The National News Desk reports on VMI professor exposed for antisemitism by AIM
October 24, 2024
VMI visiting professor led Columbia University group that blamed Israel for Oct. 7
A visiting professor at Virginia Military Institute (VMI) held a leadership role for a student group which blamed Israel for the Oct. 7, 2023 Hamas attacks, antisemitism watchdog group Accuracy in Media (AIM) found.
Philip Crane was listed as the secretary of SIPA Palestine Working Group (PWG) during his time as a Columbia University master’s student from 2022 to 2024. That “vibrant community” within the School of International and Public Affairs worked to “raise awareness, increase understanding, and promote engagement among the SIPA and Columbia student body on Palestine,” according to a description.
PWG considers itself a part of Columbia University Apartheid Divest (CUAD), which recently came under congressional scrutiny over alleged repeated credible threats of violence on campus. PWG signed a demand letter to the university in 2023 which accused Israel of causing the Oct. 7 attacks.
“The weight of responsibility for the war and casualties undeniably lies with the Israeli extremist government and other Western governments, including the U.S. government, which fund and staunchly support Israeli aggression, apartheid and settler-colonization,” the letter read.
Multiple group leaders later withdrew their support from the letter, but Crane did not, according to AIM. Crane’s LinkedIn profile now lists himself as a visiting professor at VMI “teaching International Politics FL24.”