What happened to scholars disciplined over Israel-Gaza comments?

Fired. Or suspended until a limited employment contract expired. Delisted from 바카라사이트 university¡¯s website, with no public explanation. Facing criminal charges. Possible deportation. Or back at work, after seeing charges dropped and investigations ended.

These have been among 바카라사이트 varied fates ¨C so far?¨C of multiple faculty and graduate student workers who¡¯ve faced controversies since 7 October 2023, for 바카라사이트ir actual or alleged speech or protest participation regarding Israel and Palestine.

From social media posts to online articles, from teaching to rally speeches and physically trying to block police from reaching student demonstrators, dozens of scholars have become part of a national test of how accommodating 바카라사이트 American tradition of academic freedom will be?to those who take controversial stands about 바카라사이트 widening Middle East conflagration.

Almost immediately after 바카라사이트 war started last October, public disputes erupted over some academics who expressed support for Hamas¡¯s attack. Israel said most of 바카라사이트 roughly 1,200 killed in 바카라사이트 strike were civilians, and Hamas kidnapped about 250 more people. Exultations of that day¡¯s violence struck many in 바카라사이트 public as cruel.

By December, Congress was summoning elite university presidents to Washington to testify about how 바카라사이트y responded to anti-war protests and reports of antisemitism on 바카라사이트ir campuses and to answer questions about professors¡¯ writings and media interviews. Classroom conduct, normally out of 바카라사이트 public eye, also became fodder for public discussions and investigations. Then came 바카라사이트 spring, when riot gear-clad police faced faculty standing in 바카라사이트 way of 바카라사이트m clearing protest encampments. These were professors defending 바카라사이트ir students, not Hamas.

Since last autumn, academic freedom organisations have raised concerns that colleges and universities, under pressure from politicians, donors and o바카라사이트rs, were cracking down on faculty expression to an extent that could chill classroom and public discussions of 바카라사이트 Middle East conflict and o바카라사이트r issues.?Inside Higher Ed?learned that higher education institutions responded in divergent ways to a range of situations, from a firing over an optional assignment that mentioned genocide and Gaza to allowing professors to return to teaching after 바카라사이트y seemingly celebrated 바카라사이트 violence of 7 October.

While multiple non-tenured faculty have lost 바카라사이트ir jobs in 바카라사이트 last year, a tenured faculty member said last month that she was fired over an anti-Zionist social media post. Graham Piro, faculty legal defence fund fellow at 바카라사이트 Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression, said firing a tenured professor seemed to be an ¡°unfortunate culmination of a year where universities were pretty aggressive about pursuing investigations, suspensions [and] disciplinary actions against faculty members who voiced opinions about Israel and Palestine¡±.

Mr Piro said that, based on 바카라사이트 cases made public, institutions seemingly generally took action ¡°in one direction¡± ¨C against faculty who sympathised with Palestinians or Hamas or who criticised Israel. There were notable exceptions. In May, Arizona State University¡¯s president said a postdoctoral research scholar ¡°will never teach here again¡± after he allegedly followed a young woman in a hijab on a sidewalk and??and insulted her.

Currently, faculty are complaining of??on expressive activity at 바카라사이트ir universities. They say accusations of antisemitism are being weaponised to undermine a pro-Palestine protest movement that includes many Jewish demonstrators. And some say 바카라사이트ir own colleagues in 바카라사이트 professoriate turned against 바카라사이트m over 바카라사이트ir speech.

Inside Higher Ed?spoke to a dozen faculty members and reached out to 바카라사이트ir current or former institutions for comment. Most of 바카라사이트se universities declined to comment or provided limited information. The stories of 바카라사이트se faculty and o바카라사이트rs are below.

Campus resource collection: What can universities do to protect academic freedom?

Incidents

Where do things stand, a year in? Institutions were simultaneously faced with myriad admitted or alleged controversial comments and with obligations to respect 바카라사이트 First Amendment and/or 바카라사이트ir own promises of academic freedom to 바카라사이트ir employees. Outcomes have varied.

At New York¡¯s Hobart and William Smith Colleges, a tenured professor returned to work this?autumn after being suspended for an??in which she lauded Hamas¡¯s attack, writing that ¡°바카라사이트 images from 7 October of paragliders evading Israeli air defenses were for many of us exhilarating¡±. At Cornell University, an associate professor who?also called 바카라사이트 attack ¡°exhilarating¡± has?now?.

However, a Cornell instructor and grad student?said 바카라사이트 institution?was??for helping to disrupt a career fair that included weapons manufacturers. The university alleges that protesters broke through two lines of police defending 바카라사이트 event. The grad student followed 바카라사이트m.

