June 4, 1985
Yitzhak Rabin Visits Harvard
Mr. Rabin, Defense Minister of Israel at the time of the visit, was hosted by the Center for Jewish Studies. In honor of the occasion, the Israeli flag was flown in Harvard Yard.
Click on frame below to listen to a short clip from Mr. Rabin’s speech:
The CJS Newsletter (Winter 1986) wrote about the event:
Rabin Visit
On Tuesday, June 4, 1985, Mr. Yitzchak Rabin, Defense Minister and former Prime Minister of Israel, was the guest of the Harvard University Center for Jewish Studies. He was welcomed by the University Marshal, Dr. Richard M. Hunt, and Professor Isadore Twersky, Director of the Center. Dr. Hunt presented Mr. Rabin with some Harvard mementos, and Dr. Twersky tendered some of the Center’s recent publications. In honor of the occasion, the Israeli flag was flown in Harvard Yard. In the morning, academic experts in the fields of government, political science, international affairs and public policy planning were invited to Harvard to meet with Mr. Rabin. The meeting provided an opportunity for the Defense Minister to have a meaningful dialogue with a distinguished group of scholars on issues relating to Israel’s national security. An opening presentation by Mr. Rabin on Israel’s concept of national security was followed by a lively and intensive discussion of many salient issues. Universities represented included Columbia, Princeton, Brandeis, and Tufts, with an especially large contingent from various departments and centers at Harvard. The Defense Minister was also guest of honor at a luncheon reception attended by some 200 Boston-area academics. Friends of the Center for Jewish Studies were also invited. American and Israeli news media were also on hand to interview Mr. Rabin. Professor Twersky introduced the Defense Minister as a military leader who sought a “victory of values as well as a victory of arms.” Mr. Rabin gave a short address and then entertained questions from the floor. He touched on the issues of terrorism, prisoner exchange, the polarization of Israeli society, the economy, and war and peace in the Middle East. Mr. Rabin was quoted as saying, “For me, Israel is a unique expression of the aspirations and hopes of the Jewish people for many decades.”
Center for Jewish Studies Newsletter, Winter 1986