(NewsNation) — As the Israel-Hamas war intensifies, tensions are also boiling over on college campuses across the U.S. Now, one law professor is calling for employers not to hire his students.
UC Berkeley law professor Steven Davidoff Solomon wrote an opinion piece published by The Wall Street Journal on Sunday titled, “Don’t Hire My Anti-Semitic Law Students.”
In the piece, Solomon wrote, “If you don’t want to hire people who advocate hate and practice discrimination, don’t hire some of my students.” The corporate law professor and adviser to the Jewish law students association also asked, “Would your clients want an attorney who condones hatred and monstrous crimes?”
Solomon tells NewsNation’s Elizabeth Vargas he has “not one” regret about it and that the actions of some students should come with consequences.
“For too long, this type of attitude has been going on in college campuses where you can just substitute ‘Zionists’ for ‘Jews,’ and you can spout hatred because it’s about Jews and Israel. And it’s time the adults stepped in. It’s time the adults said, ‘Look, you might have free speech on a college campus, which I endorse, but you’re going to have consequences as a lawyer; you’re going to have consequences as a professional. We’re not going to have you representing our clients.’”
Solomon’s comments come after multiple campus groups at UC Berkeley adopted a rule last year that bans pro-Israel speakers at events. Other institutions like Harvard and New York University have also recently come under fire after some student groups said Israelis should be held responsible for unfolding violence following the attack by Hamas.
Some, like GOP presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy, have condemned comments made by college student groups against Israel but think they should not be penalized by not being hired in the future. Solomon believes they should face accountability.
“They’re not kids, OK. These are law students. These are adults in college,” Solomon said. “I encourage Vivek to come to Berkeley and meet with Jewish students and see the real damage this does when so many of us have lost family. We have lost friends in the army. Many of us have had family who have been horribly murdered, and we have to sit there and listen while a student says that’s OK.”
While Solomon says he doesn’t advocate for cancel culture, he hopes employers will carefully review what applicants have endorsed.
“This year, when you interview a law student, and they have endorsed a statement or a part of a statement that advocates discrimination, hate, Jew-hatred, rape, murder, killing babies, hostage-taking, maybe you should think twice, just like you would in any employment offer,” Solomon told Vargas.
According to Solomon, some students are calling for him to be let go by the university following the op-ed.
“I’m a tenured senior professor. And to be honest, this is nothing compared to what’s going on over there and the loss of life on both sides. I’ll be OK,” he said.
Israel declared war after Hamas launched a surprise attack Oct. 7. More than 1,400 Israelis have been killed, with the majority being civilians left dead in the assault last weekend. At least 2,778 people have been killed and 9,700 hurt in Gaza, the Health Ministry there said.
