtlessness.” While it is true that West has not directly contacted any member of the organization, he has expressed his appreciation for Harvard students both through his staff assistant and in his interview with Tavis Smiley on National Public Radio (NPR) earlier this week.

Yet, West does not need to contact the BSA directly to say thank you. Members of the BSA knew before embarking on such a movement that their efforts to persuade West to remain at Harvard might not be enough to undo the damage University President Lawrence H. Summers did last fall. The petition drive and garnering of student group support across the University was intended to thank West for adding value to this community as only he could. By leaving, West teaches Harvard students an invaluable lesson about self-respect and integrity. There is no doubt that the BSA is better off because of the sound leadership West has put forth during his tenure here at Harvard.

Despite the staff’s misguided opinion, West’s departure has not placed the BSA in an “impossible position”; the organization has nothing to “reconcile.” The BSA does not need to reexamine the strategy it took in efforts to convince West that he is respected and admired by students. In addition, the administration has shown a great deal of admiration towards the BSA’s efforts to effect change on this campus. Such is the case because the organization consistently proceeds with respect for this community and its members. There is no concern on the part of the BSA executive board that the efforts to keep West at Harvard might alienate the administration. If anything, the BSA has become closer to the administration as it looks to move forward in the aftermath of this monumental loss. Thus, the patronage and pity of the staff for the BSA’s cause is both unwarranted and unwelcome.

The Crimson staff also claims that West’s actions over the course of the last week are “…destined to tarnish his otherwise commendable legacy at Harvard.” For those of us that have taken one of West’s classes, or interacted with him on a personal level, nothing will tarnish the legacy that he leaves behind.

If anything has been tarnished as this community moves beyond the events this week, it is the journalistic integrity of the staff. The fact that this staff failed to completely quote West on several occasions in its editorial lends further credence to the irresponsible manner in which it voiced its opinion. In the first instance, a more complete version of West’s comparison of Summers to Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon should have read: “I think in one sense Larry Summers is the Ariel Sharon of American higher education.” While there is little doubt that West’s comparison of Summers to Sharon can be interpreted as inflammatory, note that West did attempt to frame his opinion outside of the conflict that currently exists in the Middle East. His statement says that, in one way—and in one particular way only—Summers and Sharon are similar: they both have a tendency to act like a “bull in a china shop.” The comparison of Summers to Sharon is a metaphor; it is not some larger commentary on West’s political views.

Moreover, the supposed befuddlement of the staff surrounding West’s claim that Summers is “hanging out with the wrong crowd” is an insult to the intelligence of anyone who took the time to listen to the entire NPR interview. Had the quote been framed correctly, it would have been obvious to the readers of their editorial that the phrase “the wrong crowd” is in no way referring to what this staff calls “…anyone whose political view differs from West’s.” In using that phrase, West is referring to the individual or group of people who falsely informed Summers that he missed three weeks of classes while working on Bill Bradley’s presidential campaign. Any one of West’s students or colleagues in the Afro-American Studies Department can disprove this fallacy; hence the assertion that Summers was misled.

The staff’s editorial should have placed more focus on West’s entire NPR interview. Hearing the interview in its entirety, listeners learn that Summers had the nerve to question West’s scholarship without ever having engaged it. Summers even went so far as to ask West to “check in” with him every few months and update him on the process of his academic work. West certainly is not above being questioned by the president of this University; Summers is indeed his boss. However, Summers had no right to show such blatant disrespect to a man that is the second most cited scholar in his field and the fourth most cited of Harvard’s 16 University Professors. I am quite sure that he has not asked the other 15 to check in with him regularly.

In light of this week’s events, two things are utterly clear. First and foremost, Harvard has been forced to say goodbye to one of its most beloved professors due to the tactlessness of Summers; our loss is certainly Princeton’s gain. Secondly, The Crimson staff has shown itself to be an uncompelling voice for Harvard students. In the words of Professor West, hopefully Summers and the Crimson will learn “…to do [their] homework and not be provocative” as we all attempt to go forward.

Brandon R. Gayle ’03

April 21, 2002

The writer is president of the Black Student’s Association.