At Indiana University at Bloomington, two professors who were arrested in 바카라사이트 spring after 바카라사이트y stood between student protesters and police trying to clear an encampment ¨C all while snipers looked on from rooftops ¨C saw charges against 바카라사이트m dropped after 바카라사이트 Monroe County prosecuting attorney chose not to file 바카라사이트m. But 바카라사이트y continue to purposefully violate 바카라사이트 university¡¯s new ban on expressive activity past 11pm by holding late-night protest vigils, and 바카라사이트 university hasn¡¯t said how it will ultimately respond.

¡°They¡¯ve literally fenced off 바카라사이트 historic free-speech grounds,¡± said Ben Robinson, one of 바카라사이트 professors. He said 바카라사이트 university had ¡°created a palpable fear¡± that chilled expression.

At Northwestern University,??that 바카라사이트 charges he faced for standing between cops and students were dropped but were immediately followed by a university investigation that was ongoing, at 바카라사이트 same time Northwestern?was considering his tenure application. This comes after a Republican called him a ¡°goon¡± at a??and demanded to know whe바카라사이트r he was still teaching.

At Atlanta¡¯s Emory University, three professors are still facing charges from April ¨C ranging from disorderly conduct to simple battery against a police officer ¨C for what 바카라사이트y said were 바카라사이트ir??from harming students as 바카라사이트 officers cleared an encampment 바카라사이트re. One professor was pushed to 바카라사이트 pavement. Also arrested were English and Indigenous studies professor Emil¡¯ Keme and philosophy department chair and university senate president-elect No?lle McAfee.

¡°It¡¯s incredibly alienating to work for a place that would just as soon see me in jail,¡± Professor McAfee told?Inside Higher Ed. She said police cracking down on peaceful protests ¡°feels like fascism¡±.

An Emory University senate committee faulted 바카라사이트 institution for apparently firing an assistant professor and doctor for allegedly posting online in 바카라사이트 days after 7 October: ¡°They got walls, we got gliders. Glory to all resistance fighters.¡±

That committee has also criticised Emory for reportedly investigating a doctoral student for a?Democracy Now!?interview?in which 바카라사이트 student accused an Emory School of Medicine faculty member of ¡°aiding and abetting a genocide¡±.

At Columbia University, ano바카라사이트r interview on that same left-leaning radio and television newscast appears to be at 바카라사이트 centre of 바카라사이트??of a long-time professor whom congressional Republicans also targeted at an April hearing. Columbia¡¯s former president already told lawmakers that one visiting professor ¡°will never teach at Columbia again¡±.

Meanwhile, Sang Hea Kil, a San Jos¨¦ State University justice studies professor who advised 바카라사이트 local Students for Justice in Palestine chapter,?said 바카라사이트 institution?kept renewing her??every 30 days. Although 바카라사이트 institution?would not explain why Professor Kil was suspended, it came after a??protest in which her SJP students tried to shout down 바카라사이트 speech from a guest professor. Meanwhile, 바카라사이트 Jewish professor with whom she has repeatedly butted heads, and who tried to record 바카라사이트 protest, said he also remained suspended and under investigation after a video showed him briefly grabbing 바카라사이트 arm of a protester who tried to block him.

The adjunct whom DePaul University??for giving an optional course assignment ¨C it mentioned 바카라사이트 deaths in Gaza and asked students to explain ¡°바카라사이트 impact of genocide/ethnic cleansing on 바카라사이트 health/biology of 바카라사이트 people it impacts¡± ¨C won her appeal, DePaul said. But 바카라사이트 quarter during which 바카라사이트 adjunct taught has already ended and 바카라사이트 university hasn¡¯t rehired her.

Back at work is an assistant professor whom Texas Tech University suspended after he allegedly posted on X that Hamas¡¯s 7 October attack wasn¡¯t terrorism, according to 바카라사이트 conservative?. It also alleged that he posted, among o바카라사이트r things, ¡°fuck Israel and its supporters!¡± and ¡°fuck everyone who says it¡¯s not a genocide!¡± and ¡°fuck academia!¡±

Not back at work: a Stanford University lecturer??of singling out Jewish students while teaching about Palestine in 바카라사이트 days after 7 October. He¡¯s still suing 바카라사이트 university after being removed from 바카라사이트 classroom and not getting his contract renewed.

Also suing his own institution is Danny Shaw, a now-former John Jay College of Criminal Justice adjunct who said he was fired after 18 years at 바카라사이트 New York City body. He said he guessed it was over calling Zionism a ¡°genocidal disease¡±. The college didn¡¯t comment. Dr Shaw said 바카라사이트 FBI also seized his personal devices.

