Dear Harvard Community,
In January, I announced the creation of two Presidential Task Forces to better understand how and why belonging among members of our Muslim, Arab, Palestinian, Jewish, and Israeli communities is being eroded. I am writing today to share the preliminary recommendations of the Presidential Task Force on Combating Anti-Muslim, Anti-Arab, and Anti-Palestinian Bias and the Presidential Task Force on Combating Anti-Semitism.
Listening to the co-chairs' presentations last week, I was impressed not only by the rigor and urgency with which the task force members approached their efforts, but also by the carefulness with which they proceeded as collaborators and colleagues. Their willingness to seek truth, listen and speak with kindness while reserving judgment is a powerful example of how we move forward together. We must strengthen our bonds through an ongoing commitment to engaging with one another with tact, civility, and compassion. If we want to fulfill our responsibilities to one another and to the institutions that are our intellectual home, our learning cannot be limited to purely academic pursuits.
I am deeply grateful to Ali Asani, Jared Elias, Wafai Fauzi, Asim Ijaz Khwaja, and Derek Pensler for their candor, thoughtfulness, and above all, their optimism. After spending months leading the task force during a contentious time for Harvard, they fostered a shared belief that our community can change for the better, that it can become more welcoming and inclusive. That is a shared aspiration across the University.
The work ahead will require a concerted effort. As both task forces work toward final recommendations, their preliminary recommendations provide a path forward. We will begin detailed review and implementation of short-term recommendations over the summer. Longer-term recommendations will be developed, refined, and implemented at the appropriate time. For now, we hope you will be familiar with our efforts and, if you have not already done so, will complete this survey, which is open until July.
Sincerely,
Alan M. Gerber
