Saving Excellence in Turbulent Times
- By Prof. P K Sharma
Quite shocking indeed to go through very bizarre reports of Donald Trump regime entering into tug of war with world fame a temple of learning and enlightenment of knowledge -the Harvard University. Too much disturbing the decision of freezing the £ 2.2. billion fiscal aid being offered to rich treasure of ideas, intelligence as well as research-this University instrumental in producing statesmen and men of letters. Ironically, US President Trump did open simultaneously too many fronts creating pell-mell, chaos, confrontation, confusion, uncertainty and awe because of his nasty and instinctive utterances throughout the world in his second term just tending to aim at ensuring grand success of “Make America Great Again” mission. For God sake, he could have at least spared academia, not to make it unduly a butt of ill-will and bad taste to realise his ambition.
What is the fun of suffocating free, open, natural and consistent flow of thoughts, brilliance, research and enlightenment? This whimsical, imprudent, reckless and uncalled for act could have been avoided not to take things, legal battle and conflict too far by dint of withdrawing monetary support to Harvard University. Sans an iota of doubt, this thought of winning laurels and supremacy may ultimately boomerang and recoil on Trump because it will really be a Herculean task to contest the intelligentsia in the long run ! It will indeed be matching in the letter and spirit famous English poet Alexander Pope’s popular adage, “Fools rush in where angels fear to tread.”
The bone of contention now is Harvard’s decent, noble and righteous denial to compromise with its diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) tenets and stoop to the ideological scrutiny desired by the Trump regime. The Harvard then did not wish to dance to its tunes of monitoring curriculums options, flawed appointments and research directions that would endanger the academic autonomy and independence of Harvard.
Not at all wilting under pressure, Harvard preferred to resort to knock at the doors of judiciary filing a law suit against the US government challenging the legality of freezing grants to the tune of $ 2.2 billion. The University pleaded that freezing of funds was a retaliatory exercise hence free flow of ideas and field of research would have an adverse and throttling impact. The University’s interim President Prof.Alan Garber made it crystal clear that the institution would not be yielding at the altar of its values even if it implied foregoing the federal support.
Interestingly, endowment, reputation and donation offers it impetus enabling it to withstand government pressure owing to its sound fiscal depths. With its annual budget of $ 6.5 billion- of which significantly1.5. billion is allocated to research. Startingly, its 45% revenue flows from philanthropy and 16% from research grants. Harvard impresses upon alumni, corporate houses and philanthropic foundations to generate endowments and promote research.
In this respect,China’s popular leader Deng Xiaoping haunts who was a votary of openness and free flow of ideas. Hailing all the time free ideas flow, he was of the opinion, these may spring up at any time, place and from person. In this context, he remarked,” No matter the cat is black or white, if it catches mice, it is a good cat.”
Donald Trump’s distinguished too many predecessors treaded this path very cautiously and smartly too valuing the importance of intellect and scholarship quite passionately and truly. They were quite generous, magnanimous, liberal and farsighted in promoting as well as encouraging academic excellence and research without poking their nose unduly in academic advancement but taking very keen personal interest in extending and expanding American Studies and Research throughout the world.
In this context, I did find that a select band of US Presidents indeed left no stone unturned to spread and popularise American Studies and Research in different parts of the globe by their visionary spirit of opening up American Studies Research Centres, American Institute of Studies and American Libraries in Europe, Middle East, Asia and East Africa. Prominent among these apostles of education and knowledge taking extra ordinary interest included Harry S. Truman, Dwight S Eisenhower, John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson. Hats off indeed to these statesmen of repute who seized initiatives promptly and spiritedly to promote American Studies and Research in various directions of the world,infact were no less than Apollo, Athena, Hermes and Coeus of Greek mythology.
What a hell of difference and contrast in the times then (20 th Century) and now in the 21st Century during the Trump times when education and learning have been left to the parochial mindset, whims, chance and instincts of the megalomaniac personas. His American icon forerunner Presidents with a vision and foresight did aim at promoting research, teaching and public engagement related to American Culture and Society too often offering research fellowships, foreign language study programmes, big well-furnished libraries, collaborative research projects with the Centres facilitating easy access to research resources then providing a forum for scholarly exchange and dissemination of knowledge through conferences, seminars and publications.
