For the past three weeks, the ES/PE community has been aghast and dumbfounded.

In the early morning of October 7th, a Jewish holiday, the Hamas terrorist organization launched a brutal and unprecedented attack in the south of Israel. During this planned, heinous massacre, Hamas terrorists intentionally, systematically and viciously murdered more than 1400 innocent people, mainly Israeli Jews, along with Palestinian citizens of Israel and foreign nationals — in their homes, on the streets, in the fields and gardens, at the music festival, everywhere. In this savage butchery that lasted almost two days, under heavy bombing of Israeli cities from Gaza, the Hamas terrorists killed parents in front of the children, shot children in front of the parents and siblings, used kids as bait to convince the neighbors to open doors and then executed them all, gunned and fired dancing students and teenagers, burned and smoked people alive, beheaded, raped, tortured, desecrated bodies, and committed other unspeakable atrocities.
Three weeks after this enormity, more than 150 families have not yet buried their loved ones, because dismembered, mutilated corpses cannot be identified. The Hamas slaughter left about 4,500 wounded — they survived the inferno and are doomed to end their days physically and mentally maimed in indescribable agony and sorrow. In addition, the terrorists abducted over 200 people — including kids, young women, Holocaust survivors, tourists, and international students. As a result of these macabre events, villages and towns were destroyed, whole communities were reduced to ashes, and about 200,000 Israeli civilians became refugees.
On a proportional basis, the Hamas assault is akin to killing 50,000 U.S. citizens, injuring 150,000, and taking 7,500 hostages. In every respect, this is the worst terrorist attack in recent history. On this calamitous day, the Hamas terrorists committed unthinkable, horrific, innumerable crimes against humanity. They proudly recorded them, for instance decapitation, and paraded abused women’s mistreated naked bodies. These gruesome scenes — full of blood and flesh, cries for mercy and terrorists’ joyous shouts — would become terrible nightmares for anyone who watched them.
The Economic Sociology and Political Economy community utterly rejects and unreservedly condemns, in the strongest possible terms, the merciless cruelty of these barbaric acts of terror and deliberate murderous targeting of civilian lives and peaceful citizens. We extend heartfelt condolences to the ES/PE community members who tragically lost their loved ones, friends, colleagues and students. We deeply grieve for those who were slain. We pray for the safe and fast return of those who’ve been ruthlessly kidnapped. We send our solidarity to all those affected by this ferocious offensive, especially education staff, students and their families. 
No one, no decent human being must not overlook these dreadful acts of terror and purposeful annihilation. Nothing, nothing can “legitimize” and “justify” such inhuman brutality and cutthroat fanaticism. But, to our dismay, some privileged professors, associations and universities, as well as elements within the global Left have reacted with conceited indifference to this bloodcurdling execution of innocent infants, downplayed the suffering and trauma of the people of Israel, or reluctantly paid lip service with one ambiguous sentence. Others have shielded themselves through theoretical apologetics and rationalization. And there are even those – no negligible number – that even celebrated and justified Hamas’s killing of hundreds and hundreds of helpless civilians.
A humanistic stance cannot ignore this horrible massacre of Israelis on October 7th. Acknowledging the massacre or expressing basic empathy towards the victims and their national community does not legitimize the hurting of uninvolved civilians in Gaza. But not condemning or even not acknowledging the massacre does legitimize Hamas’ crimes against humanity. There is no justification for machine-gunning a bus full of the elderly; no rationalization for murdering babies in cribs; no reasoning for persecuting, running over, and the execution of panic-stricken partygoers. This is not about being pro-Israel or pro-Palestine. This is about human decency. This is about making a steadfast humanistic stance against inconceivable crimes and evil. The silence of those refusing to speak up (clearly) against such senseless violence and hatred is deafening — and those who remain silent, as Albert Einstein discerned, are guilty of complicity.
Yes, one can support the rights of Palestinians and still take a moral stance against Hamas’ heinous brutality. Yes, one can advocate for the establishment of a Palestinian state and still be willing to draw the line at torment to death of tied Israeli families. Yes, there are power relations between Israel and Palestinians. Yes, the occupation has to end. No, none of the defenseless victims of the October 7th horrendous carnage deserved to be slaughtered and brutalized. Selective application of morality is the complete opposite of what morality should be.
Especially in these dark days, the Economic Sociology and Political Economy community believes in and strives for peace between Israelis and Palestinians. We support the Palestinian national aspirations and the end of the occupation. We think of people of Gaza. We urge to avoid, to every extent possible, the death and suffering of the civilian population in Gaza, while Israel implements the first duty of every state — to protect its citizens. We deeply mourn the loss of innocent lives in Gaza. Humanitarian relief and medical assistance have to be constantly delivered. We support the Palestinian Authority, the official representative of the Palestinian people. (Whereas Hamas is a recognized terrorist, fundamentalist organization that military took over Gaza from the Palestinian Authority; installed there a theocratic and repressive regime; vehemently denies peace with Israel and its very existence; and preaches and executes jihad against “infidels”, “honor killing” of women, and extermination of LGBTQ “perverts”). We profoundly refuse to lump all Palestinians with Hamas or other terrorist groups. We rebuff linking the Palestinian cause to despicable acts of terrors that undermine this just cause and serve as an excuse for the opponents of peace on both sides. We reject dehumanizing language towards the residents of Gaza and downplaying Palestinian suffering. Our aching heart goes out to refugees, the injured and guiltless families who lost their loved ones — it’s enormously frustrating and painful.
Those who refuse or hesitate to condemn Hamas’ terrorist activities and extremist zealotry, no matter how they try to disguise or explain it, do immense damage to the prospects of peace and reconciliation becoming a viable, relevant political solution. Moreover, this approach harms the peace-seeking Palestinians, as well as Arabs and Muslims in other countries.
But there is something else, essentially related to the inadequate response from some academics and progressives regarding the targeting and killing of Israeli civilians by Hamas.
Along with a dangerous naivete that is always present — even among people with PhDs — many of those who ignored, elegantly or candidly, the homicidal fanaticism of Hamas, refused to condemn it and even glorified and justified it, often tend to huddle around the “post-colonial” tribal campfire. These theories contribute to understanding reality, but only partly. They are certainly not omnipotently explanatory. The problematics with this theoretical paradigm lie in its totality and binarity which consequently lead — especially those who actually know so little while they think they know so much — to abstraction and, even worse, to simplification. The current monstrous events have shown that this dichotomous paradigm of perceiving reality may lead those who hold it to distorted conclusions and anti-human positions. It turns out that the followers of this dogmatic approach, shockingly, actually justified infanticide. “Concreteness, not abstractness, is the hallmark of philosophy… the tendency to abstractness leads to simplifying the phenomena”, observed Allan Bloom in The Closing of American Mind (1987: 255). Flattening life into abstractions or stereotypes leads to hollow righteousness and blind moral absolutism. In the case of academics drifting to adopt this simplistic and superficial worldview, it is also evidence of intellectual indolence and bankruptcy in the face of morality.
The commitment to social justice should never forget to unconditionally respect all humans – of all sides — and treat them with dignity. The ES/PE community unequivocally denounces incidents of Antisemitism and Islamophobia that have multiplied around the world since the Hamas attack, fueled by (geo)-political polarization and disinformation. We stand for free speech and academic freedom; we call to refrain from hateful incitement and provocations.
Terror will be stopped. Bloodshed will cease. Knowledge will conquer pretentiousness. Morality will overcome immorality. Peace and humanity will prevail. “With this faith we will be able to hew out of the mountain of despair a stone of hope.”

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