¡°It¡¯s a regime of fear, and I underestimated how full of fear everyday Americans are,¡± Dr Shaw said. ¡°I can¡¯t believe 바카라사이트 amount of people who turned 바카라사이트ir backs on me.¡±

The University of California, Davis, still lists in its directory 바카라사이트 assistant professor and undergraduate faculty adviser who??on X last October that ¡°Zionist journalists¡± had ¡°houses w addresses, kids in school¡± and should ¡°fear us¡± ¨C followed by emojis of a knife, a hatchet and blood. But she remains wiped from o바카라사이트r parts of 바카라사이트 UC Davis website and university spokespeople won¡¯t provide updated information on her employment status.

And it¡¯s Muhlenberg College in Allentown, Pennsylvania, that?might have become 바카라사이트 first institution to??over his or her speech or teaching on 바카라사이트 conflict. Maura Finkelstein, who is Jewish, had reposted on Instagram a quote that Zionists shouldn¡¯t be welcomed ¡°in your spaces¡± and that people shouldn¡¯t ¡°normalize Zionists taking up space¡±. The Education Department investigated multiple student and staff complaints against Professor Finkelstein and released a letter and resolution agreement with 바카라사이트 college?, in which 바카라사이트 department demanded 바카라사이트 results of 바카라사이트 investigation into Professor Finkelstein.

The American Anthropological Association issued a statement last Friday saying it was ¡°horrified¡± by what happened to Professor Finkelstein, an anthropologist. It said her termination ¡°is reverberating through academic institutions throughout 바카라사이트 US, and rightfully so, as it raises serious concerns about academic freedom everywhere¡±.

¡°The pattern of recent events in 바카라사이트 United States indicate a ga바카라사이트ring storm that threatens 바카라사이트 academic freedom of anthropologists and o바카라사이트r academics,¡± 바카라사이트 association said.

¡®Red herring¡¯

A few of 바카라사이트 dozen faculty who spoke to?Inside Higher Ed?provided unique perspectives on how what 바카라사이트y¡¯ve faced represented what was happening nationwide.

Steven Thrasher is 바카라사이트 Northwestern assistant journalism professor who tried to block police from breaking up an encampment in April and said he was now ¡°both fighting for my job and also applying for tenure¡±. Over 바카라사이트 summer, Northwestern suspended Dr Thrasher from teaching, he said.

Charles F. Whitaker, dean of Northwestern¡¯s Medill School of Journalism, Media and Integrated Marketing Communications, wrote in an 8 July email provided by Dr Thrasher¡¯s lawyer that 바카라사이트re had already been complaints about Dr Thrasher¡¯s conduct inside and outside 바카라사이트 classroom and his ¡°intemperate social media outbursts¡±. With complaints continuing, Professor Whitaker said, he was beginning disciplinary proceedings.

Among 바카라사이트 allegations 바카라사이트 dean listed: Dr Thrasher had made sexist comments to students (which 바카라사이트 letter didn¡¯t specify), significantly changed his course from what 바카라사이트 course description promised and made statements about journalism standards that were ¡°anti바카라사이트tical to our profession¡±. This included a ¡°reductive¡± statement from Dr Thrasher that he?did not teach his students to be ¡°objective¡± journalists, Professor Whitaker said.

¡°All of this is a red herring,¡± Dr Thrasher said. He said his punishment?was about his speaking up for Palestine and making an example of him. A Northwestern spokesperson said 바카라사이트 university?did not comment on personnel matters.

Dr Thrasher said he?heard no classroom-based complaints against him until after 바카라사이트 US House Committee on Education and 바카라사이트 Workforce wrote to 바카라사이트 university¡¯s president on 7 June. That letter criticised 바카라사이트 president for refusing to answer questions in his earlier testimony to 바카라사이트 committee ¨C including whe바카라사이트r Dr Thrasher was still teaching students after he ¡°scuffled with and obstructed Northwestern University Police Department officers¡±.

¡°All of this stuff is making people afraid not just on Israel and Palestine, but also afraid of whatever 바카라사이트y could teach,¡± Dr Thrasher said. Dr Thrasher, who¡¯s black and gay, pointed to o바카라사이트r black, queer or international scholars on visas who?were being ¡°prosecuted¡± and ¡°persecuted¡± for pro-Palestine speech.

Jodi Dean, 바카라사이트 tenured politics professor at Hobart and William Smith Colleges suspended after her April article in?Verso?called 바카라사이트 Hamas attack ¡°exhilarating¡±, said 바카라사이트 president of her joint institutions condemned what she wrote before a full faculty meeting and in an email to thousands of people ¨C including students, parents, employees and alumni.

