Former Fox News anchor Megyn Kelly is amplifying accusations of plagiarism against Harvard University president Dr. Claudine Gay, the first Black president of Harvard and just the second woman to lead the prestigious university. Gay has been under fire for what many saw as a disastrous congressional testimony during antisemitism hearings last week, which became especially problematic when Gay failed to condemn calls for genocide while being questioned by Congresswoman Elise Stefanik (R-NY).
Gay issued a subsequent public apology for failing “to convey what is my truth” at her testimony and, despite widespread calls for her to resign, remains in the job with the support of Harvard’s governing board.
[Note: The board issued a statement this week in support of Gay, saying that “as members of the Harvard Corporation, we today reaffirm our support for President Gay’s continued leadership of Harvard University. Our extensive deliberations affirm our confidence that President Gay is the right leader to help our community heal and to address the very serious societal issues we are facing.”]
But the spotlight on Gay, who has been characterized as a failed “diversity hire” by some of her detractors, has not yet dimmed.
As seen below, Kelly is among those sharing posts written by anti-DEI conservative activist Christopher F. Rufo, who is attempting to undermine Gay’s academic credentials. Rufo alleges that Gay plagiarized the work of Miami University, Ohio professor Anne Williamson, among others, as she rose up the academic ranks.
Williamson, who had Gay’s work brought to her attention by Rufo, told the New York Post that she was “shocked” by the parallels between her work and one of Gay’s papers, and said “it does look like plagiarism to me.”
BREAKING: Miami University professor Anne Williamson has come forward accusing Claudine Gay of plagiarizing her work. Williamson told the New York Post that she was "angry" and stated, "it does look like plagiarism to me." pic.twitter.com/sz0cbEJ15K
— Christopher F. Rufo ⚔️ (@realchrisrufo) December 13, 2023
History professor George Reid Andrews of the University of Pittsburgh also spoke to the Post. He acknowledged that Gay “did borrow a few of my phrases” in an article 30 years ago (‘Between Black and White: The Complexity of Brazilian Race Relations’) but excuses the practice, explaining that “this happens fairly often in academic writing and for me does not rise to the level of plagiarism.”
Andrews added, “I am glad she read my work, learned from it, and recommended it to her readers.”
Plagiarist = intellectual thief, cheater, dishonest pretend academic. https://t.co/5CWsqTFcaj
— Megyn Kelly (@megynkelly) December 14, 2023
After Gay’s public apology for her testimony, Derrick Johnson, President of the NAACP, wrote on X: “Enough is enough. Harvard President Claudine Gay is a distinguished scholar and professor with decades of service in higher education. The recent attacks on her leadership are nothing more than political theatrics advancing a white supremacist agenda.”
Nobody’s listening to you Derrick. This BS doesn’t work anymore. https://t.co/yD27AGuiWJ
— Megyn Kelly (@megynkelly) December 13, 2023
Kelly, who has reposted numerous claims Rufo has advanced on X, replied to Johnson: “Nobody’s listening to you Derrick. This BS doesn’t work anymore.”
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