Edward Said’s daughter says she’s ‘disappointed’ by Columbia University’s handling of pro-Palestine protests

By Rabia Iclal Turan

WASHINGTON (AA) - As many students at Columbia University in New York gathered on their campus for a pro-Palestinian protest Tuesday, among them was a notable guest, Najla Said, the daughter of the late Palestinian intellectual Edward Said, a former professor of literature at the university.

Until his death in 2003, Edward Said was a vocal advocate and one of the most influential voices for the rights of the Palestinian people.

If he were alive today, according to Najla, he would be "incredibly proud" of the students at Columbia University.

"He would have probably approached (Columbia University) President (Minouche) Shafik personally and tried to speak with her and tried to help this situation not turn into what it has, which is also heartbreaking because it really makes me wish he were here," she told Anadolu in a video interview.

"I am deeply disappointed in the leadership of Columbia, as I think many people are," she said. "I’m not sure where this is headed...I have been so surprised by how it's been handled so far. I may not be surprised if it continues to be handled in such an aggressive manner."

"However, I don't think that that is necessary, and it would be very unfortunate," she said.

Explaining her decision to join the pro-Palestine protest at Columbia University, Najla said she has been "really moved by what's going on at Columbia," especially after seeing a photo of a girl holding a flag, standing at the top of the stairs of the library building.

"It was so moving. And I was like, ‘I want to go’, ‘I want to see these kids’," she recalled.

Noting that she received a call from a friend who is traveling with Palestinian journalist Motaz Azaiza to go to the protest, as there was going to be a teaching on Edward Said, she said she was only there for about 15 minutes.

"It was incredible," she recalled, "A lot of them were holding my father's book, The Question of Palestine, with their finger in it, and the pages folded over. They're incredibly strong. They're very young."

According to Najla, the protests inside the campus, from day one, have been "calm and peaceful" and "very sweet."

Asked about some calls to deploy the National Guard to colleges, particularly Columbia University to close pro-Palestine encampment, Najla said the idea is "absolutely absurd."

"I find this all very overblown," she said. "The media reports that I've seen here in the West are not at all indicative of the actual situation."

"I think there are a lot of infiltrators," she said, regarding reports that some protestors were wearing headbands in support of the Palestinian group Hamas.

"They have every right to protest. This is the First Amendment. It's the most heralded part of our American culture," she said.

"First of all, they have not been treated as a normal citizen of the United States should be," she said, citing the fact that some of them were immediately arrested, that some of them were suspended and they had their belongings removed.

"I'm not sure, but I am hoping that eventually the situation will calm down. But I'm a bit concerned about the media and certain organizations stoking the flames of this situation," she said.

- Anti-Semitism accusations

Asked about protestors being called "anti-Semitic," Najla responded by saying that she believes it is an attempt to intimidate the protesters.

Noting that a great number of the student protestors are Jewish, she said the protestors held a Passover seder on Monday, the first night of the Jewish holiday, and called the anti-Semitism accusations "manufactured" because they are "simply protesting the Israeli government's actions in Gaza.”

"They are trying to draw attention to Gaza, not themselves, not their own hatreds or anything," she said. "It's for human rights. It's for Palestinian people."

"The more anti-Semitism is thrown around with no basis behind it, the word becomes meaningless and it does a disservice to people who are actually suffering from real anti-Semitism which does exist," she added.

- What would Edward Said’s approach be if he was alive today?

Asked what Edward Said’s approach would be if he was alive today, Najla responded: "Before my father passed away, he had said in a couple of lectures and interviews that the internet was going to make the biggest difference in this struggle because people could finally get information from other sources."

"He would be very happy about that. He would be incredibly proud of these students," she said.

"I want to just emphasize that they're taking their education and using it. This is what they're learning," she said. "This is how my father's work and other people's work has changed how we read history, literature, and all of art, and all of these things."

"He would probably encourage them to keep doing their homework because he was very, very, very much an educator and believed in school."

- Biden’s Gaza policy is ‘disappointing’

Asked about the Biden administration's Gaza policy, she said she is "very disappointed" in Joe Biden, although she said she has always known that the US supports Israel "no matter what.”

Recalling that she had been bombed by Israel while she was in Lebanon, she said: " I have actually experienced the feeling of ‘Oh well, I'm being bombed by bombs that I paid for,’ which is a very awful, terrifying feeling."

"People often talk, Joe Biden himself a lot about how empathetic he is. And I can't tell you how hurtful it is that his empathy seems to only apply to everyone who isn't Palestinian," she said.

"It's egregious. It's blatant and it's hurtful," she said, adding she doesn't think she could ever forgive Biden and his administration for their behavior, "not to mention the constant lying to our faces."

"It's really disappointing," she added.