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“I am deeply embarrassed by the behavior of my alma mater, Stanford, regarding its treatment of Robert Spencer”

Nov 15, 2017 2:20 pm By Robert Spencer

A Stanford alumnus takes issue with his alma mater’s fascist suppression of dissenting views. Die Luft der Freiheit wird erstickt indeed.

“Stanford and the Wind of Freedom,” by Mateen Elass, November 15, 2017:

I am deeply embarrassed by the recent behavior of my alma mater, Stanford University, regarding its recent treatment of Robert Spencer, who spoke last night on campus concerning the topic of jihadi terrorism. In the weeks leading up to his lecture he was vilified numerous times in the Stanford Daily with libelous opinion pieces and slandered by a host of special interest student groups. Posters announcing his upcoming talk were torn down, sometimes at the behest of various campus housing authorities, although they were posted legally.

For those who don’t know, Robert Spencer is the Director of jihadwatch.org, author of 17  books (including two NYTimes bestsellers) all revolving around the theme of Muhammad, Islam and the Qur’an, and a sought-after speaker. He is eminently qualified to address these matters, and does so with regularity. He has appeared as an expert on more radio and TV news and talk shows than I can list, has been utilized by our Federal and state government counter-terrorism and law enforcement departments as a trainer, and has willingly debated many in the Muslim and Leftist worlds over the place of jihad and dhimmitude in the religion and history of Islam. His voluminous work and practical credentials speak for themselves.

In the midst of all this campus uproar fueled by a campaign of calumny and malice against Mr. Spencer, Stanford’s President and Provost issued a thoughtful, joint blogpost entitled, “Advancing Free Speech and Inclusion.” Quoting from the university’s Statement on Academic Freedom, they acknowledge:

“Stanford University’s central functions of teaching, learning, research and scholarship depend upon an atmosphere in which freedom of inquiry, thought, expression, publication and peaceable assembly are given the fullest protection. Expression of the widest range of viewpoints should be encouraged, free from institutional orthodoxy and from internal or external coercion.”

Nonetheless, they also recognize the need to provide social support for those who may feel excluded or demeaned by positions taken in public speeches. Further, they outline their understanding of appropriate ways that opposition may be freely expressed. All this is very reasonable: one may attend the event and engage the speaker in the Q&A period (which Robert Spencer repeatedly declared his hope that they would); one may voice dissent by staying away; one may publicly criticize in advance the decision to invite the speaker; one may protest the speech without disrupting it (e.g., hold a rally outside the venue). What one may not do is disrupt the event and prevent the speaker from being heard.

What happened last night met the letter but not the spirit of this guidance. Prior to Mr. Spencer’s arrival on stage, the hall was packed, with a large overflow crowd outside that couldn’t get in. In an act of apparent collusion with the Stanford authorities, soon after Mr. Spencer began his presentation, the vast majority of the crowd (all students) got up and began to file out in silent protest (this was their right, although rude and unconducive to the spirit of learning).

http://abc7news.com/video/embed/?pid=2650047

Now there was an almost empty hall, but with a large crowd outside ready and able to fill the empty seats. However, Stanford Security announced that according to their protocol they could not let anyone else into the event. How strange! And how strange that of all the people who wished to come to the event, the vast majority who got seats were those who planned to vacate them after the event started, thereby preventing others from the opportunity to engage with Mr. Spencer’s presentation. On top of that, the University administration disallowed any live streaming of the event, most likely as a way to preclude any bad press from potential student disruptions. This all seems like a neatly orchestrated plan to adhere to the letter of the law while trashing its spirit.

Like all universities, Stanford prides itself on being “…devoted to the discovery and transmission of knowledge,” in the words of its President and Provost. In fact, the motto on Stanford’s seal is Die Luft der Freiheit weht, German for “The wind of freedom blows.” I’m ashamed that my alma mater refused to live up to this motto last night, deciding instead to sabotage freedom of debate by surreptitious censorship that crowned a preceding week of misleading propaganda against Mr. Spencer. Hardly the spirit of freedom of inquiry.

