In part one of this collaboration with WNYC’s On The Media, Claudine Gay’s history-making inauguration as Harvard’s first Black president in September 2023 is seen by many as an inspirational moment for the university.

But by December 2023, that hope sours as her presidency becomes a proxy battleground for American culture wars

After war breaks out in the Middle East, Gay struggles to navigate bitter campus protests over war, anti-semitism, free speech, and the proper role of the university. The tensions are on full display when Gay testifies under oath, providing legalistic answers to outraged members of Congress.

Claudine Gay’s short tenure as Harvard’s 30th president, a job she started two days after the Supreme Court struck down Harvard’s program of race-based affirmative action, is seen by some as a symbol of what’s wrong with diversity efforts.

It’s also a warning to all colleges and universities, who face a hostile incoming administration which has pledged to use its power to bring them into line.

This series slows down the whipsaw chain of events to bring listeners direct eyewitness accounts of what happened, from professors, wealthy donors, and spiritual leaders.

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