OAN Staff Blake Wolf
5:41 PM – Wednesday, August 7, 2024
A federal judge ruled against Harvard’s motion to throw out a lawsuit brought against the university by six Jewish students who claimed that it “failed its Jewish students.”
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The basis of the lawsuit revolves around claims that the university was indifferent to the antisemitism faced by Jewish students following October 7th, when Hamas terrorists attacked Israel, killing at least 1,200 and abducting hundreds.
Judge Richard Stearns validated the plausibility of the Jewish students’ claim that the university’s response to their concerns of harassment was insufficient.
“The protests were, at times, confrontational and physically violent, and plaintiffs legitimately fear their reputation,” Stearns wrote. “[P]laintiffs have plausibly pled that they were subject to severe, pervasive, and objectively offensive harassment.”
The judge continued, arguing that Harvard’s reaction was “at best, indecisive, vacillating, and at times internally contradictory.”
A Harvard spokesperson responded to the news, stating that the university “has and will continue to take concrete steps to address the root causes of antisemitism on campus and protect our Jewish and Israeli students, ensuring that they may pursue their education free from harassment and discrimination.”
As the judge motioned the lawsuit to move forward, he also noted that “the facts as pled show that Harvard failed its Jewish students.”
UCLA, New York University, and Columbia University are amongst other schools facing lawsuits resulting from the fallout of pro-Palestine campus protests.
Moreover, Stearns criticized Harvard for selectively enforcing campus policies, concluding that there were “several instances in which students were penalized for violating various Harvard policies, but the students allegedly engaged in anti-Semitic conduct have not faced any discipline.”
Meanwhile, plaintiff Alexander Kestenbaum was pleased with the results of judge Stearns findings.
“We are delighted that the judge recognizes what we have been saying for months now: Harvard has enabled, normalized, and celebrated a culture of antisemitism on its campus,” Kestenbaum stated.
The January lawsuit was filed eight days after the resignation of Harvard President Claudine Gay, who was heavily criticized for her handling of the anti-Semitic activity on her campus.
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