It seems the Stanford motto needs to be rewritten. I propose: Die Luft der Freiheit wird erstickt (“The wind of freedom is stifled”). Catchy, don’t you think? At least it’s more accurate.

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Filed Under: academia, Featured, free speech, Robert Spencer Tagged With: Mateen Elass, Stanford University


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Comments

  1. Westman says

    Nov 15, 2017 at 2:30 pm

    When will the shrill Social Justice Warriors at Stanford take a look at their own founder before judging others?

    Stanford University is named after one of the “Robber Barons” of the US who created it and injected today’s equivalent of $1 billion into it. He profited from everything related to the building of the railroad including the creation of a shipline to bring in cheap Chinese labor. Ring any bells?

    And here is what Leland Stanford had to say about Chinese laborers remaining after the railroad was completed:

    “The presence of numbers of that degraded and distinct people would exercise a deleterious effect upon the superior race.” – Leland Stanford

    Stanford University is named after a racist!

    So where are the Stanford SJW’s to agitate for the name to be changed? Is there a statue of Leland Stanford on campus that they can tear down? One can be certain they voiced support for tearing down confederate statues and yet have a racist statue on their own campus!

    Let’s look further – the remains of one of Califonia’s foremost racists are in the Stanford Mausoleum on the campus of Stanford University!

    Aong comes someone who merely points out the problems with a “religious” ideology, rather than a race of people, and Stanfordites call him…a racist.

    • Westman says

      Nov 15, 2017 at 2:46 pm

      And I should add that Stanford is likely continuing the racial discrimination of its founder by “raising” the requirements for “Asian” applicants. The hypocrisy is palpable.

      • gravenimage says

        Nov 15, 2017 at 3:01 pm

        Yes, Westman. Asian students are over all *too good*, and so have to slapped down in favor of those who have not studied as hard.

        Just appalling.

    • jihad3tracker says

      Nov 15, 2017 at 2:53 pm

      HELLO WESTMAN —-

      PLEASE POST THIS EXCELLENT ITEM (YOUR COMMENT, THAT IS) AT THE STANFORD DAILY, if ou have not already done so. “Disqus” is the app I use, and it’s easy to open an account.

      As you might know, there are several hit-pieces still quite actively being read and commented on.

      Take your choice of them, but maybe the most recent one is best choice, and perhaps waiting until tomorrow morning, when things have settled a bit, would be advisable.

    • LeftisruiningCanada says

      Nov 15, 2017 at 5:40 pm

      Quite fascinating, thanks for posting that.

      • mortimer says

        Nov 15, 2017 at 11:07 pm

        Hypocrisy, thy name is LELAND STANFORD UNIVERSITY.

    • Donovan Nuera says

      Nov 15, 2017 at 11:49 pm

      Cal students are wont to point out that it is Leland Stanford JUNIOR University…as in a JC!

  2. Dum Spiro says

    Nov 15, 2017 at 2:31 pm

    Die Luft der Freiheit weht.

    It wehts there, all right.
    Maybe they’ll be wehtting themselves after all the bad publicity…
    — Spero

    • LeftisruiningCanada says

      Nov 15, 2017 at 3:47 pm

      It seems as if many of the students at stanford really do think that freedom blows.

    • Donovan Nuera says

      Nov 15, 2017 at 11:51 pm

      Maybe the illiterate students at Stanford think that word “Blows” in their motto is synonymous with “sucks”?

  3. RichardL says

    Nov 15, 2017 at 2:43 pm

    The Goettinger Sieben, the spiritual authors of Stanford’s motto, would be disgusted. But then, Harvard’s motto is Veritas.

    I work for a Catholic university and here we value an open, polite and spirited debate.

