An English professor from Fresno State is receiving serious criticism for comments she made on her Twitter account following the death of former First Lady Barbara Bush. Randa Jarrar went on a social media rampage mocking the death of Barbara Bush. Her remarks were met with outrage and disbelief as users called on her employer to take action against her. Jarrar has since made her Twitter account private after receiving backlash. She’s currently taking a leave of absence for the semester.
According to a news conference, Fresno State is investigating the incident. Jarrar went on a rant following the news that Barbara Bush had passed away. Referring to the former first lady as an “amazing racist,” Jarrar also stated her desire to dance on Mrs. Bush’s grave. Negative attention only egged her on to continue her vile remarks. In the course of her rants, Jarrar tagged both the Fresno State official Twitter account and that of the university’s president, Joseph Castro. He responded to Jarrar’s remarks by saying, “Professor Jarrar’s expressed personal views and commentary are obviously contrary to the core values of our University, which include respect and empathy for individuals with divergent points of view.”
https://twitter.com/RealMarquis7/status/986837514890686464
Randa Jarrar boasts work that’s been published in several outlets on her Twitter account including Salon, New York Times Magazine, and Buzzfeed. She previously wrote a controversial piece for Salon about why she can’t stand white belly dancers, accusing white women of performing in “brown face” and cultural appropriation. The Palestinian-American professor grew up in Egypt and Kuwait before coming to the United States with her family following the Gulf War. She blamed Barbara Bush for George W. Bush’s decision to become involved in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Among Jarrar’s more eyebrow-raising statements was her assertion that she can’t be fired from Fresno State because she’s a tenured professor making $100,000 a year. A representative from the university disputed that claim as inaccurate. “I’ll always have people wanting to hear what I have to say,” Jarrar said. While some organizations have come to her defense citing freedom of speech, many have called on Fresno State to take action. Recently, mass outrage ensued over Laura Ingraham saying David Hogg was “whining.” Social media users pressed advertisers to drop Ingraham.
Actually I think it’s better to leave an unfortunate person like this where she is. Look at what happened to Mizzou after the Glick episode. Let schools who hire these clowns lose their alumni support. https://t.co/LeanlYlPZ1
— James Woods (@RealJamesWoods) April 19, 2018
Knowing that Randa Jarrar is responsible for teaching young students is incredibly concerning. If she so publicly expresses such inflammatory ideas, I can only imagine what she teaches students in her classroom. She very clearly associated her opinions with Fresno State by tagging them in her rant. That crossed the line from personal views to speaking on behalf of the institution. For that reason, the university needs to take action in accordance with their policies that govern staff conduct. I also hope to see media outlets refuse to publish any more of this woman’s trash and expect to see the likes of Salon and Buzzfeed condemn their author’s behavior. Barbara Bush was a private citizen and had nothing to do with the policies of her husband or son. She was a great American and leaves an impressive legacy behind.
