In Marquette University’s original statement following the Oct. 7 massacre, the school neither condemned Hamas nor mentioned terrorism. But in a new statement released almost one month after the attacks, Marquette did both.
The university’s Oct. 10 statement, labeled “Praying for peace in the Middle East,” broadly referenced “devastating violence” and called for “an end to attacks and violence that will bring further suffering to innocent people.”
With the help of Rabbi Joshua Herman, Hillel Milwaukee’s executive director, about a dozen Jewish faculty and students sent a letter to the university’s president, Michael Lovell. The Oct. 30 letter asked the school to release a statement condemning Hamas’ attacks. Similarly, Milwaukee Jewish Federation President and Chief Executive Officer Miryam Rosenzweig reached out to Marquette as well.
Marquette professors Joshua Burns and Owen Goldin also called the university’s response “disappointing” and “an abdication of its moral authority,” in a Chronicle opinion piece published in print on Nov. 1.
Herman met with the Rev. John Thiede, Marquette’s acting vice president for mission and ministry, on Nov. 2, to reiterate the request for an additional statement. While Herman never heard back from Lovell directly, the school released its new statement on Nov. 3.
The statement condemned Hamas’ Oct. 7 terrorist attacks, called for Israel to minimize civilian casualties, and for students to engage in respectful dialogue.
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