Thus ASRCs established in numerous nations tending to foster scholarly engagement with American Culture, History and Society. Centres found across various continents often associated with universities and other academic institutions.
European nations – United Kingdom has the British Association for American Studies, the Eccles Centre for American Studies at British Library, Institute of North American Studies at the King’s College London, Germany has The John Kennedy-Institute for North American Studies in Berlin, Belgium- The Centre for American Studies in Brussels and the Belgian Luxemburg American Studies Association, France- The Institute des Ameriques( Research Centre dedicated to the study of The Americas),Russia-American Studies Centres in Russian Cities Tomsk, Volgograd and Izhevsk and Australia- United States Studies Centre. In Middle East in Bahrain University of Bahrain in SAKHIR.
In India, American Centre situated on Kasturba Gandhi Marg, New Delhi came into existence in 1951(Truman’s Term), American Institute of Indian Studies founded in 1961(John Kennedy), American Studies Research Centre in Hyderabad in 1964(Lyndon B. Johnson) and American Centre in Calcutta. These centres are a treat to concentrate in a congenial atmosphere to strive seriously for academic excellence.
I being a researcher of Ernest Hemingway(recipient of twin coveted international awards Nobel for literature and Pulitzer for Journalism) and of American Studies got very fine access to American Literature and Journalism while visiting American Center New Delhi under the stewardship of Mrs. Hira Kapasi, then Library Director and inspiring patronage of Dr.J.W. Bjorkman, then Director ASRC Hyderabad for my M.Phil. dissertation entitled “A Study of Some Journalistic Writings of Ernest Hemingway”- making an in-depth study of his style in his selected journalistic writings (1920-1924) in an anthology entitled, “BY- LINE: ERNEST HEMINGWAY.” Here it is worthwhile to reproduce Dr.Venugopala Rao Kaki’s sentiments who presented his seminar paper on the writer of his research work entitled, “A journey from innocence to experience in the short fiction of John Updike “during his fellowship span at ASRC venting his feelings flowing from the core of his heart in his article, “Remembering the idyllic ASRC” in this fashion, “For me ASRC was not just a premier Research Centre but the wonderful haven of the gathering of intellectuals from the different states of the country.” Can Donald Trump value these academic sentiments? ASRC huge library with Research Projects, Journals, Reference Books, Type -writers and Computers all around enabled scholars to utilise these optimally for their research mission.
Queerly something has really gone wrong with the world. The nations are at their wits end to multiply harmony, peace, amity, brotherhood and fellow feelings but, instead why are these still busy bent upon fomenting trouble, bitterness,hatred,dread, disharmony, death and destruction all around. The freezing of funds of Harvard University ultimately is akin to freezing the fragrance of ideas, knowledge, intellect, research and scholarship. One fails to comprehend why there is mad race among the “hollow and so-called powers of the world” to engage themselves in “sale and purchase” of arms, weapons and instruments of war” to wreak havoc? If this be the new norm then better it will be to wind up United Nations Organisation, UNICEF, UNESCO, WHO, WORLD BANK, IMF and International Court of Justice so on and so forth. Whereas on the contrary, it is the need of the hour to fan finest values, noble thoughts, humility, peace of mind, enlightenment and dazzle of humanity swelling in all the four directions of the globe!
When shall we chant truly and spiritedly Robert Browning’s cheering up lines of his poem Pippa Passes: “God is in his heaven, all is right with the world.”?
Contributed by: Prof PK Sharma Freelance Journalist ,Associate Professor of English(Retired),
Pom Anm Nest,BARNALA(Punjab)Mobile : 94170-02504
Prof P K Sharma is an alumnus of SCD Government College, Ludhiana and has been groomed in the true traditions of Dare To Be True his Alma Mater’s motto. He can be reached at: [email protected]