Gay’s resignation Tuesday, which marked the shortest tenure for a president at the Ivy League institution, followed weeks of criticism for plagiarism allegations and her handling of antisemitism on campus.
Prominent civil rights activists are rallying behind Claudine Gay following her
“If he doesn’t think Black Americans belong in the C-Suite, the Ivy League, or any other hallowed halls,” said Sharpton, “we’ll make ourselves at home outside his office.”
Ackman consistently shared his disdain for Gay on his X account and penned an open letter to Harvard condemning her for not denouncing the October Hamas assault on Israel in her initial statement.
“President Gay resigned because she lost the confidence of the University at large due to her actions and inactions and other failures of leadership,” Ackman posted on X on Tuesday as he addressed backlash regarding his involvement in Gay’s resignation. “Gay resigned because it was untenable for her to remain President of Harvard due to her failings of leadership.”
Last month, Morehouse College President David Thomas criticized Ackman for remarks on X in which he stated that Harvard’s presidential search committee “would not consider a candidate who did not meet the DEI office’s criteria.”
“Mr. Ackman and others are right to call attention to issues of antisemitism at his alma mater where he attended as a Jewish student,” Thomas noted on LinkedIn, Politico reported. “To turn the question to the legitimacy of President Gay’s selection because she is a black woman is a dog whistle we have heard before: black and female, equal not qualified. We must call it out.”
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