    Vivat academias, pereat diabolus quivis antiburschius!

    • mortimer says

      Nov 15, 2017 at 11:08 pm

      Good. Debate is the path to truth.

    • Donovan Nuera says

      Nov 15, 2017 at 11:52 pm

      Only if the Jesuits would end their affiliation with Saudi-funded Georgetown University….

  4. Dum Spiro says

    Nov 15, 2017 at 2:48 pm

    Say it, Archie!


    Die Luft der Freiheit…
    https://i.pinimg.com/736x/48/84/80/48848074cb327e2ec22a0c75094b179b–movie-stars-in-the-family.jpg
    — Spero

  5. Benedict says

    Nov 15, 2017 at 2:52 pm

    If we won’t lend our ears to free speech, we will be compelled to listen to unfree speech. Speech from propagandizing megaphones on minarets is the most unfree and mind-numbing speech you’d ever hear.

    • LeftisruiningCanada says

      Nov 15, 2017 at 4:47 pm

      That is correct.
      It ranks ever so slightly worse than the pole mounted megaphones located in villages throughout China.

    • Donovan Nuera says

      Nov 15, 2017 at 11:54 pm

      can we ask Victor David Hanson or Thomas Sowell to allow us to install PA speakers in the Hoover Campanile to blare the morning call every morning st 4:30 AM for a full month??

  6. Norger says

    Nov 15, 2017 at 2:53 pm

    “[H]ow strange that of all the people who wished to come to the event, the vast majority who got seats were those who planned to vacate them after the event started, thereby preventing others from the opportunity to engage with Mr. Spencer’s presentation.”

    What an absolute mockery of freedom of speech. No way this happens without tacit approval from the school administrators. Despicable..

    • gravenimage says

      Nov 15, 2017 at 3:06 pm

      Norger, this was *obviously* planned by the university. This could not possibly have comprised the majority of the audience otherwise, given how many people actually wanted to hear Robert Spencer speak.

      • Norger says

        Nov 15, 2017 at 3:41 pm

        Agreed. It’s just appalling.

  7. gravenimage says

    Nov 15, 2017 at 2:56 pm

    “I am deeply embarrassed by the behavior of my alma mater, Stanford, regarding its treatment of Robert Spencer”
    …………………..

    Kudos to this Stanford alumnus.

    As for the ugly kabuki theater at Stanford itself, this is just appalling. Obviously coordinated so that it would appear that all are opposed to hearing Robert Spencer, and that no one wants to hear him speak–while preventing those who *do* want to hare him speak from being able to attend.

    Just shameful.

    • Kay says

      Nov 15, 2017 at 3:23 pm

      +1

      • mortimer says

        Nov 15, 2017 at 11:11 pm

        GI, they were exposed as deceitful, so they have LOST!

        Stanford students and teachers DEFEATED THEMSELVES and now have a public relations DISASTER to deal with.

        Their credibility is kaput.

        • Matthieu Baudin says

          Nov 16, 2017 at 5:36 am

          Yes, utterly Kaput! They ran away, shielded their eyes and covered their ears – very dignified and intelligent behaviour – no need to engage in rational discourse, to listen or to put together a coherent challenge in response to the case presented to them.

    • Donovan Nuera says

      Nov 15, 2017 at 11:57 pm

      Maybe we could replace their cast of Rodin’s “The Thinker” with a Bronze of “The Stinker”?

      • LeftisruiningCanada says

        Nov 16, 2017 at 6:17 pm

        Orwell had a good idea for an image that may be more fitting for the direction stanford seems be headed.

        Think: Face, Boot, Forever.

  8. underbed cat says

    Nov 15, 2017 at 3:17 pm

    Looks like a clever plan of “collusion” by the administration to not allow the students who wanted to hear to attend….Nazi style and walk away as an authority with clean hands but are truly content with the results no matter what they say after they get a coup on free speech. Robert Spencer is an expert, talks about facts that are being silenced in compliance with sharia law, that the administration must be in agreement so as to not expose fantasy Islam instead of the connections to jihad and terror.

