If you know the history of Israel, that the country was created after one-third of the world’s Jewish population was murdered by Nazis (it has yet to fully recover), it’s difficult to stomach protesters who often slip from supporting the Palestinian cause to gloating over Hamas’s terrorism and the prospect of destroying the Jewish state. […]
So reports the Philadelphia Inquirer (Susan Snyder) (see also Daily Pennsylvanian [Lara Cota & Jessica Wu]): Students at Penn Chavurah wanted to show Israelism, which has drawn significant controversy this year, but the school cited “a potential negative response on campus” and used the word “vitriol,” according to one of the film’s producers and a student. The university had […]
John Strauss is a professor of economics at the University of Southern California (USC). Earlier this month, he confronted pro-Palestinian students who had staged a protest calling for a ceasefire in Gaza. After hearing some of the students call for the destruction of Israel, Strauss—who is Jewish—became angry. “Hamas are murderers,” he shouted in response, […]
The Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE) (Jessie Appleby) wrote about this last week (as did the Academic Freedom Alliance): The University of Southern California has barred economics professor John Strauss from teaching on campus for the rest of the semester in response to anti-Hamas remarks he made to pro-Palestinian protesters last week. Strauss […]
The Academic Freedom Alliance today released a letter sent to the University of Southern California over its suspension of Professor John Strauss. Professor Strauss briefly exchanged words with pro-Palestinian protesters on campus. There is a factual dispute over what exactly was said, but in any version of the exchange Professor Strauss engaged in lawfully protected […]
Released yesterday: Since the attack on civilians in Israel on October 7, 2023, American college campuses have been the scene of political rallies, protests, and political statements coming from differing perspectives. The Academic Freedom Alliance takes no position on the politics of the Middle East or attempts to adjudicate competing claims. The AFA does, however, […]
The Academic Freedom Alliance announced today that Michael Joyner, M.D. is suing the Mayo Clinic for violating his contractually protected academic freedom. The AFA had provided financial support in Joyner’s efforts to resolve this problem internally, and it is now supporting his state suit. In June, the AFA sent a public letter to the Mayo […]
Last month, Florida Governor and 2024 Presidential candidate Ron DeSantis ordered the derecognition of Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) chapters at public universities in Florida. The announcement followed the release of a “toolkit” from the National SJP, which characterized Hamas’ October 7th attack against Israel as “resistance,” and stated that Palestinian students are “PART […]
From today’s Report and Recommendations by Magistrate Judge Christopher D. Baker (E.D. Cal.) in Johnson v. Watkin: BP 3050 serves as the [Kern Community College] District’s policy on “Institutional Code of Ethics.” BP 3050 provides that “all associates in the District, faculty, students, management, classified staff, and trustees, as well as volunteers and vendors, each […]
From today’s Report and Recommendations by Magistrate Judge Christopher D. Baker (E.D. Cal.) in Johnson v. Watkin; the plaintiff is a history professor at Bakersfield College, a California public community college. The opinion is long, so I’ve excerpted it heavily; read the whole thing for more of the legal analysis, and the interesting and contentious […]