We hear a lot about the stupid, nasty, and otherwise inexplicable things law students do here at Above the Law — hell, we even dedicated an entire region in our annual March Madness competition to commemorating all the trouble they often find themselves in. But this law student has gone beyond all boundaries of social acceptability. In keeping with ATL general policy, we will not name the student in question, but refer to him as Rudy the Jackhole.
Let’s just jump right in and get to the question that Rudy the Jackhole, somehow, defying all reason and logic, thought was appropriate to ask Tzipi Livni, a former Israeli Foreign Minister and current Israeli Parliament Member:
How is it that you are so smelly? Oh, it’s a question about the odor of Ms. Tzipi Livni, very smelly, and I was just wondering.
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Of all the terrible sh*t.
Heads up, Rudy the Jackhole: That comment isn’t acceptable at an informal mixer, let alone at an event hosted by the Program on Negotiation at Harvard Law School and co-sponsored by the Jewish Law Students Association and Harvard Hillel and featuring a conversation between Livni and American Diplomat Dennis Ross. You are a grown-ass adult, smart enough to get into Harvard Law — you should know better.
The reaction to the comment was immediate and exactly what you’d expect. Jeremy Salinger, Jacqueline Wolpoe, and Jonathan Gartner, the current co-presidents and immediate past president of the Jewish Law Students Association, made clear the direct links between Rudy the Jackhole’s ignorant question and the history of anti-Semitism:
Discussions about Israel cannot devolve into ad hominem attacks against Jews. A quick Internet search will show that the stereotype of “the Jew” as “smelly” or “dirty” has been around since at least the 1800s. The Nazis promoted the idea that Jews “smell” to propagandize Jews as an inferior people. The idea that Jews can be identified by a malodor is patently offensive and stereotypes Jews as an “other” which incites further acts of discrimination. The fact that such a hate-filled and outdated stereotype reemerged at Harvard Law School is nothing short of revolting.
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Other student groups issued statements of support, and Dean Martha Minow joined in the condemnation of the comment:
The comment was offensive and it violated the trust and respect we expect in our community. Many perceive it as antisemitic, and no one would see it as appropriate. It was an embarrassment to this institution and an assault upon the values we seek to uphold.
And most recently, Rudy the Jackhole has roused himself from the ooze and issued an apology, I mean, he calls it an apology, but it barely reads like one:
I am writing to apologize, as sincerely as I can via this limited form of communication, to anyone who may have felt offended by the comments I made last week. To be very clear, as there seems to be some confusion, I would never, ever, ever call anyone, under any circumstances, a “smelly Jew”. Such a comment is utterly repugnant, and I am absolutely horrified that some readers have been led to believe that I would ever say such a thing. With regards to what I actually did say, I can see now, after speaking with the authors of this article and many other members of the Jewish community at HLS, how my words could have been interpreted as a reference to an anti-Semitic stereotype, one that I was entirely unaware of prior to the publication of this article. I want to be very clear that it was never my intention to invoke a hateful stereotype, but I recognize now that, regardless of my intention, words have power, and it troubles me deeply to know that I have caused some members of the Jewish community such pain with my words. To those people I say, please reach out. Give me an opportunity to make it right. I will assure you, as I have already assured many, that had I known it was even possible that some listeners might interpret my comments as anti-Semitic, there is absolutely no chance that I would have uttered them. I trust that those that know me and have engaged with me on a personal level will not find this at all difficult to believe. Many members of the Jewish community—some of whom hold strong differences of opinion with me—have reached out to me on their own to let me know that they did not interpret my words as anti-Semitic, because they know me well enough to know that that is not at all consistent with who I am as a person. I want to thank them and any others who have given me the benefit of the doubt, and I am writing this note in the hopes that more of you will do the same. I say this, however, fully cognizant of the fact that no amount of writing can serve as a substitute for genuine human interaction. So please, if there remains any doubt at all, do take me up on my offer above and reach out so that I can make this right to you on a more personal level.
TL;DR version: I didn’t mean to be anti-Semitic, only rude! Why you so mad?
There is no apology or even sorrow over the inherent rudeness and cruelty of the initial comment, only the anti-Semitic overtones. Which is something… I guess? But it hardly makes up for making such public and deliberately embarrassing comments. It also reflects terribly for Rudy’s judgment, which, as we all know, is a key component of a successful legal career.
Tzipi Livni called ‘smelly’ at Harvard [The Jerusalem Post]
A Statement on Recent Anti-Semitic Comments [Harvard Law Record]
Dean of Harvard Law School Denounces ‘Smelly Tzipi Livni’ Comment as ‘Embarrassment to This Institution’ [The Algemeiner]
Harvard Law Student Asks Israeli Official Why She’s ‘So Smelly’ [The Observer]
A Statement of Solidarity with JLSA [Harvard Law Record]