The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) has drawn criticism for hosting a symposium on terrorism on the 25th anniversary of September 11, 2001, which included a lawyer representing al-Qaeda mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and other critics of U.S. counterterrorist policy.
Mohammed is identified as the individual responsible for the 2002 beheading of Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl in Pakistan. Judea Pearl, Daniel Pearl's father and a UCLA engineering professor, teaches at the university, adding to the perceived insensitivity of the event, which was hosted by the UCLA School of Law.
UCLA Chancellor Julio Frenk condemned the event, stating in remarks to The California Post, "We reject antisemitism and terrorism in all their forms, and we believe our campus must be a place where the dignity of every member of our community is respected." The university's administration suggested that any 9/11 event should have focused on honoring victims of terror.
This symposium occurs as UCLA is already under scrutiny for perceived issues with antisemitism on campus, particularly following a 2024 student encampment. During that period, the administration was criticized for allowing pro-Hamas students to occupy a campus area, construct barricades, and allegedly restrict Jewish students' access to classes and dormitories. Reports also indicate that journalists attempting to film the encampment were assaulted, and the public and university members were reportedly excluded from the campus center.
The criticism suggests that, in light of potential federal lawsuits and civil rights complaints, the university should have avoided an event perceived as an insult to the nation on the anniversary of the attacks. The author of the notes contends that many universities have become detached from the nation and its public, with tenured faculty allegedly indoctrinating students with anti-American propaganda under the guise of academic freedom. This perspective posits that academic freedom is selectively applied, favoring liberal viewpoints while suppressing conservative speakers.
The article's author asserts that while debates about American foreign policy and counterterror tactics are valid, hosting a lawyer for a terrorist like Mohammed on 9/11 reinforces public contempt for academic institutions. The UCLA School of Law hosted the symposium that featured the lawyer for Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, who is accused of orchestrating the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon.