BUZZ
Key Takeaways
- Georgetown's Professor Jonathan Brown faced backlash for his dismissive remarks on concerns linking Islam to 'rape gangs' in the UK, advising critics to 'get over it.
- His comments followed a statement from UK Member of Parliament Rupert Lowe, who emphasized the connection between these crimes and Islam, prompting further criticism towards Brown from students and the media.
- Brown has a controversial history, including prior criticism for suggesting Iran should attack U.S. bases and for past defenses of slavery in Islam, which have led to calls for his removal from Georgetown.
The Alwaleed bin Talal Chair of Islamic Civilization at Georgetown University recently told social media users to “get over it” in response to concerns about a link between “rape gangs” and Islam.
Professor Jonathan Brown dismissed concerns about the crisis in the United Kingdom in two now-deleted X posts, the Daily Caller reported.
Rupert Lowe, an Independent Member of Parliament, wrote in a post on X, “There is a link between the rape gangs and one particular religion – we have seen it again and again and again at our inquiry.”
“That religion is Islam. As a country, we must have the courage to face up to that fact,” he wrote.
Brown replied, “get over it.”
He then wrote the same phrase in response to another user who called his remark “absurdly evil.”
A Georgetown student condemned the professor in a statement to the Daily Caller.
“Professor Jonathan Brown’s recent remarks continue a troubling pattern of reckless, incendiary, and dangerous statements that he has made without remorse,” said Shae McInnis, president of Georgetown’s College Republicans chapter.
“Just last June, he stated that Iran should bomb U.S. military bases, and now he suggests that people should get over rape gangs. Comments like these reflect a worldview fundamentally at odds with Georgetown’s core values and are a disgrace to our academic community. The university should take decisive action and remove him from his position,” McInnis said.
In June, Brown was suspended after he wrote on social media that Iran should conduct some sort of symbolic strike against a base. Many interpreted this as a call for a strike against a U.S. military base in the region, The College Fix previously reported.
Brown later deleted the post and said it had been misinterpreted, arguing that he was calling for de-escalation and a limited response to avoid a broader war.
The professor was previously criticized in 2017 “for defending slavery and non-consensual sex with slaves in Islam,” according to ABC News. He later apologized and said he does not support those practices.
Brown did not respond to The Fix’s request for comment via email.
Georgetown’s Islamic academic center has been accused of employing leaders with a long history of supporting terror.
Andrew Harrod, a Middle Eastern affairs expert, told The College Fix in October that the center’s work promotes a one-sided narrative that shields Islam from criticism while attacking Western and Israeli interests.
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