A year ago, at the peak of the campus unrest over the war in Gaza, I was asked to address a conference on the topic “How to Conduct Civil Discourse.” I relished the opportunity to do this because the issue of how we engage in civil discourse was (and remains) both timely and necessary. 

American voters want an end to the war in Gaza and for President Trump to withhold US aid, if necessary, to pressure Israel to end it.  

For American Catholics, Pope Francis was elected to lead the Roman Catholic Church at a time of crisis for both the institution and the faithful. The church in the United States was reeling from the aftershocks of continuing exposés of widespread sexual abuse by priests and the growing rift separating the church’s leadership from significant portions of younger Catholics.

For decades now, Arabs, in particular Palestinians, and supporters of Palestinian rights have been the weak link in the civil liberties chain. During this period, when a US president or Congress has sought to take measures curtailing a range of civil liberties, they would exploit the perception of the danger posed by Arabs to justify their actions.

From 2013 to 2017, I served as a White House appointee to the US Commission on International Religious Freedom. Annually we would review the practices of countries around the world as they impacted the ability of their citizens and residents to freely practice their faiths. We would then issue reports that would identify countries (about two dozen) that violated religious freedom, together with our recommendations for actions the US government could take to bring these countries into compliance. 

During the past week, there were reports of Palestinians in Gaza engaged in public protests against Hamas. These demonstrations took place in at least three main locations involving hundreds and possibly thousands of Palestinians overall. The signs carried by protesters and the slogans they’ve used make clear their anti-Hamas intent: “Hamas must go” and “We want to live.” 

When the Israeli Knesset passed its 2025 budget this past week, the government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu breathed a sigh of relief. Had the budget not been approved by March 31, the Knesset would have been automatically disbanded, and new elections would have been called. Polls indicate that Netanyahu and his coalition would have decisively lost.  

Significant attention and/or concern has been generated by President Donald Trump’s early Executive Orders and actions.

The combined efforts of President Donald Trump, Republicans in Congress, and pro-Israel groups, like the Anti-Defamation League, have declared war on the liberal ideals of freedom of speech and assembly and the very idea of the university.