US universities intensify crackdown on pro-Palestinian activism
Professors
face disciplinary action and one university is accused of 'recruiting' a
state attorney general to deal with pro-Palestinian protesters
Students at
George Washington University in Washington DC hold a protest to mark one
year of war in Gaza, on 7 October 2024 (Andrew Thomas/NurPhoto/Reuters)
Published date: 25 October 2024
The University of Michigan "recruited" state attorney general Dana Nessel to prosecute pro-
Palestinian protesters advocating for
Gaza, according to an
investigation from The Guardian published on Thursday.
In a rare move, Michigan’s Board of Regents allegedly "bypassed"
local prosecutors, opting to collaborate with Nessel, a political ally
with ties to board members of the university, according to the report.
The Guardian reported that this decision, spurred by frustration with
local prosecutors who had chosen leniency in similar cases, marks an
instance of “forum shopping”, where Nessel’s office could potentially
pursue harsher actions against protestors.
According to The Guardian, Nessel’s office charged 85 percent of the
arrested protesters, a stark contrast to the 10 percent charged by the
Washtenaw County Prosecutor’s Office, while Wayne County dismissed all
five Gaza protest cases.
Critics argue that Nessel’s strong ties to pro-Israel donors and political figures, including the university’s regents, reveal potential conflicts of interest.
Six out of eight board regents have collectively donated over $33,000
to Nessel’s campaigns, with some university donors also advocating for
pro-Israel stances.
A former prosecutor told The Guardian that taking cases from local
prosecutors is legal, but “generates distrust of the justice process”.
Nessel’s office denies that these donations influence prosecutorial
decisions, maintaining that the choice to prosecute was based on
jurisdictional overlaps.
The University of Michigan's Assistant Vice President for Public
Affairs, Colleen Mastony, told Middle East Eye it "strongly disputes any
allegation that the university’s board of regents and the Michigan
attorney general may have acted inappropriately because of normal,
entirely legal contributions and relationships."
"The attorney general represents the people of Michigan and decides
which cases to bring. She cannot be hired or recruited by individuals or
institutions. Likewise, the university does not have the power to
bypass local prosecutors," Mastony said in an emailed statement.
The university says that Nessel reached out to the university in May
and offered to investigate and prosecute cases "based on her
multijurisdictional authority and expertise in First Amendment
principles and law."
Legal experts and advocacy groups, including the ACLU, have voiced
concerns about Nessel’s involvement, particularly regarding the
criminalisation of non-violent protests.
Observers worry that the decision reflects broader, potentially
biased, suppression of campus activism supporting Palestine, as similar
cases on US campuses also reveal an increasing pattern of investigations and disciplinary actions against both students and faculty.
Investigations extend to faculty
Across the US, universities have launched investigations and
disciplined faculty members vocal in their support of Palestine,
according to The Guardian.
The Guardian reports
that Columbia University’s Katherine Franke, a law professor and
director of the Center for Gender and Sexuality Law, is under
investigation for comments related to Israel and the treatment of
Palestinian students on campus.
When asked about the case, Columbia University's media office told
Middle East Eye that they would not comment on a pending investigation.
The scrutiny has intensified since the beginning of the academic
year, as universities attempt to navigate heightened tensions
surrounding the war in Gaza.
Other faculty members, including Maura Finkelstein from Muhlenberg
College and Ruha Benjamin from Princeton University, also face
disciplinary actions over their pro-Palestinian statements and activism,
according to the report.
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Middle East Eye reached out to Princeton University but did not receive a response by time of publication.
These investigations, often triggered by student complaints or
administrative objections, have led to firings, suspensions, and
increased legal battles.
Finkelstein’s case in particular highlights the conflation of
anti-Zionist views with antisemitism, leading to her dismissal after
reposting a message on Instagram by Palestinian poet, Remi Kanazi.
Legal advocacy groups, including the Knight First Amendment
Institute, stress the danger of penalising faculty for political speech,
arguing that such actions stifle academic freedom and inhibit open
discourse on contentious topics.
Faculty members, often tenured, argue that universities’ handling of
these cases establishes a “culture of fear” and discourages critical
examination of complex international issues, such as the
Israel-Palestine conflict.
These disciplinary actions, alongside Michigan’s legal crackdown on
student protesters, underscore growing concerns among advocates that US
universities are moving towards an unprecedented suppression of
Palestine solidarity, and with it, a crackdown on freedom of speech.
Finkelstein urged her colleagues to resist this suppression.
She told The Guardian, “It’s not shocking to me that our institutions
are going to be cracking down on that, but it sets such a terrifying
precedent. What is a college or university, if not a place where we can
actually talk about these things?”