Petersen-Overton Reinstatement Sparks Student Rally

A crowd of students and professors from Brooklyn College and other CUNY campuses gathered on the steps outside Boylan Hall last Thursday to celebrate the reinstatement of Kristofer Petersen-Overton, a decision that is being hailed by many as a victory for academic freedom.Students who opposed the decision to rehire Petersen-Overton also attended the rally, vocally opposing the celebration and booing those who spoke in favor of the reinstatement.

The hour long rally was intermittently interrupted by shouting fights between students. One student shouted, "Where is Palestine? Who are these Palestinians? We must support Israel, not terrorism," while other students responded with calls for equality and respect amongst students of all nationalities.

Petersen-Overton spoke at the rally, thanking everyone for their support while distancing himself from the polarized nature of the rally. "I dislike the 'pro-Palestine,' 'pro-Israel' labels. I am pro-human rights," he called to the crowd.

Petersen-Overton's position as adjunct professor of a Middle East Politics class in the Brooklyn College's graduate political science department came into contention after an unidentified student-who also appeared on WPIX New York's evening news with her face blurred-complained to the department that his syllabus contained "Pro-Palestinian" reading material.

When the department requested that the student wait until the class began to determine any presence of bias, the student reached out to state assemblyman Dov Hikind for support.

Petersen-Overton, a political science PhD student entering his fourth semester at the CUNY Graduate Center, signed a teaching contract with Brooklyn College on Monday, Jan. 24 and had his contract terminated by BC Provost William A. Traªmonªtano on Wednesday, Jan. 26.

Those in attendance at the rally had diverging opinions about the meaning behind this controversial ordeal.

Dina Kupfer, a BC political science grad student enrolled in Petersen-Overton's course, objected to the professor's reinstatement, basing her opinion on his supposed biased slant, as shown by his course syllabus readings.

"All of the readings are one sided," she said as she handed out flyers at Thursday's rally, denouncing the decision as an attack on academic freedom.

"I don't believe that a biased professor should be hired in the first place," said Liya Mishiyeva, BC student and treasurer of the New York State Israel Public Affairs Committee.

"In a Middle East conflict class, there should be a two sided view: an Israeli and a Palestinian view. A professor who doesn't reflect his opinion in class should be teaching."

Others found fault with the reasoning behind Petersen-Overton's termination. "It's so obvious that the initial firing was politically motivated," said Andy Orenzo, a BC student and activist involved with the Palestinian Club.

"I've had more than one professor teach me at CUNY who is a cheerleader for U.S. imperialism, and I'd like to hear which assemblyman has something to say about that."

"I think it's a double standard," said Brooklyn College student Marram Masoud. "If it was a professor who was 'pro-Israeli' I don't think anything would have happened. It's sad that when there's such a sensitive situation that one side has more power."

Political science professor and coordinator of the Religious Studies program Ken Estey spoke as well, questioning the ability of students and professors to engage in mature debates about controversial issues.

"Is academic freedom about the position a professor has, or is academic freedom about a relationship in a classroom-about whether that professor creates an atmosphere where students aren't afraid of risking their grades when they debate sensitive subjects," said Estey.

Petersen-Overton's firing came just 24-hours after Assemblyman Hikind contacted both CUNY Chancellor Matthew Goldstein and BC President Karen Gould to complain about Petersen-Overton's supposed sympathy for suicide bombers-an allegation based on a misreading of a scholarly essay the doctoral student wrote on how Palestinian national identity manifests politically.

Hikind is a Brooklyn College alumnus who was also involved in the smear campaign that led to the removal of educator Debbie Almontaser, founding principal of the first dual language English-Arabic elementary school, the Khalil Gibran International Academy. He has promised to "closely monitor" Petersen-Overton's course.

The administration claimed that Petersen-Overton was fired not because of his political affiliations and writings, but because he was "not qualified" to teach a graduate level course. The illogic of this justification was quickly unveiled when it emerged that many other professors still finishing their doctoral studies are assigned graduate teaching positions at the college.

Academics and students around the world mobilized online following Petersen-Overton's dismissal. A petition circulated by the CUNY Graduate Center student newspaper, The Advocate, received almost 2,000 signatures, and hundreds of people sent letters to the BC administration.

Many professors at Brooklyn College condemned the decision, with the political science department stating that it "undermin[ed] academic freedom and departmental governance."

The Professional Staff Congress/CUNY, a union representing CUNY faculty and profession staff, the watchdog group Foundation for Individual Rights in Education, and many of Petersen-Overton's former professors publicly condemned the decision as well.

Political science professor Cory Robins said of the Provost's decision to deny the department's original appointment, "[The administration] is acting like Fox News is doing the hiring."