Beyond Chutzpah updated update

It appears that Barnes and Noble have relented on their decision to scrap an event for the release of Norman Finkelstein's book Beyond Chutzpah. (Hat-tip David). Here's what Finkelstein had to say about it

GOOD NEWS! Barnes and Noble has agreed to reschedule the store event for Beyond Chutzpah. Finkelstein wishes to thank everyone who expressed support, and B&N for respecting the opinions of its customers.

Good news indeed.

But no so good from Harvard Bookstore - not sure if the commenter (should that be commentor?) who posted this on 17/5 is the same David as above but hat-tip David anyway.

Dear _____,

Thank you for your note relating to Professor Norman Finkelstein and his book Beyond Chutzpah. Our intention here is to clarify the situation to which Professor Finkelstein refers on his website and clear up what we believe are mistaken assumptions stemming from that posting.

Harvard Book Store was contacted by University of California Press in late April and asked to host an event with Professor Finkelstein. We corresponded with the Press regarding the book, and discussed holding an event on September 29th. However, by late May, the controversy between Professor Finkelstein and Professor Alan Dershowitz had taken on a distinctly personal cast. After seeing via the press that both men’s books had become inseparable from the charges each was making about the other, and reluctant to put Harvard Book Store in the middle of a personal feud, we informed University of California Press that we had decided not to sponsor an event. We then worked with them to find another Boston-area venue, without success.

Harvard Book Store supports Professor Finkelstein’s right to free speech. Over the years, we have carried seven of his books. Our order for Beyond Chutzpah was placed in January 2005, when the University of California Press announced its publication. That order stands and we will continue to carry Professor Finkelstein’s books.

The decision not to host Professor Finkelstein was made solely by the staff at Harvard Book Store. We have not been contacted by Professor Dershowitz, by anyone acting on his behalf, or by Harvard University, in any way relating to Professor Finkelstein. Harvard Book Store is an independent bookseller, unaffiliated with Harvard University.

Harvard Book Store’s devotion to an exchange of ideas is undiluted. We choose not to hold an event with either of these two scholars at this time, because we feel that the personal nature of their feud has overshadowed the real intellectual and political debate at the heart of their books. This fall, we will feature a display of books on the breadth of dialogue about the relationship between Israel and Palestine--both Beyond Chutzpah and The Case for Peace will be included in this display.

If you are from an organization that is interested in sponsoring an event with Professor Finkelstein, please contact Alexandra Dahne, Publicity Director of the University of California Press at alex.dahne@ucpress.edu.

Thank you again for contacting us. We hope we’ve answered some of your concerns and questions about this difficult decision. We regret that we are not able to respond individually to each of you.

Frank Kramer, Owner
Harvard Book Store
frank@harvard.com