On Sunday, Senator Chris Van Hollen criticized “quite dismissive” remarks made by former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton regarding young pro-Palestinian protesters.
As you have had several conversations with many young people over the last many months now, so have I,” Clinton remarked during her visit on MSNBC on Thursday. “They are woefully ignorant when it comes to our nation’s and the world’s history, to say nothing of the Middle East.”
Massive pro-Palestinian protests have broken out on college campuses around the nation, prompting several colleges to cancel or change graduation ceremonies. Clinton made her speech in reaction to these protests.
However, during an appearance with CBS’s Margaret Brennan on “Face the Nation,” Van Hollen challenged Clinton’s remarks.
On Sunday, Van Hollen expressed her belief that Secretary Clinton’s remarks displayed a lack of sympathy for the students’ worries on the severe humanitarian situation and the high number of civilian casualties in Gaza.
He made the point that antisemitism has no place on campus and that students should feel comfortable there.
However, I think the vast majority of students are participating in the protests and are keeping a careful eye on the situation in Gaza. According to him, the civilian casualty count is really high.
While I acknowledge that there are some rotten apples on both the protesters’ and the counter-protesters’ sides, I think the vast majority of students feel this way. When it comes to the civilian losses in Gaza, though, I think the pupils do grasp the situation, he continued.