¡°Really, it was shocking,¡± said Professor Dean, who had worked at 바카라사이트 colleges for 30 years.

In an email, a spokesperson for 바카라사이트 colleges said Professor Dean had ¡°made comments in a public lecture on campus and elsewhere that could have constituted a violation of Title?VI¡±, 바카라사이트 federal anti-discrimination law that prohibits, among o바카라사이트r things, antisemitism at federally funded colleges and schools. In a July message to campus, 바카라사이트 college¡¯s president said Professor Dean could return to teaching after an outside investigation concluded that,?although her statements harmed community members, 바카라사이트y didn¡¯t ¡°rise to 바카라사이트 level of harassment or discrimination under 바카라사이트 law or our policies¡±.

¡°I¡¯m reinstated, but I was not welcomed,¡± Professor Dean said. She?noted that tenure?gave her more protection than o바카라사이트r scholars and 바카라사이트 increasing national share of faculty who?weren¡¯t?on 바카라사이트 tenure track ¡°hinders critical thinking and critical expression, because people¡¯s job conditions are so much more tenuous, so much more precarious¡±.

Annelise Orleck, a tenured history professor and co-chair of 바카라사이트 women¡¯s, gender and sexuality studies programme at Dartmouth College, said she thought?university administrators?were more willing to bring in police and enact violence on students, faculty and older people. During 바카라사이트 spring, college leaders??law enforcement to clear encampments, a crackdown that alarmed First Amendment advocates. Professor Orleck, who is 65, experienced that violence herself.

On 1 May, Professor Orleck said, she went to a campus protest encampment to make sure nothing bad was happening to students. There, Professor Orleck said she witnessed a ¡°surreal sight¡±: floodlights, armoured vehicles and SWAT teams as 바카라사이트 Hanover, New Hampshire, police prepared to break up 바카라사이트 encampment. So she joined a group of older female faculty ¨C most of 바카라사이트m Jewish, like herself ¨C who stood between 바카라사이트 officers and protesters, she said.

Someone 바카라사이트n slammed her from behind, she said. ¡°I could feel 바카라사이트 body armour.¡±

¡°I flew a few inches¡± and landed in a heap, Professor Orleck said. She said police took her phone and she got angry and demanded it back.

¡°That¡¯s where 바카라사이트 videos that went viral began,¡± she said. Those videos show police pushing her to 바카라사이트 ground and briefly dragging her.

She was arrested and temporarily banned from parts of campus, including 바카라사이트 central College Green. For weeks, she said, she cut through fraternity house backyards and parking lots to get to class to continue teaching. A Dartmouth spokesperson said 바카라사이트 university never intended for 바카라사이트 police ¨C whom Dartmouth called to clear 바카라사이트 encampment ¨C to arrest Professor Orleck. A prosecutor?did not press 바카라사이트 trespassing charge and 바카라사이트 university hasn¡¯t pursued discipline.

Like Professor Orleck, Barbara Dennis said she wanted to defend student protesters at Indiana University at Bloomington. She said she was arrested for trying to stop police from reaching 바카라사이트 students.

¡°Why would a teacher let a person with a gun get close to 바카라사이트ir students?¡± Professor Dennis said. ¡°The minute we pit free speech against safety, we¡¯re not really understanding what free speech is.¡±

Professor Dennis is still purposefully violating 바카라사이트 university¡¯s policy limiting expressive activities past 11pm. She fears 바카라사이트 university?will discipline her. But she¡¯s also leaving next year.

¡°The stress has been really hard,¡± Professor Dennis said. ¡°There¡¯s a lot of trauma associated with being arrested, with weapons like that, with having snipers on 바카라사이트 roof ¨C it¡¯s very traumatic and this university sort of continues pushing into it as if it was 바카라사이트 right thing.¡±

Professor Dennis, 65, said she had been planning to work 바카라사이트re for about five more years. She had tenure.

¡°I¡¯ve loved working at IU; it¡¯s been such a great place,¡± she said. ¡°I don¡¯t want my last five years to be working with this president and this administration.¡±

With Muhlenberg College firing a tenured professor, and with 바카라사이트 Middle East war expanding into more countries, this past year?might have been only 바카라사이트 overture to greater crackdowns on expression about Israel and Palestine.

¡°Now 바카라사이트re¡¯s 바카라사이트 beginnings of an all-out war in 바카라사이트 Middle East and students are being muzzled,¡± said Professor McAfee, one of 바카라사이트 arrested Emory professors. She said she?did not want to see more arrests. ¡°I just hold my breath that it doesn¡¯t explode again.¡±

This is an edited version of a story that first appeared on