Elder of Ziyon just the other day came across an announcement from Hunter College about its intention to hire someone to fill an open-rank, tenure-line position in “Palestine Studies.” On considering his own qualifications, Elder of Ziyon concluded that he would make a good candidate for such a job and he shares with us a letter he might submit to Hunter, explaining what makes him such a good candidate. You can find his advertisement for himself here: “‘Palestine Studies’ instructor sought at @Hunter_College. I think I am the best candidate.” Elder of Ziyon, February 24, 2025:
Here is part of an advertised faculty position at Hunter College:
As part of a Palestine Studies cluster hire, Hunter College is honored to announce its search for an open rank tenure-line professor in one of the social sciences who would join one or more of the departments of Anthropology, History, Sociology, Political Science, or Women’s and Gender Studies. This position is one of two positions in Palestine studies. The other search, in the humanities, can be found here (ADD).
We seek a historically grounded scholar who takes a critical lens to issues pertaining to Palestine including but not limited to: settler colonialism, genocide, human rights, apartheid, migration, climate and infrastructure devastation, health, race, gender and sexuality. We are open to diverse theoretical and methodological approaches. We seek candidates interested in public-facing work and who exhibit a commitment to being part of the life of the college, a diverse and exciting undergraduate minority serving institution.
I think I am the perfect candidate. I have written extensively on the topic for over twenty years; I’ve authored books, articles and given lectures and podcasts on these topics. My ideas have been taught at Ivy League universities and quoted in numerous scholarly works.
Since they are seeking diverse theoretical and methodological approaches, they might find my ideas on their specific topics mentioned a bit revolutionary, but certainly well founded and with lots of factual support:
– Palestinian nationalism is a relatively new phenomenon, about a century old, created purely as a reaction and counter to modern Zionism. This remains the case today as Palestinian leaders have shown far less interest in creating a state than in destroying the Jewish state.
– The concept of settler-colonialism does not apply to Jews in Israel, who have had a deep psychological and spiritual connection to the land of Israel for millennia. Part of this connection is no doubt due to their being attacked as outsiders no matter how long they lived in their host countries. The irony of Jews now being considered white Europeans after centuries of European antisemitism and marginalization, including racial antisemitism, is just one of the topics that deserve more coverage in academia.
– Genocide requires intent. There is no intent by the State of Israel to destroy the Palestinian people, and every single attempt to fabricate such intent by ignoring counterevidence or taking quotes out of context is pure antisemitism, specifically the disgusting need by so many to accuse Jews of being as bad or worse than the Nazis.
– There are real issues with human rights of Palestinians. They must be balanced with the human rights of Israeli citizens. As with every nation on Earth, the rights of citizens are prioritized over the rights of those who are dedicated to destroying their nation.
– There is no apartheid in Israel against its Arab citizens by any definition of apartheid, and the concept of apartheid does not apply to non-citizens, by definition….
To make things interesting, I would be happy to challenge any of Hunter’s existing Palestine Studies professors to choose any one of my longer articles on their own area of expertise and critique it, and then give me a chance to defend it, online. Most of my articles are written in less than an hour, so finding mistakes in my own research should be simple. All my facts are referenced with hyperlinks. I have no specific academic expertise in any of the fields they mention and I would still be happy to defend my writings against the best they have to offer. Let independent scholars judge whose arguments are best.
But if the position is meant to only be given to anti-Zionists, then perhaps that should be made more clear in the job description. At least that would be honest.
If I were on the hiring committee at Hunter College, I’d choose Elder of Ziyon in a New York minute. What about you?
Edward Amos Brandwein says
This is nothing but sheer indoctrination and brainwashing
Walter Sieruk says
This is an absurd idea and outright fraudulent hoax to propose a college course of “Palestinian studies.
The reason why this is so is because there is not nor was there ever a genuine land that is “Palestine.” That is a modern fiction.
