A Chicago art teacher who was criticized online for calling Israelis “pigs” and “very bad people” after the Hamas attacks has said she is “deeply sorry” and does not endorse her anti-Semitic comments.
Dr. Mika Tosca, a climate scientist and associate professor at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago (SAIC), apologized on her Instagram on Wednesday for her inflammatory post amid the war between Israel and Hamas.
“Yesterday I wrote some things on my Instagram story that I flatly reject and do not endorse,” Tosca wrote.
“I am deeply sorry for writing what I wrote and for hurting many people with my words, and I am especially sorry for the Israeli people whom I broadly blamed for the war.”
Earlier this week, Tosca came under fire when she called Israel’s retaliatory offensive against Hamas (the terrorist group that killed about 1,400 people and is believed to be holding around 200 hostages) as “absolutely evil” and “propaganda.”
Dr. Mika Tosca, an associate professor at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, was accused of posting an anti-Semitic rant on social media. Micktosca.com
Following Hamas’ surprise attack on southern Israel on October 7, the Israeli army has relentlessly bombed the Gaza Strip.
As of Thursday, at least 2,778 Palestinians have been killed and another 9,700 wounded, the Hamas-controlled Health Ministry said.
“Israelis are pigs. Savages,” Tosca wrote at the time. “Very bad people. Irredeemable excrement.
Tosca called Israelis “pigs” and “savages” in condemning the Jewish state’s attack on Hamas. Instagram/Mika Tosca
“After last week, if your eyes are not open to the crimes against humanity that Israel is committing and has committed for decades, and will continue to commit, then I suggest you open them,” he added.
“It is disgusting and grotesque. May they all rot in hell.”
Tosca’s post was shared by the group Stop Antisemitism, which also shared her subsequent apology.
“[Israelis] He didn’t deserve (nor does he deserve) [what I said], and I was wrong to publish what I published; “I know my words perpetuated harmful stereotypes,” the lengthy statement read.
Mika Tosca is a climate scientist and activist.SAIC
“I allowed my reaction to the violence in Israel and Palestine to take an inappropriate and offensive form, and I am taking proactive steps to learn how I can do better and be better.
“To the many Israelis and Jews whom I hurt with my words: I am very sorry. I own my mistake and I promise to be better. I hope you can forgive me,” he concluded.
Earlier this week, the art institute school said it was aware of the “hateful views” Tosca wrote in her opening speech and insisted the school “repudiates” the post.
The school did not immediately respond to the Post’s request for comment on Tosca’s apology.
How celebrities, schools and companies have reacted to the Hamas terrorist attack against Israel
Speaking to The Post on Wednesday, Liora Rex, executive director of Stop Antisemitism, demanded that “administrators hold Dr. Mika Tosca fully accountable for her vile bigotry.”
“She must be investigated for her horrible feelings. “Jewish students deserve to feel safe on campus and people like her make that impossible when they are openly anti-Semitic.”
Meanwhile, Tosca is not the only academic who has sparked controversy following the outbreak of the war between Israel and Hamas.
Joseph Massad, a professor of politics and history at Columbia University, made headlines when he called the Hamas attack on Israeli citizens “stunning.”
Follow The Post’s live blog for the latest on Hamas’ attack on Israel.
The tenured professor is the subject of a petition calling for his dismissal, although the Change.org-based movement was “under review” as of Thursday morning.
Further north, at Cornell University, associate professor of history Russell Rickford is struggling to save face after boasting about being “excited” about the wave of anti-Israel violence.
On the other side of the divisive issue, University of Washington professor Seth Crosby claimed he was fired because he referred to Israel’s airstrikes in Gaza as “a much-needed cleanup.”
The off-color comment was criticized by Muslim advocacy groups for dehumanizing Palestinians, many of whom have lived in near-exile in the Gaza Strip and West Bank for decades.
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Source: vtt.edu.vn