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Penn Trustees Hold Emergency Meeting After Magill’s Disastrous Congressional Testimony

Plus: Shapiro and the White House weigh in on Penn, big guest stars on the Eagles Christmas album bonus track, and Embiid saves the day.

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Liz Magill, President of University of Pennsylvania, testifies before the House Education and Workforce Committee.

Liz Magill, President of University of Pennsylvania, testifies before the House Education and Workforce Committee at the Rayburn House Office Building on December 05, 2023 in Washington, DC. The Committee held a hearing to investigate antisemitism on college campuses. (Photo by Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)

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Penn President Addresses Her Disastrous Testimony and Trustees Call Emergency Meeting

Penn president Liz Magill has been under fire this week over testimony that she and the presidents of Harvard and MIT gave before Congress on Tuesday about their universities’ responses to antisemitism on campus. The most contentious moment for Magill came when she was asked by U.S. Representative Elise Stefanik (R-NY) whether calling for the genocide of Jews violates Penn rules. Here’s the exchange:

Congresswoman Stefanik: Ms. Magill at Penn, does calling for the genocide of Jews violate Penn’s rules or code of conduct? Yes or no?

President Magill: If the speech turns into conduct, it can be harassment. Yes.

Congresswoman Stefanik: I am asking, specifically calling for the genocide of Jews, does that constitute bullying or harassment?

President Magill: If it is directed, and severe, pervasive, it is harassment.

Congresswoman Stefanik: So the answer is yes.

President Magill: It is a context-dependent decision, Congresswoman.

Congresswoman Stefanik: It’s a context-dependent decision. That’s your testimony today, calling for the genocide of Jews is depending upon the context, that is not bullying or harassment. This is the easiest question to answer. Yes, Ms. Magill. So is your testimony that you will not answer yes? Yes or no?

President Magill: If the speech becomes conduct. It can be harassment, yes.

Congresswoman Stefanik: Conduct meaning committing the act of genocide. The speech is not harassment. This is unacceptable. Ms. Magill, I’m gonna give you one more opportunity for the world to see your answer. Does calling for the genocide of Jews violate Penn’s code of conduct when it comes to bullying and harassment? Yes or no?

President Magill: It can be harassment.

Magill’s responses to Stefanik’s questioning (as well the responses of Harvard president Pauline Gay) have drawn intense scrutiny for what has been perceived as lawyerly equivocation. From the White House to the Pennsylvania governor’s mansion, condemnations have been swift and certain.

“It’s unbelievable that this needs to be said: Calls for genocide are monstrous and antithetical to everything we represent as a country,” said White House deputy press secretary Andrew Bates.

In remarks to reporters during a visit to Goldie, the Center City restaurant at the heart of a viral video earlier this week, Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro called Magill’s testimony “unacceptable.” “Frankly, I thought her comments were absolutely shameful,” he said, adding, “It should not be hard to condemn genocide.” According to the Daily Pennsylvanian, Shapiro, who as governor is a non-voting member of the Penn board of trustees, said the board should decide if the testimony reflects its views.

Meanwhile, calls for Magill to resign have been intensifying.

This is the context under which Magill released a two-minute video yesterday evening in which she says of the exchange with Stefanik: “In that moment I was focused on our university’s long-standing policies aligned with the U.S. Constitution which say that speech alone is not punishable. I was not focused on, but I should have been, the irrefutable fact that a call for genocide of Jewish people is a call for some of the most terrible violence human beings can perpetrate. It’s evil, plain and simple. I want to be clear: A call for genocide of Jewish people is threatening. Deeply so. It is intentionally meant to terrify a people who have been subjected to pogroms and hatred for centuries, and were the victims of mass genocide in the Holocaust. In my view, it would be harassment or intimidation.”

She adds that Penn must clarify and evaluate its policies, adding, “We can, and we will, get it right.”

Magill’s position seems extremely tenuous. An emergency virtual meeting of the Penn board of trustees was held this morning, the results of which are not yet known.

