Khalidi Is the Storm

"Political Storm Finds a Columbia Professor"
A28, Friday 10/31/08
By Marc Santora and Elissa Gootman

In this article, Columbia University Professor Rashid Khalidi is identified as a respected scholar; yet his reputation as such is disputed. The article fails to mention his scholarly shortcomings, which have been brought to light most persuasively by King's College London Professor Ephraim Karsh, for example, in his review of Khalidi’s The Iron Cage in December 2006

In discussing Khalidi, scholarship is the central issue.

Santora and Gootman correctly address the matter of whether the Middle East Studies department that Khalidi heads is politicized, presenting two conflicting opinions. Columbia provost Alan Brinkley describes Middle East studies as “a field that is often politicized,” using the passive voice to minimize Khalidi’s role in said politicization.

What is ironic about this remark is that nowhere has the field been more politicized than at Columbia, where Khalidi occupies the Edward Said Chair.

Fortunately, Santora and Goodman give voice to this concern, quoting former Columbia student Ariel Beery, who states that, in fact, Khalidi “highly politicized” the department, which did “not [promote] a diverse view of the Middle East.”

Santora and Goodman describe Khalidi as a “defender of Palestinian rights.” To my understanding, “defender of Palestinian rights” is a euphemism for one who supports the so-called right of return and the right to resistance. Unfortunately, the reporters don’t delve into what being a defender of Palestinian rights is. For example, does a defender of Palestinian rights support pushing the Lebanese government to offer citizenship to Palestinians living in that country’s refugee camps? Or does he defend a Palestinian’s right to leave refugee camps in PA-controlled areas? Generally, no.

In short, the article supports the notion that Khalidi is a respected scholar and therefore suggests that his defense of Palestinian rights is also respectable. The trouble with Khalidi, however, is that the effect of his support of Palestinian rights wavers between finding a practical solution to the conflict that recognizes that two states are needed for two peoples and advocating for Palestinian rights at the expense of Jewish rights.

Because Khalidi is not clear about his own position, his relationship with Senator Obama is problematic and is not merely another John McCain smear campaign.