The board of trustees of the City University of New York decided late Monday night to reverse its earlier decision to not grant an honorary degree to playwright Tony Kushner over his views on Israel, the New York Times reported.
The New York Times report quotes on of the trustees, Kathleen M. Pesile, as saying about the reversal “we are now correcting it because it benefits CUNY and we will not get another chance to remove this blemish.”
Kushner, a Pulitzer Prize winner, has condemned Israel's policies against Palestinians, accusing Israel of engaging in ethnic cleansing. The playwright was also quoted saying that it would be better if Israel did not exist.
Last week, CUNY trustee Jeffrey Wiesenfeld told Haaretz that if Kushner was willing to come before the board of trustees and renounce his statements accusing Israel of ethnic cleansing and denouncing it existence, he would be willing to vote to award the playwright as with an honorary degree as planned.
The New York Times quoted Kushner as saying he would accept the award. He also expressed hope that this incident would spark a "vigorous debate."
