Most of the civilized world was horrified by the terror group Hamas's October 7th attack on Israel. But what has been even more disturbing, is the sharp increase in the rise of antisemitism worldwide. In one of the most outrageous incidents, over 30 student organizations at Harvard University signed on to a letter in full support of Hamas and blaming Israel, with virtual silence from faculty and officials at the university in response. But now, a letter in full support of Israel and its actions, also written and signed by college students has come to light, and if nothing else, it shows there may be a bit of hope left for America's college students.  

finally.. nice to see...
United Against Terror: 5,000+ Students from 650 Colleges and Universities Sign Pro-Israel Letter https://t.co/8HB4t5sYtq via @BreitbartNews

— MIMSYPICKTRIS 🇺🇸 (@Picktris66) October 18, 2023

The letter was written by Alec Bachman, a student at Williams College, and Samuel Ben-Ur, a student at Tufts University, and was signed by over 5,000 fellow students at over 650 colleges and universities, including Princeton, Rutgers, MIT, and even Harvard. The letter conveys the anger, and also the concern and worry over students unable to reach friends and family members in Israel:

"We as students are sickened by the actions of Hamas. We are unable to look away from the massacre of our friends and family from afar, and our desperate calls go to voicemail as we try to cope with our isolation from our families and now our own campus communities." 

The double standard of many colleges and universities was not lost on the authors of the letter. They pointed out the rapid response of those schools to Russia's invasion of Ukraine, and even Supreme Court decisions, but now do not appear to be in such a rush to comment.

"Many university administrations have yet to call out the atrocities committed by Hamas and provide us with the support we desperately need. These same universities that were quick to condemn events like the Russian invasion of Ukraine and recent Supreme Court decisions now remain silent."

 The letter also mentions the silence of college and university officials over the celebrations on campus by pro-Palestinian students in the aftermath of the attack. 

"Just as they have failed to condemn the actions of Hamas in Israel, they have yet to condemn the students who are celebrating these atrocities on campus. Since administrators have failed to speak to us, it’s time we speak to them. Condemn Hamas. Condemn the students supporting Hamas."

At Columbia University, two groups of hundreds of students tensely faced each other in dueling pro-Israel and pro-Palestinian demonstrations, while university officials blocked public access to the campus as a safety measure. https://t.co/QrRj6Oh5qP https://t.co/Alkn613Dn7

— NEWSMAX (@NEWSMAX) October 13, 2023

As indicated above, the pro-Israel letter was, in part, a response to the recent letter, issued almost immediately after the attacks and signed by over 30 Harvard University on-campus student groups, that stated they held Israel "entirely responsible" for the bloodshed. The letter went on to claim that Israelis forced Palestinians to live in "open-air" prisons for over two decades and that “The apartheid regime is the only one to blame." Harvard made an initial statement condemning the attack after a loud national outcry but made no mention of the pro-Palestinian support letter. Harvard President Claudine Gay was forced to issue a second statement saying the student groups did not speak for the university. 

But for the Harvard University pro-Palestinian students, the damage has already been done, and they are getting a valuable lesson on the First Amendment. You have the freedom of speech and the freedom to support what you want, but there are consequences. And those consequences have been swift and harsh, not just for Harvard students but students at other Ivy League schools who signed on to the anti-Israel letter. New York law firm Davis Polk rescinded the job offers of three students from both Harvard and Columbia Universities. International law firm Winston & Strawn LLP rescinded a job offer from the president of the New York University Student Bar Association for Palestinian support. Davis Polk's response to the rescinding of job offers from chair and managing partner Neil Barr stated:

"These statements are simply contrary to our firm's values and we thus concluded that rescinding these offers was appropriate in upholding our responsibility to provide a safe and inclusive work environment for all Davis Polk employees."

Harvard and other Ivy League school students are getting a harsh lesson in "real life has consequences." And while it is not known what the majors of Alec Bachman or Samuel Ben-Ur are, if they are law students, some pretty prestigious law firms suddenly have openings.

@Harvard is now reaping what it has sown. Everyone of these students deserve the backlash. Job offers, internships and other opportunities should be taken away. Freedom of speech is alive and well, so are consequences for adult actions. It’s time for people to accept that.

— Savannah (@BasedSavannah) October 12, 2023