Court Lets Plaintiff Suing Over “Pro-Hamas Demonstrations at Northwestern” Proceed Pseudonymously
From the plaintiff’s argument in Doe v. Northwestern Univ. (N.D. Ill.); Judge John Robert Blakey has granted the motion, without a detailed explanation, but likely because he agreed with its general argument:
Plaintiff [John Doe 3] is a Jewish student at Northwestern University … who has been subjected to threats of physical violence while on campus and is the victim of retaliation and false accusations by individuals that attended pro-Hamas demonstrations at Northwestern. Other Jewish students on campus have been physically assaulted and have similarly faced severe and pervasive hostility on campus as a result of their Jewish identity. The perpetrators of these acts of intimidation and violence have acted with impunity and are waiting for Plaintiff on campus when he returns this Fall quarter. Plaintiff thus brings this motion to proceed pseudonymously in order to protect his identity and avoid further victimization.
Northwestern has adopted various policies designed to ensure the privacy of victims of discrimination and other wrongs. Not only does Northwestern claim to protect victims, but the university has also stated that it will protect the very individuals that are responsible for the harassment and threats of violence Plaintiff endured on campus. Northwestern recognizes the potential harm Plaintiff would face if his identity was exposed and does not oppose Plaintiff’s request for anonymity. Nevertheless, because the Seventh Circuit disfavors the use of pseudonyms by litigants, the Court must engage in an exacting independent analysis of Plaintiff’s request.
The Seventh Circuit has long rejected the use of a rigid test for determining whether the harm to the plaintiff from public identification exceeds the likely harm from concealment of their identity. Rather, the Seventh Circuit requires district courts to engage “in the careful and demanding balancing of interests required in making this determination,” which includes consideration of, inter alia, whether a victim or wrongdoer seeks anonymity, whether disclosure risks retaliation to the victim, whether the public interest is served by anonymity, and whether a defendant will suffer any prejudice. The Seventh Circuit’s recent decisions in Doe v. Trs. of Ind. Univ. (plaintiff John Doe sued Indiana University after he was expelled for physically abusing female student), and Doe v. Loyola Univ. Chi. (plaintiff John Doe sued Loyola after he was expelled for nonconsensual sexual activity with female student), do not change this analysis, because (as discussed below) neither sets forth a rigid test to be applied to victims of discrimination who are at risk of further violence and retaliation for their religious identity.
As a victim of severe hostility and discrimination based on his Jewish identity, Plaintiff reasonably fears further harm and retaliation from disclosure of his identity. As explained below, this harm is not speculative but grounded in the calls for violence against Jews on campus, and indeed, actual acts of violence. Moreover, Plaintiff reasonably fears retaliation because his perpetrators remain on campus and, over the course of the summer, have continued their efforts to harass and threaten Jews out of hatred….
This action concerns information of the most private and personal nature for Plaintiff, the disclosure of which would put him at risk of suffering further injury, including physical assault. “Lawsuits involving religion can implicate deeply held beliefs and provoke intense emotional responses[,]” which may raise the “‘danger of retaliation'” and provide “compelling ground for allowing a party to litigate anonymously.'” The Seventh Circuit reiterated this point in Loyola, stating that retaliation based on an “animus toward people with unpopular religious belief” ma
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