University of Florida President Ben Sasse criticized anti-Israel campus protests unfolding across the U.S. as "stupid and reductionistic" while insisting that negotiating with agitators who "scream the loudest" is unwise.
"We do want to ask fundamental questions about whether or not enough education is happening. The paraglider memes that are now replacing Che Guevara on T-shirts is so bizarre. Which paragliders are we talking about — the savages who raped teenage girls at a concert? That’s who you want to be the icon and the sort of shorthand for the movement you’re defending?" Sasse told Jewish Insider in an interview published Tuesday.
"At the end of the day, there was an instigator that moved on 10/7, and it’s just amazing how quickly stupid and reductionistic so many of the protests have become,"he added.
The former Nebraska Republican senator's attitudes toward campus protests, echoed in UF's approach as a whole, have attracted attention as a contrasting example to the leadership exhibited at other colleges where pro-Palestinian demonstrations have spiraled out of control, resulting in thousands of arrests this graduation season.
Most notably, a UF spokesperson released a statement late last month declaring the institution was "not a daycare" and that disruptive protesters will face consequences. The rhetoric continues to receive praise among conservatives.
Sasse told Jewish Insider the university is still dedicated to free speech and expression.
"It isn’t that complicated to affirm free speech and free assembly, which are fundamental American rights and something that institutionally we’re committed to. But that doesn’t mean that the people who are the loudest are the ones who don’t have to obey the rules that everybody else does," he said.
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Sasse also said UF believes in protecting everyone's right to free speech, including "the right to make an a-- and an idiot of yourself."
"And a lot of the protesters say ridiculously, historically and geographically ignorant things," he added.
Sasse also weighed in on Northwestern University's plans to deal with protesters, saying that negotiating with "those who scream the loudest" isn't "prudent or wise or helpful." He declined to weigh in, however, on how other universities, including his alma maters Harvard and Yale, are handling the chaos.
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Campus protests continue to dominate national headlines as pro-Palestinian groups disrupt campus life and, in some instances, have turned violent across the nation.
On Columbia University's campus last week, demonstrators took control of historic Hamilton Hall, smashing windows and barricading doors in the process. Some university facility workers said they were held hostage inside the building.
At UCLA, police broke up an anti-Israel encampment and arrested over 100 students after an hourslong confrontation.
Fox News' Brian Flood and Alba Cuebas-Fantauzzi contributed to this report.
