The College Fix

The handful of conservatives at Harvard are responsible for a Democrat’s anti-gay attacks, LGBT students allege

LGBT students at Harvard University tied an alleged anti-gay hate crime attack by a black Democrat peer to the campus pro-life group.

“Naod N. Nega approached another student outside Langdell Hall on the afternoon of Jan. 23 and repeatedly punched the student, calling him a homophobic slur,” The Harvard Crimson reported on Thursday, based on police reports it obtained. “Nega has been charged with assault and battery for the purpose of intimidation — a hate crime under Massachusetts state law. He pleaded not guilty to the charge at a Jan. 27 arraignment.”

Cambridge Police Department spokesman Jeremy Warnick confirmed to The Fix that Nega is black.

Nega is a former intern for Montana Democratic Senator Jon Tester and was a member of the University of Maryland College Democrats, according to his LinkedIn profile. His bio also listed his involvement in the “Harvard African Law Students Affinity Group.”

Warnick declined to provide police reports, citing a policy against releasing the documents in mental health related cases.

“According to the [Harvard University] police report, a witness believed Nega to be either under the influence of narcotics or off medication and reported Nega was in possession of a baseball bat,” the newspaper reported. The police document also stated Nega had a history of “aggressive and violent behavior.”

Despite these facts, two campus LGBT leaders tried to link the attack to Harvard Law Students for Life, which had already invited Notre Dame University professor Sherif Girgis to campus for a lecture several days later.

“Three days after the assault, anti-abortion advocacy group Harvard Law Students for Life hosted Notre Dame law professor Sherif Girgis — a prominent opponent of same-sex marriage,” The Crimson reported. This event led Gabrielle Crofford, the leader of Lambda, the LGBT law students group on campus, to “feel less safe in the context of the assault,” according to the paper.

One hour from now: come join us in the WCC! pic.twitter.com/rbNoTwRids

— Harvard Law Students for Life (@HLSFL) January 26, 2023

“Someone just got attacked — so we don’t need to ask questions of, ‘What does letting homophobic thought on campus lead to?’ This is what it leads to,” she told the student newspaper. “It leads to people getting punched and called slurs on our campus.”

Another LGBT law student agreed that the university’s inaction to stop the event could have possibly contributed to Nega’s attack.

“Lambda member Sean V. McDonough said HLS has provided a forum for prominent conservatives, a stance they said is at odds with the school’s aim ‘to be supportive of queer students,” the paper reported.

Less than two percent of the Harvard faculty is conservative, according to the campus newspaper.

MORE: Yale student paper blames free speech for gay club shooting

IMAGE: Students for Life of America/Facebook

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