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Harvard University receives complaint outlining over 40 allegations of plagiarism against Claudine Gay

BySumanti Sen
Dec 20, 2023 03:30 PM IST

A copy of the complaint revealed that Claudine Gay quoted or paraphrased authors without proper attribution

A complaint received by Harvard University on Tuesday, December 19, outlined more than40 allegations of plagiarism against president Claudine Gay. The new allegations were submitted to Harvard's research integrity officer, Stacey Springs. These included examples reported by the Washington Free Beacon and other outlets.

Harvard President Claudine Gay speaks during a hearing of the House Committee on Education on Capitol Hill, Tuesday, Dec. 5, 2023, in Washington (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein, File)(AP)
Harvard President Claudine Gay speaks during a hearing of the House Committee on Education on Capitol Hill, Tuesday, Dec. 5, 2023, in Washington (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein, File)(AP)

A copy of the complaint reviewed by the Free Beacon revealed that Gay quoted or paraphrased authors without proper attribution, including missing quotation marks around phrases or sentences. Even entire paragraphs were lifted without any changes made. The entire list of examples include as many as seven of Gay’s publications, which is nearly half of her scholarly output.

Earlier this month, the Harvard Corporation said it initiated an independent review Gay's work in October. However, it apparently found "no violation of Harvard's standards for research misconduct.” Notably, the investigation focused only on three papers.

"[I]t is impossible that your office has already reviewed the entirety of these materials," the complaint reads, "as many … have not been previously reported or submitted." If a probe finds her guilty, there could be major consequences like suspension," "rank reduction," and "termination of employment,” according to the official policies of the school.

In fact, an X user, writerChristopher F. Rufo, highlighted how Gay “plagiarized the language of her acknowledgment from the acknowledgment of another scholar, without citing the source.” “She couldn't even say "thank you" without plagiarizing the language,” Rufo wrote.

Gay came under fire after her remarks at a recent Capitol Hill hearing. Presidents of various universities were asked whether “calling for the genocide of Jews” is against the universities’ respective codes of conduct. Gay simply responded to the question, saying, “When speech crosses into conduct, we take action.” She was heavily criticised for her “silence” on the issue despite getting a massive platform to voice her opinions.

Read breaking news, latest updates from United States on topics related to politics, crime, along with national affairs. Stay up to date with news developments on Kamala Harris and Donald Trump.
Read breaking news, latest updates from United States on topics related to politics, crime, along with national affairs. Stay up to date with news developments on Kamala Harris and Donald Trump.
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