Reforming Middle East Studies and Ethnic Studies in American Universities

Description

How can Americans leverage the public’s disgust with the ongoing turmoil and antisemitism on campuses nationwide to either depoliticize or marginalize Middle East studies/ethnic studies, reduce on-campus antisemitism, and weaken or abolish the DEI/social justice bureaucracy under which these programs thrive? What actions can be taken to break the DEI/ethnic studies bureaucracy’s iron grip on university life? This panel will analyze the current malaise in Middle East studies/ethnic studies and offer steps to reform them.

Ben Baird researches Islamist activity in Washington, D.C., and state capitals across the country, organizes to counter these efforts, and educates the public, the media, and politicians on the threat posed by Islamist involvement in politics. He is a decorated U.S. Army infantry veteran and a frequent contributor to the Investigative Project on Terrorism, The Daily Caller, and other prominent media outlets.

Winfield Myers oversees Campus Watch, which reviews and critiques Middle East studies in North American universities. He has taught world history and other topics at the University of Michigan, the University of Georgia, Tulane, and Xavier University of Louisiana. He was previously managing editor of The American Enterprise magazine and CEO of Democracy Project, Inc., which he co-founded. Mr. Myers has served as senior editor and communications director at the Intercollegiate Studies Institute and is principal author and editor of a college guide, Choosing the Right College (1998, 2001). He was educated at the University of Georgia, Tulane, and the University of Michigan.

Reed Rubinstein is a former deputy associate attorney general, U.S. Department of Education General Counsel (acting and delegated), and senior advisor to the Secretary of Treasury. He spent more than 30 years in the private practice of law, litigating constitutional, administrative, and complex commercial trial and appellate cases; counseling publicly traded and closely held corporations on regulatory compliance, M&A, and transactional matters; and handling executive branch and congressional oversight, investigations, and enforcement issues. Mr. Rubinstein is a 1985 graduate of the University of Michigan Law School.

Brandy Shufutinsky is a social worker, writer, and researcher committed to building intercultural learning and communication opportunities. She holds her doctorate in international and multicultural education from the University of San Francisco, MSW from the University of Southern California, and her M.A. in international relations from the University of San Diego. She was a 2021 Scholar-in-Residence at the Institute for the Study of Global Antisemitism & Policy Oxford Summer Institute, where she worked to develop curriculum in critical antisemitism studies.

Presented on May 14, 2024 in Washington, D.C.