A doctor at USC fully complied with First Amendment rights.
Following a seven-month research into comments he made to pro-Palestine activists, a Hebrew economics professor at the University of Southern California was cleared of any crime.
After declaring to the scholar demonstrators:” Hamas are killers,” Professor John Strauss was suspended from teaching on school for the majority of the drop quarter in November. That’s all they are. Every one should be killed, and I hope they all are”.
Some people now think Stauss suggested all Palestinians may be killed, despite the written edition of a saving of his remarks, which went viral on social media.
More than 10 kids filed complaints against Strauss alleging abuse, prejudice, and creating an uncomfortable atmosphere, The Los Angeles Times reported, adding while there “was no debate that Strauss said the comments … he denied that this amounted to a danger to students, as Hamas is deemed a criminal organization and committed crimes in Israel on Oct. 7”.
The research recently came to an end, with all student issues dismissed, and the doctor facing no legal sanctions, according to the Times.
The College Fix received a confirmation of the growth from Strauss. The analysis” should have been stopped weeks earlier.” Early on, my solicitor and I provided a lot of proof that I was innocent,” Strauss told The Fix via internet in late June.
He said he is “happy and relieved]the investigation ] is over”.
According to Strauss, he thinks there should be no “incitement to murder” on school as long as there is no “incenditure to speech.”
The College Fix was informed by USC’s advertising relations office,” USC takes all allegations of harassment and discrimination critically.” When reviewing school policies and procedures, we adhere to them. Because of the confidentiality of personnel matters, the department stated via email that it was not permitted to post on the Strauss case in specific.
University laws prohibit “harassment and prejudice, including on the basis of shared heritage and cultural features”, USC told The Fix.
USC is committed to providing” a safe educational and work environment free of harassment” and “it is equally committed to maintaining academic freedom … and free speech, consistent with Federal and state law”, according to the USC Policy on Prohibited Discrimination, Harassment, and Retaliation.
The USC scheme more state” when abuse is committed against faculty and students”, it infringes on their “academic freedom”, explaining why issues need to be investigated.
In the midst of the affair, two fighting appeals were launched, one in support of Strauss, and one demanding his dismissal.
To achieve a conclusion, the individuals who filed issues were questioned by a USC analyst. Professor Strauss and testimony were likewise interviewed, as detailed by The Los Angeles Times. Video footage was even reviewed.
” This was an exchange of ideas in a common area of college on an issue of public concern that rose somewhere near to the amount of conduct that constitutes abuse, which is serious, widespread and persistent”, Samantha Harris, Strauss ‘ attorney, told The Times.
According to Harris, USC determined that there was n’t enough evidence to support his claims that Strauss used his words to create an unsafe environment or that he was specifically aiming at students.
The scholar’s claims that he actively stepped on anti-Israel signs were even discredited.
The inspector also claimed the defendant’s lawyer had flying film from” Troyd Cam,” a live feed of the monument of Tommy Trojan on campus, as well as video of the incident, which had gone viral, according to The Los Angeles Times.
Amr Shabaik, the attorney general of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, stated to The Times:” We are disappointed that USC has found no crime despite the doctor being videotaped harassing and intimidating USC individuals in honor of the existence of honest Palestinians killed by Israel.”
IMAGE: USC doctor barred from school after anti-Hamas remarks go viral
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