    • underbed cat says

      Nov 15, 2017 at 3:28 pm

      Now the investigation could include grants, money gifts called endowments, to Stanford that may ie or enables influence of the effective silencing of the doctrine of Islam, and the goals of isis and Islam to conquer/ slaughter in my opinion. No wonder why Las Vegas is being silenced Saudi influence money flow to vegas and the ownership of hotels and occupation would be the alarm bell no one wants to know. Just keep it a hateful white male…that will work.

    • mortimer says

      Nov 15, 2017 at 11:12 pm

      Agree with U-C. It’s the old PONTIUS PILATE TRICK…hand the blame to one’s echo chamber and then WASH YOUR HANDS.

  9. rubiconcrest says

    Nov 15, 2017 at 3:57 pm

    I say apologize and invite him back.

  10. Joe says

    Nov 15, 2017 at 4:12 pm

    I disagree that they upheld the letter of the law. They did not. They refused to let listeners in, for no other reason than to censor Spencer’s speech.

  11. RCCA says

    Nov 15, 2017 at 4:38 pm

    So disappointing that the leaders and teachers in universities are so misguided and feckless. They are failing miserably in educating their students. I watched a disturbing video of the walkout and students who then joined a rally and claimed that their actions represented freedom of speech and respect. The administration is proud that their students didn’t burn down the campus. How deluded can you get?

    Congrats to Robert for showing up!

  12. Phemmy says

    Nov 15, 2017 at 5:02 pm

    THIS IS PRETTY SAD, STIFLING FREEDOM AND THE RIGHT TO HOLD AND EXPRESS SUCH VIEW. WONDER WHAT THE JIHADIST ARE UP TO. THEY ARE HOPING TO CREATE A TYPICAL SAUDI OR ISLAMIC STATE WHERE FREEDOM IS AT A PRICE AND UNDER LOCK AND KEY.

  13. Matthieu Baudin says

    Nov 15, 2017 at 5:38 pm

    “… deciding … to sabotage freedom of debate by surreptitious censorship that crowned a preceding week of misleading propaganda against Mr. Spencer. Hardly the spirit of freedom of inquiry…”

    Stanford has sunk to the level of a manipulative and sinister organ of Postmodern indoctrination.

  14. underbed cat says

    Nov 15, 2017 at 5:42 pm

    I agree. I also believe it appears to be so deliberate..to keep schools administrations motivations accomplished thru second hand suppression, aware of the students complicated clever resistance so as to not expose their own intolerance of Robert Spencer, but of their tolerance of Islam, a totalitarian political system of deadly intolerance by deception. Also a liberal diversity move to be in compliance with sharia law that silences truth, so as to not undermine possible future monetary gifts from muslim organizations, in my opinion. That is the standard for dirty tricks.

  15. rubiconcrest says

    Nov 15, 2017 at 5:55 pm

    Next time ask that people put down a deposit of $100. If they leave early it’s forfeited.

  16. Bill says

    Nov 15, 2017 at 6:05 pm

    The University has breached its contract with its students and committed fraud.

  17. Diane Harvey says

    Nov 15, 2017 at 6:19 pm

    Okay, they prevented an explanation of the world wide jihad,

    For one night.

    Does that mean that the world wide jihad will stop?

    Does that mean that people won’t continuing connecting the dots between Islamic attacks and the texts of Islam?

    • Emilie Green says

      Nov 15, 2017 at 6:43 pm

      Robert will probably give a more thoughtful analysis of his maltreated by and at Stanford in the days ahead. FWIW, here’s a thought of my own. I realize that Robert was inconvenienced by this whole thing. It took time, Robert had to travel and change his schedule, and of course suffer the vicious taunts of the left. He further spent an extraordinary amount of time composing fully-supported responses to the slings & arrows thrown at him.

