Truth or Consequences?

The evidence so far suggests that the Harvard establishment has yet to learn its lesson

Has the time come for an update…?

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It may have been thought that the pitiful spectacle of Harvard University’s disgrace had bottomed out, but no. On her way out of the presidential suite, Claudine Gay predictably portrayed herself as victim and martyr. And having sacked her, the Harvad Corporation followed up with a spasm of sanctimonious hypocrisy that defies parody.

Gay’s whiny complaint that she fell victim to racism, sexism, White supremacy, etc., etc. was only to be expected, of course. DEI orthodoxy is coded in her DNA, and why not? Playing that game is what got her where she was—and, in a satisfying demonstration of cosmic justice in action, where she is now. Gay’s fall highlights DEI’s fatal weak spot: Sooner or later, mediocrity and phoniness will out. Like the frightful fiend in The Rime of the Ancient Mariner, Nemesis treads close behind Hubris. (For further reading, see President Joe Biden’s poll numbers, 2021-23.)

But get a load of this, from the statement released by the Fellows of the Harvard Corporation:

These past several months have seen Harvard and higher education face a series of sustained and unprecedented challenges. In the face of escalating controversy and conflict, President Gay and the Fellows have sought to be guided by the best interests of the institution whose future progress and well-being we are together committed to uphold. Her own message conveying her intention to step down eloquently underscores what those who have worked with her have long known—her commitment to the institution and its mission is deep and selfless. It is with that overarching consideration in mind that we have accepted her resignation.

In the face of escalating controversy and conflict, President Gay and the Fellows have sought to be guided by the best interests of the institution whose future progress and well-being we are together committed to uphold. Her own message conveying her intention to step down eloquently underscores what those who have worked with her have long known—her commitment to the institution and its mission is deep and selfless. It is with that overarching consideration in mind that we have accepted her resignation.

We do so with sorrow. While President Gay has acknowledged missteps and has taken responsibility for them, it is also true that she has shown remarkable resilience in the face of deeply personal and sustained attacks. While some of this has played out in the public domain, much of it has taken the form of repugnant and in some cases racist vitriol directed at her through disgraceful emails and phone calls. We condemn such attacks in the strongest possible terms.

Tissue, anyone?

Between Claudine Gay’s letter of resignation and the tearjerker released by the Fellows of the Harvard Corporation, one might gather the impression that she voluntarily stepped down, sacrificing her career for the good of the institution. To which I say—claptrap and twaddle. Here’s what happened: The ex-president had become a liability, and the solons of Harvard gave her the push. Gay’s testimony before a congressional committee, defending antisemitic hate in certain circumstances, was a public-relations disaster for the university. The scrutiny that followed dredged up a long-simmering plagiarism scandal and, not incidentally, highlighted her absurdly thin academic credentials. Indeed, when you measure the extent of her plagiarism against the paucity of her scholarly writings, Claudine Gay can only be described as a phony, a fraud, a charlatan the size and gassiness of the Hindenburg.

Taken one by one, these scandals—infamous testimony, plagiarism, fraudulence—would not have been enough to do her in. Gay had one big thin going for her—she was Harvard’s very first black female president! On campus, a credential like that confers plenty of immunity. But when the spotlight of truth was turned on Gay’s trinity of faults, her unfitness for the position she occupied became embarrassingly obvious. In the blink of an eye, she and Harvard became objects of scorn and mockery. There was no way around it: Gay had to go.

But the Fellows of the Harvard Corporation portray Gay as a virtuous heroine, an academic Joan of Arc, falling on her sword for the good of the institution. Are we really expected to believe that? If it were true, why didn’t the Fellows refuse to accept her resignation, why didn’t they rebuff the calls for her dismissal, why didn’t they stand by the president they’d selected? Because they don’t believe a single word of their own statement, that’s why. They’re desperate to limit the damage this scandal is causing, they’re terrified of lawsuits, and they’re a bunch of despicable cowards who, by picking Gay for the top job, are complicit in the havoc she’s wrecked. They got rid of her in hopes of saving their own skins.

Now I realize that the forms must be observed: Much as Gay deserved to be chased out in disgrace, a simple statement accepting her resignation, thanking her for her service, and wishing her all the best in her future pursuits would have sufficed. Indeed, it would have made the necessary point in a polite way: You have been judged in the balance and found wanting. In any case, there’s no reason to feel sorry for Gay. She gets to stay on the Harvard faculty, pulling down $900,000 per annum—though maybe that was the price she demanded for foregoing a lawsuit.

But in the long run, what good will this hypocritical posturing do? Those whom the Harvard Fellows are straining to placate—the stormtroopers of Wokedom—are the very people who’ll demand a repeat of the Gay debacle. In their eyes, the remedy for an excess of diversity is more diversity. If they have their way, as will probably happen, Gay’s successor will be another laughably mediocre Woke bureaucrat, masquerading as a scholar.

The circumstances of Gay’s removal from Harvard’s top job shows that the university has learned little or nothing from recent events. The Fellows of the Harvard Corporation may think they can ride out the scandal. But this blot on Harvard’s escutcheon, this mockery of its motto, Veritas, will not so easily be sponged away.