Some of the largest law firms in the United States are telling law school deans that they must act with “urgency” to tackle anti-Semitism on campus, or else their graduates won’t be considered for employment.
“Over the last several weeks, we have been alarmed at reports of anti-Semitic harassment, vandalism and assaults on college campuses, including rallies calling for the death of Jews and the elimination of the State of Israel,” an open letter published on Wednesday read. “Such anti-Semitic activities would not be tolerated at any of our firms.”
As employers, the firms said, their recruiters will only consider law school graduates who are “prepared to be an active part of workplace communities that have zero tolerance policies for any form of discrimination or harassment, much less the kind that has been taking place on some school campuses.”
“We also would not tolerate outside groups engaging in acts of harassment and threats of violence, as has also been occurring on many of our campuses,” they added.
Two dozen firms signed the letter. Among them are six of the top ten U.S. law firms in terms of revenue, namely Kirkland & Ellis; Latham & Watkins; Skadden, Arps, Slates, Meagher & Flom; Sidley Austin; Morgan, Lewis & Bockius; and Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher.
The Oct. 7 attacks included a barrage of rockets and a mass infiltration into southern Israel by Hamas terrorists who left behind them a trail of carnage. Israel retaliated with relentless air strikes across the Gaza Strip, followed by a ground offensive that is thrusting deeper into the Hamas-controlled enclave.
The Middle Eastern war is also exposing divisions on American college campuses. Morally ambiguous comments from college administrators calling for compassion and reflection have been met with fierce criticism by pro-Israeli groups, while the unhinged behavior of some pro-Palestinian students is prompting concerns about campus safety.
According to prosecutors, Mr. Dai posted in a student discussion forum threats to bring a rifle and shoot up a multicultural dining room next to the Ivy League school’s Jewish student center. He also allegedly threatened to “stab” and “slit the throat” of any Jewish men he sees on campus, to rape and throw off a cliff any Jewish woman, and to behead any Jewish babies.
In a statement following Mr. Dai’s arrest, Cornell’s Jewish Law Students Association said this most recent threat “is not an isolated incident.”
“Over the course of the past three weeks, students have been bombarded with an outpouring of hateful messages. Offensive graffiti has been tagged across campus,” the association said. “Some Cornell faculty have made public antisemitic statements, with one administrator calling the Oct. 7 Hamas attacks an act of ’resistance‘ and a professor labeling the violence as ’exhilarating‘ and ’energizing.'”
Mr. Shenker agreed and echoed the Cornell student group’s concerns. School officials “were late to getting that Jewish students are actually scared—they feel threatened, and they feel betrayed,” he told The New York Times.
“As educators at institutions of higher learning, it is imperative that you provide your students with the tools and guidance to engage in the free exchange of ideas, even on emotionally charged issues, in a manner that affirms the values we all hold dear and rejects unreservedly that which is antithetical to those values,” Wednesday’s letter read.
“There is no room for anti-Semitism, Islamophobia, racism or any other form of violence, hatred or bigotry on your campuses, in our workplaces or our communities.”
