Sima Shakhsari is an Associate Professor in the Department of Gender, Women & Sexuality Studies at the University of Minnesota. Shakhsari’s university profile says she uses the pronouns “they/he/she” and teaches several courses including “Queering Theory” and “Queer and Feminist White Savior Complex.”

Shakhsari was nominated for an associate dean position at the College of Liberal Arts’ Office for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. As part of the interview process, she gave a one-hour testimony to the university review panel where she denied that Hamas committed rape against Israeli women during the October 7 attacks. She claimed she hadn’t seen evidence of sexual violence, stating:

“Of course, any person who has been raped, I am a rape crisis counselor, I believe the survivors. I am yet to see Israeli rape survivors of Hamas come and speak.” 

Shakhsari went on to claim it’s racist to say that Hamas committed rape.

“Part of our work and part of my experience… was how men of color in the U.S. have been demonized and have been falsely accused of rape. Exactly because of racism. We know the history of lynching, of black men, lynching, of indigenous man lynching Latinos in this country… because of accusations and they’re kind of violating the innocence of white women, right?” 

“And I think this is also the force that is repeated in the context of Israel and Palestine, because Arab men have been demonized and have been marked as monstrous people who are rapists and for violence.” 

Shakhsari did not end up getting the associate dean position, which was instead given to Amelious Whyte.

Jewish Insider reached out to Shakhsari for comment and received an automatic email reply signed, “I stand with the people of Palestine in their struggle for freedom and justice, and condemn the Israeli state’s settler colonial violence and genocide in Gaza.”

In October 2023, University of Minnesota Interim President Jeff Ettinger issued a statement condemning the Hamas attacks and lamenting “the countless innocent civilians who have lost their lives, been injured, or are being held captive.” Shakhsari was one of several faculty members who penned an open letter to Ettinger calling his statement “biased” and demanding an apology.

The letter, which was signed by over 750 university faculty and staff, stated:

“Our university’s Interim President Jeff Ettinger has issued biased statements condemning Hamas, but not holding the Israeli state responsible for its violent crimes against Palestinians … Ettinger’s statements, while intended to address the recent situation, have presented a one-sided perspective showing solidarity and concern only for Israel with no acknowledgment of the ongoing and historical suffering and death of Palestinians.” 

The letter demands an apology from President Ettinger and if one is not received, the signatories call for his statement to “be treated as an incident that merits bias reporting and investigation.”

 

Published – January 9, 2024