The Cornell Daily Sun, the student newspaper at Cornell University, has retracted an artwork featuring Nazi symbols and a bloodied Star of David after it was criticized as antisemitic. The image, which was originally published alongside an opinion piece by professor Karim-Aly Kass, was later removed from the publication after internal discussions. The artwork depicted a Palestinian individual with a bloodied Star of David and an SS symbol scrawled on their back, sparking significant controversy.
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 referring to Palestinians as ‘animals.’ The artwork was accompanied by the opinion piece, which sparked a debate over its potential to promote harmful stereotypes.
The student newspaper later retracted the piece and republished it without the drawing after 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, editor-in-chief of The Sun, told Fox News Digital that Kass’s 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 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.
The controversy highlights the complex intersection of free speech, historical memory, and the need for responsible representation of political and religious symbols. The university’s student newspaper cited concerns about the potential for the image to cause visceral harm to some readers. The retraction was part of an ongoing debate about the appropriate use of historical symbols, particularly those associated with genocide and war crimes.