Uproar at Stanford after photo of student reading Mein Kampf spreads on social media

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A photo of a Stanford University student reading Mein Kampf, Adolf Hitler’s political manifesto, sparked controversy after it spread on social media. An incident report was filed, but Stanford took no disciplinary action against the student. 

Key Players

Stanford University, a private research university in Stanford, California, located between San Francisco and San Jose, ranks among the top universities in the world.

Rabbi Jessica Kirschner serves as the executive director of Hillel at Stanford, the university’s chapter of an international Jewish campus organization.

The Stanford Daily is Stanford’s largest independent student-run daily newspaper.

The Stanford Review, a Stanford independent student-run newspaper, is the “oldest continuously publishing conservative campus newspaper in the country.”

Further Details

On Jan. 20, 2023, an unnamed student posted a photo of another unnamed student reading Mein Kampf on their Snapchat story, according to a screenshot of the photo obtained by The Daily.

The photo depicted two women sitting in what appeared to be a dorm room, with one of them holding the book just below her eyes and her forefinger to her lips, as if to “convey an exaggeratedly thoughtful expression,” Inside Higher Ed reported. 

Dee Mostofi, a university spokesperson, confirmed that the office of student affairs and the office of religious and spiritual life became aware of the photo on Jan. 21, The Daily reported. 

The next day, Kirschner and Rabbi Laurie Hahn Tapper, an associate dean for religious and spiritual life, notified Jewish students that a Protected Identity Harm (PIH) incident report had been filed in response to the photo. Per university policy, a PIH incident is one that “adversely and unfairly targets an individual or group on the basis of one or more of these actual or perceived characteristics,” such as race or religion. 

“It can be upsetting to hear about incidents like this,” the rabbis wrote. “If you, either as a member of that residence or a member of our broader community are feeling impacted in any way, please reach out to us. We are here to support you. Jewish people belong at Stanford, and deserve to be respected by our peers. When that trust is broken, it can eat at all of our sense of belonging, causing damage beyond whatever the original intent might have been. Recognizing this is part of the accountability process too.”

The rabbis also encouraged students to use the PIH reporting process.

Outcome

The Review and Free speech advocates condemn university response

On Jan. 23, Julia Steinberg, a Jewish student, published an opinion piece in The Review titled “Nazis banned books. We shouldn’t,” pushing back against the controversy surrounding the photo.

“No matter what the context of the photo was, the community’s reaction stands in opposition to the liberal values of the university,” Steinberg wrote, asserting that the culmination of reactions to the photo, such as the reporting from The Daily and the PIH incident report, revealed “how fast the Stanford community will jump on the censorship train in the name of fighting oppression.” 

“Any education that prioritizes student comfort over the pursuit of knowledge and full understanding is one that underestimates students’ ability to grapple with complex and perhaps sensitive topics. Not only does the ethos of ignoring sensitive texts patronize students, those who are not exposed to dangerous ideas—such as those articulated in Mein Kampf—will fail to respond to them in the real world,” Steinberg wrote. 

On Jan. 25, the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE) wrote a letter to Stanford president Marc Tessier-Lavigne, saying that the PIH reporting process “is unacceptably punitive and chills expressive activity” and violated California’s Leonard Law, which prohibits private colleges from restricting First Amendment-protected speech.

“Being ‘invited’ by administrators with institutional disciplinary authority to engage in a formal reconciliation process to atone for reading a book — one that has been previously assigned as required reading for a Stanford class and is available to check out at Stanford’s library — is not conducive to the campus free speech culture Stanford deems central to the university’s functions,” FIRE wrote.

FIRE called on Stanford to evaluate PIH complaints more closely to avoid wielding “institutional authority to force compliance with any particular view or sensitivity” and asked for a “substantive response” to its letter from Stanford by the end of the day on Feb. 1.

University spokesperson says ‘no one is being punished’

On Jan. 30, Inside Higher Ed reported that Mostofi revealed that an unnamed student organization had raised concerns about the incident with Stanford administrators. 

“At the request of the student organization, we have been engaged in conversation with a number of students, seeking to provide support and foster communication,” Mostofi said. “However, there has been no requirement that any student meet with or report to a university official to discuss the matter. No one is being punished or investigated by the university for reading a book.”

Stanford responds to FIRE

On Feb. 1, Stanford submitted a response to FIRE, reaffirming that no disciplinary action would be taken against the student. 

“It is important to understand that no one is being punished or investigated by the university for reading a book,” General Counsel Debra Zumwalt wrote. “Students at Stanford are free to read any book they wish to. We believe strongly in academic freedom and freedom of expression. Our processes in the university do not allow for the punishment of any protected speech, and there has been no such punishment in this case.”

Despite the response, FIRE still had concerns. “Whether the student was reading the book for a course, independent study, or using it as a prop in a joke, our concerns remain,” FIRE stated. “The presence of the book is what prompted the filing of the PIH report.” 

“The university’s response fails to address our original concerns: that even notifying a student that their protected expression has allegedly caused harm — when such a message comes from an administrator with disciplinary powers — can have a chilling effect,” FIRE added. The incident report was not listed on Stanford’s PIH dashboard.