“The land of Israel was renamed Syria Palestrina by Hadrian, the Roman Emperor. Following the second revolt against Rome in AD 132- 135. The Philistines had always been the enemy of the Jews .and as such it was an insult to the Jewish people.” [1]
It should also be added, that Hadrian had deliberately intended the renaming of Israel to be an insult and offence to the Jews.
[1] Miracle of Israel by Gary Frazier and Jim Fletcher, page 65.
Walter Sieruk says
There never in history was there a “Palestinian state.”
History reveals that the ancient Philistines recorded in the Bible and history reveals the people who came from the Greek Islands and some parts of the mainland Greece and the Island of Crete They have no connection, at all, the to the Arab /Muslim of modern times who called themselves the “Palestinians.”
From those ancient people, the Philistines, the word “Palestine” .came into being.
There is no genuine ethic group or race who are the “Palestinians.”
Early in the last century a anyone living in that land, Arab or Jew, who lived in that land was called a ”Palestinian.”
Only after 1964 did the Arab/Muslims start to refer to themselves , exclusively , by the word “Palestinian.”
The reason for that is that they felt that by giving themselves that title they would appear to have some kind of valid claim on that land.
Indeed, never in history was there a “Palestinian state.” Any claim that there should be one is an invalid and false claim.
Walter Sieruk says
There never has been nor are there now any genuine ethnic or race of people who are the “Palestinians.”
In reality, they are the Arabs of the area of the Middle East. The idea that there are a distinct “Palestinian people’ is a modern fiction. Likewise the “Palestine flag is a fake flag.
Those Arab/Muslims who call themselves “Palestinians” have applied that term only for themselves in the hope of giving them some kind of “valid” claim on the land that is the State of Israel, in the view in the people of the other nations of this world.
Rick Gordon says
Hah, hah, hah …
I used to live in NYC and Hunter was a respected urban college at the time. I find the solicitation for a ‘Palestinian’ academic position along with credentials in gender studies, etc. to be demeaning of the academic profession. I worry about students who will be exposed to such nonsense – and their ability to contribute to the nation as they become adults.
abu taleb says
Charlie Kirk or Ben Shapiro seems to understand Palestine very well, Hunter College should hire either of them as its proffesor of Palestine studies.
࿗Infidel࿘ says
That will be a pretty short course, starting no earlier than 1964. Even stretching it, it won’t go before 1948, or how will they describe Jordanians, Syrians and Egyptians who settled in “Palestine”? Even more than that, prior to 1948, the term “Palestinian” was used exclusively for Jews: Arabs were just called Arabs
Read works of people from that era who wrote about it – Gandhi, Nehru, anybody – who were also pro-muslim. Even they didn’t use the term “Palestinian” b’cos that wasn’t the term used to describe Arabs from that area
James Lincoln says
In the feature article, Hugh Fitzgerald states:
“Palestinian leaders have shown far less interest in creating a state than in destroying the Jewish state.”
Yes.
The so-called “Palestinians” had the equivalent of a state when Israel gave them control of Gaza in 2005. In 2006, they proceeded to vote in Hamas, totally destroyed the infrastructure of Gaza, and then attacked Israel on Oct 7th, 2023.
OLD GUY says
Islamic studies came to our college and university campuses 40 to 50 years ago., funded by muslim nations and spreading propaganda and hate ever since.
I’ll bet you can’t find an American studies program at any muslim College or University. Try to bring a bible into Saudi Arabia or preach Christianity there. It WON’T happen.
So stop this nonsense of muslim/islamic studies and islamic student unions on our campuses.
Devon Fremd says
Palestinians and their situation are an object of worship in today’s world. They give a secular society a virtually religious sense of occupying the moral high ground, young people of course being particularly vulnerable to the appeal. And as can happen with religious thinking, or its various substitutes, this one has the power to obliterate humaneness, to the point where a bestial horror like October 7th becomes “resistance” and “the lawful use of force’. Even the desire to see peace break out, as it was doing with the Abraham Accords, collapses under the conviction of righteousness.
I believe that, if the world ever gets past this tragic embroilment it will come to be seen as a kind of collective madness that characterized a very degenerate moment in history.