You can watch Magill’s full statement here:

And an update on the incident outside Michael Solomonov’s Center City restaurant Goldie. If you recall, earlier this week, pro-Palestinian protesters targeted the restaurant (among other establishments) due to a fund-raiser by Goldie’s parent company, CookNSolo, that benefited a nonprofit that has done aid work in conjunction with the Israel Defense Forces. A video of chants accusing the restaurant of genocide went viral. In the social media fray that followed, some users of X claimed they had been fired for their support of Palestine. The Inquirer has the full breakdown of the claims from workers who said they were fired specifically for wearing pins of the Palestinian flag and CookNSolo’s response, that the restaurant group had instituted a policy that prohibited “stickers, pins, patches etc besides those that are Goldie branded.”

Local Talent

A bonus track to the Eagles’ A Philly Special Christmas Special is being released today to coincide with the first night of Hanukkah: “The Dreidel Song” features the vocal stylings of Elkins Park-native rapper/TV star Lil Dicky and Eagles GM Howie Roseman.

In you-heard-it-here-first news, yesterday we told you about Bradley Cooper and Danny DiGiampietro teaming up for Danny & Coop’s Cheesesteaks. And today, the nascent operation made the Today Show.

By the Numbers

$440: That’s the average price for a ticket to Sunday’s Eagles game against the Cowboys in Dallas. It is, according to the Dallas Morning News, the most expensive Cowboys game on record.

$100,000: That’s the difference in median income between the city’s wealthiest and poorest neighborhoods, per an Inquirer analysis of census data.

3%-5%: The amount of the “wellness fee” some local restaurants are now charging to cover the costs of things like health insurance, paid sick leave, mental health services and more. Some people are not happy about it.

2: Days (including today) with snow in the forecast between now and Christmas. But today’s flurries aren’t expected to result in any accumulation, and the snow forecast for December 18th is expected to turn immediately to rain.

And from the MVP II Sports Desk …

All hands were finally on deck again for the Sixers game against the lowly Wizards down in D.C.; in the starting five were Joel Embiid, Tobias Harris, Nic Batum, De’Anthony Melton and Tyrese Maxey. There may have been a little rust, because our guys were cold; D.C. kept it close and was up 29-25 going into the second quarter. That turned into a Wizards 35-25 lead early in that quarter as Joel took a breather, but he tightened it back up when he returned, and an 11-0 Sixers run put us on top again. At the half, the Wizards had pulled ahead, 62-60, despite a heroic Maxey buzzer beater:

Joel had 26 points, but the team had only hit two threes. Kelly Oubre Jr., back from his rib woes, had played five minutes. The third didn’t go any better for us, as the Wizards stayed on top and Joel got whacked with a T for bad behavior, though Kyle Kuzma picked one up, too. In the final minutes of that quarter, the Sixers finally led, 99-95. Sure, they’re a comeback team, but this was ridiculous. Never fear, though; Joel surpassed his season high and became the first Sixer ever to have 30-plus points, five-plus rebounds and five-plus assists in six straight games. Oubre finished with 12, Melton hit some clutch foul shots, and the Sixers got the W, 131-126.

Naturally, Embiid gave his game jersey to his Pops.

Did the Phils Make Any Moves?

Sort of. Free agent NLCS hero-turned-zero Craig Kimbrel signed with the Baltimore Orioles, meaning Phillies fans may need fewer bottles of Tums next season. Bryce Harper’s agent says he’d like an even longer deal with the team, please. And the team stockpiled minor-league catchers in the always-hot minor-league portion of the Rule 5 draft.

Any College Hoops News?

Lots! There were four local teams on the floor last night. Penn should not have been playing Fairleigh Dickinson-Florham, because the Quakers smothered the Devils, 111-57. Temple shouldn’t have played Bloomsburg, either; the Owls triumphed 85-55. St. Joe’s was never in much trouble vs. American U., coming out with a 69-53 win. Only La Salle struggled, against Loyola-Maryland, who came in at a paltry 1-7. Loyola led for almost the entire game until the Explorers mounted a comeback and just barely squeaked by with a 62-61 win thanks to this Andrés Marrero shot:

The Flyers play tonight.

All Philly Today sports coverage is provided by Sandy Hingston.

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