Among Harvard’s Pro-Palestine Groups, A Frosty Reception for Garber’s Appointment

Alan M. Garber ’76 shouldn’t hold his breath waiting to receive a congratulatory card from Harvard’s pro-Palestine activists after the governing boards permanently installed him as the University’s 31st president on Friday.

Activist groups already had an uneasy relationship with University leadership, but it took a turn for the worse during Garber’s interim presidency last semester as many protesters held Garber responsible for the implementation of policies that they believed sought to discourage campus protests.

Since Garber took office in January, his administration has warned students about the University’s guidelines on protest and dissent, suspended the Harvard Undergraduate Palestine Solidarity Committee, and restricted access to Harvard Yard in anticipation of an encampment.

More recently, Garber’s administration announced new rules that would ban unapproved signage and unauthorized chalking on University property.

Despite the restrictions on where, when, and how students are allowed to protest on campus, Harvard’s leadership has repeatedly maintained that free speech and the right to protest are “integral to the values” of the University.

University spokesperson Jason A. Newton declined to comment for this article.

Harvard Out of Occupied Palestine, an unrecognized coalition of student groups, slammed Garber in a statement.

“Since day 1, Garber has only ever engaged in bad faith with students protesting this genocide, choosing to restrict protest, sanction students, and suspend our organizations instead of listening to members of the Harvard community who are mourning loss and are enraged at the institutions role in this violence,” HOOP wrote.

The group insisted that its activism will continue during the fall semester and that Garber’s appointment will not deter the group from organizing future protests.

“This new development means very little to us — no university administrator and no rights and responsibilities will stop the student intifada and the movement for Palestinian liberation and divestment,” HOOP wrote.

The lowest point in the relationship between Garber and HOOP came during the 20-day pro-Palestine encampment in Harvard Yard as protesters harshly criticized Garber as an unusually oppressive University leader toward campus activism.

Three Palestinian flags are raised above University Hall during the Harvard Yard encampment. By Addison Y. Liu

Rosie P. Couture ’26, an organizer with the Harvard Feminist Coalition, said that “under Garber’s leadership, students organizing for Harvard’s divestment from the occupation of Palestine and the ongoing genocide in Gaza were harassed, unprotected, unjustly punished, and largely ignored.”

Members of the encampment marched to Garber’s private residence on two separate occasions in May, where they chanted “Alan Garbage.” Members of HOOP also created a poster depicting Garber as a devil.

Garber, who is Jewish, was portrayed in the poster with horns and a tail. HOOP later took down the poster after affiliates criticized the drawing as antisemitic.

Pro-Palestine protesters have also repeatedly accused Garber of reneging on a deal to end the 20-day encampment in May after dozens of undergraduate students were suspended or placed on probation for their involvement in the protest.

In fact, Garber had only agreed to reinstate students from involuntary leaves of absences and expedite disciplinary cases against the student protesters.

The Administrative Board — which is responsible for the application and enforcement of Harvard College policies — barred 13 seniors from graduating on the day before Commencement over pending disciplinary charges, infuriating students and faculty members.

The controversy, which sparked a walkout and faculty rebellion against the Ad Board, ended when the Ad Board reduced probations and reversed the suspensions earlier this summer. At least 11 of the suspended seniors have since received their Harvard diplomas.

Hossameldin “Hossam Nasr” Mabed ’21, a member of Harvard Alumni for Palestine, wrote in a statement that the events of last semester give “a clear indication of the direction Harvard will seek under Garber’s presidency: the same policy of repression and intimidation.”

“However, while Garber and the Corporation may continue to try to suppress our movement, we know that our movement will only grow stronger, as the more they try to silence us, the louder our voice gets,” Mabed added. “Whether under Garber or any other president, we will continue to hold our alma mater accountable for its support and funding for apartheid and genocide.”

While several activists agreed that their protest efforts would continue regardless of who holds the presidency, some still said they were unhopeful that significant progress could occur under a Garber presidency.

“Whatever,” wrote Syd D. Sanders ’24 in response to a request for comment about Garber’s appointment. Sanders was part of the group of seniors in May who were prevented from graduating over their involvement in the encampment.

Noa Sepharia, a recent graduate of Harvard Divinity School, said that her immediate reaction to the announcement was “dread for the Harvard community.”

“He was viciously anti-Palestinian and his actions favored external political influences over the well being of Harvard’s community,” Sepharia wrote. “He was a hindrance to important dialogue that needs to happen on campus, namely why so much of our endowment is invested in weapons of death instead of its students.”

Still, some activists hoped that time — and job security — could change Garber’s approach.

“Garber’s legacy so far is not one of safety, justice, or freedom for students,” Couture wrote. “But he has three years to redefine his legacy.”

—Staff writer Michelle N. Amponsah can be reached at michelle.amponsah@thecrimson.com. Follow her on Twitter @mnamponsah.

—Staff writer Azusa M. Lippit can be reached at azusa.lippit@thecrimson.com. Follow her on X @azusalippit or on Threads @azusalippit.

—Staff writer Jo B. Lemann can be reached at jo.lemann@thecrimson.com. Follow her on X @Jo_Lemann.