In July 2023, American economist and educator Minouche Shafik became the first woman to lead Colombia University, becoming its 20th president.
But since April of this year, she faced an intense inquiry from Capitol Hill lawmakers over rising reports of anti-Semitism and pro-Palestinian protests on campus, which she failed to address appropriately.
But a month later, in May 2024, Shafik tried to address a matter, saying, “These past two weeks have been among the most difficult in Columbia’s history.… We tried very hard to solve the issue of encampment through dialogue...“
This is the faculty member that Minouche Shafik said had 50 complaints against him. And now he’s attacking the right of people to freely practice their religion. https://t.co/gYR7cCA7pC
— Tony Annett (@tonyannett) April 19, 2024
While saying so, Minouche Shafik also attempted to be inclusive religiously and mentioned that she was born and raised in a Muslim family; however, her surroundings included people with Jewish and Christian religion.
So, she wanted to ensure humanity exists despite all these religious issues. However, her message doesn’t seem synchronized with people, since she authorized controversial NYPD sweeps of campus encampments. Police apprehended several dozen protesters, who happened to be her own students, resulting in even more backlash.
Critics now believe her biased Muslim religious affiliation was the primary reason why she was unable to address the pro-Palestinian issues on her campus, which led to her resignation.
Following the resignation, critics are outraged that Minouche Shafik’s religious bias undermined the overall benefit to students!
The debate about how the now-ex-president of Columbia University could have handled the issue has been going on all over social media. In the meantime, critics have left no space, alleging Minouche Shafik’s religious bias led to the protests.
A critic named Jim Lynn posted on Facebook, targeting Minouche Shafik, and said, “This person is Arabic and Islamic in her religion. Why would this woman want to support Jews or anything of Israel?… I for one am glad this person has resigned.”
He also put forward his view that more people around America who hold Anti-Semitic views need to resign from their jobs and leave America if they cannot be INCLUSIVE.
Likewise, @CiciTee1 posted on X that “She was during her Bank of England days and now will not decent her Jewish students from abuse. She needs to be fair and protect all students not just ones she shares a religion with.”
Similarly, Retired Police Chief @RDog861 has also put his views following the protest, mentioning, “She’s weak, spineless, and Muslim. Wonder if her Religion interfered with her decisions?“
With all this, it is clear that everyone criticized Minouche Shafik’s alleged religious bias. She will forever be criticized for not handling issues and protests with the utmost care and respect.
Additional Information
- Minouche Shafik was born in Alexandria, Egypt, on August 13, 1962. After her father’s property was nationalized in 1966, the family relocated to the U.S., living in Savannah, Miami, and Raleigh.
- Shafik married economist Mohamed El-Erian in 1990, but the relationship didn’t last. In 2002, she married scientist Raffael Jovine, with whom she has twin children and three stepchildren.
- According to sources, her tenure as president of Columbia University paid her a minimum of $5 million in salary this year.
