Cornell student newspaper retracts artwork featuring Nazi symbols and bloodied Star of David
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The student-run newspaper at Cornell University found itself at the center of controversy after featuring artwork by a professor that depicted a bloodied Star of David alongside a Nazi “SS” symbol inscribed on the back of a Palestinian figure.

The Cornell Daily Sun initially published the image but later removed it following backlash. Critics labeled the artwork as antisemitic, according to a report from the New York Post.

William Jacobson, a law professor and the founder of Legal Insurrection, expressed his concerns to the newspaper, stating, “For me, this illustrates the growing trend of Holocaust inversion, both online and now on Cornell’s campus.”

An image on The Cornell Sun newspaper stirred backlash after it was published earlier this month.

An image showing a Palestinian figure with a bloodied Star of David was published in The Cornell Sun.  (The Cornell Sun / AP)

“The [SS lightning bolt] design is notably placed within a bloody Star of David,” Jacobson continued. “There is no indication linking it to Israel, and it clearly suggests the narrative of Jews as the new Nazis. It is undoubtedly deeply offensive.”

The drawing accompanied an opinion piece from Cornell professor Karim-Aly Kassam, who teaches courses on natural resources and Indigenous Studies at the Ithaca, New York campus. 

The piece, titled “Thousand & One Eyes for an Eye,” was published days after the second anniversary of the Oct. 7, 2023, attacks on Israel by Hamas. In it, Kassam wrote that Israel was engaging in a revenge campaign in the Gaza Strip and described a pattern of Israeli officials describing Palestinians as “animals.”

Cornell University

Cornell points to “core values of inclusion, engagement, impact, and community” on their DEI page. (AP Photo/Ted Shaffrey, File)

The student newspaper later retracted the piece and republished it without the drawing following an internal Sun discussion. The imagery failed to meet the newspaper’s standards, it said. 

“I am deeply saddened to learn that this portion of the artwork has been interpreted by some as antisemitic,” Kassam told The Post about the situation.

Julia Senzon, the editor-in-chief for The Sun, told Fox News Digital that Kassam provided the image to the publication.

“The Sun removed the image on the grounds that the imagery may plausibly cause visceral harm to some of our readers based on the historical context of the ‘SS’ symbol,” she said in a statement. 

An aerial view of the Cornell University campus in New York.

An aerial view of Cornell University. The Daily Sun, the student newspaper, came under fire for publishing an image of a bloodied Star of David and a Nazi “SS” symbol scrawled on the back of a Palestinian person in a recent issue.  (Bing Guan/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

An editor later defended Kassam in a column, arguing that the professor did “not imply that the state of Israel is equal to Nazi Germany.” The column reflected the editor’s views, not the newspaper. 

Fox News Digital has reached out to Kassam. The university declined to comment on the matter. 

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