      But I don’t think all was lost. Not in the least. Once again the hypocrisy of the left was on full display. Probably more than one or two students actually read Robert’s fully-supported responses and did some further research, like actually reading the Qur’an to see if that book actually says what Roberts says it says. And when they find out that it does, maybe one or two light bulbs will go and an “Aha” moment will occur. A connection, however tenuous at first, between attacks by Muslims and the core texts of Islam, will have been made.

  18. Ti Michelle Connelly says

    Nov 15, 2017 at 6:28 pm

    Oh come on now. The name of that institution is Leland Stanford Jr. University. and it is living up to its name Junior university.
    UC Berkeley ’65 grad.

  19. Bezelel says

    Nov 15, 2017 at 8:09 pm

    I was having no luck accessing this site and Pamela Geller’s since yesterday evening until the this late morning, I’ve been away from the computer since about 11am til now. It could be on my end, just don’t know. So stanford’s leftards can congratulate themselves on violating civil rights. A dubious claim to fame to join the ranks of nazi’s and khmer rouge but if that’s the best they can do. History tells what happened to them. Why duplicate a bad idea?

  20. Peter says

    Nov 15, 2017 at 9:01 pm

    Stanford should change its seal to:

    Die Luft der Meinungsgeschlossenheit bewegt nichts (hier)!

  21. mortimer says

    Nov 15, 2017 at 9:24 pm

    Many thanks and much praise to Mateen Elass for a well argued critique of Stanford collusion with the neo-Marxists and a finely reasoned defense and endorsement of Robert Spencer, the Dean of Jihadology.

    No one among the distinguished scholars at Stanford would be able to best Robert Spencer in a debate on the topic of jihadology.

    • Jack Diamond says

      Nov 16, 2017 at 12:27 am

      Well, Jihadology sounds too much like bartending school (or I just need a martini). Islam is jihad.
      It doesn’t exist without it.

      Mark Gabriel was once a student at Al-Azhar University in a class taught by that renowned professor
      of Qur’anic interpretation Sheikh Omar Abdel-Rahman. Yes, al Qaeda’s spiritual mentor was once head of Qur’anic studies at the most prestigious school in the Islamic world.

      “He (Rahman) gave us a chance to ask questions, so I stood up in front of 500 students and asked, ‘Why is it that you teach us all the time about jihad? What about the other verses in the Qur’an that talk about peace, love, and forgiveness?’

      Immediately his face turned red, I could see his anger. ‘My brother” he said, ‘there is a whole surah called ‘Spoils of War’. There is no surah called ‘Peace’. Jihad and killing are the head of Islam. If you take them out, you cut off the head of Islam’.”
      –Mark Gabriel “Jesus and Muhammad”

      Islam QA, Sheikh Muhammad Salih Al-Munajjid:

      “The jihad against them {Jews, kafirs} is an obligation on every Muslim. It’s valid and it’s viability decreed to be effective until the Day of Judgment and it can’t be annulled from the laws of Allah by anyone. Whosoever believes that the jihad is non-existant and attempts to nullify it, is a kafir and must be excommunicated as he would have denied the very core essentials of the religion. For (violent) jihad is valid and effective until the Day of Judgment…Islamic faith is based on the separation of Muslim and kafir and that the kafir is an enemy of Allah forever until he embraces Islam discarding his kufar.”
      –Islam QA, Sheikh Muhammad Salih Al-Munajjid

  22. Lydia says

    Nov 16, 2017 at 12:05 am

    The winds are shifting in a “pro holocaust against the truth” direction.
    Those who have not been swallowed up by this tide can only look around and gawk in shock as to how could anyone lack so much reason… and that at a ‘university’??? But it does no good, most have been swept away by this tide.

  23. Dacritic says

    Nov 16, 2017 at 5:21 am

    Where is Stanford? California? Ah okay.

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