California College of the Arts Prof. Sues following Threat of Dismissal for Arguing with Pro-Hamas Student

Colleges and universities are, theoretically, places where rigorous intellectual debate can flourish.

But these days, it seems that every time a professor even gently reproaches pro-Hamas students he or she is accused of harassment and bullying and railroaded by school officials.

Last year, the University of Southern California suspended and banned from campus a Jewish professor who argued with pro-Hamas students on the campus green.

Now, in a remarkably similar case at the California College of the Arts in San Francisco, a Jewish professor who gently rebuked pompous and astonishingly ignorant pro-Hamas students was  sanctioned  by the administration and threatened with dismissal if she ever has the temerity to ever challenge students again.

The tenured professor, Karen Fiss, is suing the California College of the Arts in federal court, charging breach of contract–namely a denial of academic freedom she was promised–and anti-Jewish discrimination because the College has devolved into a pro-Hams sewer, where exhortations to violence against Jews are defended on academic freedom but her own academic freedom is severely curtailed.

Disparate treatment is one of the bases for a discrimination claim. Fiss is claiming that happened with the manner in which she was disciplined for speaking out as Jew.

The lawsuit cites a disturbing incident where the Critical Ethnic Studies department wrote on Instagram “Decolonization is not a dinner party” and seemed to be glorifying the October 7 Hamas attack on Israel as noble “resistance.”

Fiss is being represented by lawyer Lori Lowenthal Marcus and her Merion Station, Pennsylvania-based Deborah Project, a public interest law firm that sues to protect the rights of Jews in educational settings.

Marcus is also the lawyer for Jewish parents and kids suing the Sequoia Union High School District over anti-Semitism and Jewish teachers and parents suing over an anti-Semitism-ridden ethnic studies curriculum that proponents are trying to implement in Los Angeles public schools.

On the Karen Fiss case, Marcus told the California Globe that, “The central issue in the case, as alluded to above, is Fiss’s genuine claims of horror and intimidation from the hostile environment at CCA, composed of a cascade of shocking actions by students and faculty, joined in and supported by the College’s administration.  First was the fact that, immediately after the October 7th atrocities, Dr. Fiss learned that the vast majority of her colleagues actually celebrated the most horrific torture, rape, murder, and brutal kidnapping of your co-religionists.  Perhaps worse, she was shocked to learn that public praise for the murder of Jews was brushed off with a Free Speech defense and a refusal to spend time investigating the matter — something that would never, ever have been done in response to public praise about attacks on any other ethnic group. “

This was the context for the California College of the Arts (CCA) railroading Fiss for arguing with the pro-Hamas students, Marcus explained by email.

“To this was quickly joined Fiss’s formal condemnation by the College –in a reprimand made an official part of her file, and that threatens her tenure — on the spurious ground that Fiss had harassed a student by disagreeing with the young woman about the Middle East conflict in a concededly civil conversation.”

“Fiss had done nothing more than dare to tell the student, who said she was Kuwaiti, that Kuwait wrought harsh punishment on Palestinians during the Gulf War.  For that and that alone—an actual exercise of the academic freedom and the right to free speech–the students claimed harassment and CCA concluded that Fiss was guilty of harassment, to the detriment of her academic career. Her file is marked, and she has been formally warned that if such conduct is repeated she can be fired.”

The lawsuit was filed earlier this year in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California.

It says the school has turned into a pro-Hamas sewer that crushes academic freedom.

“Dr. Karen Fiss is a full professor at CCA who has experienced discrimination and a hostile work environment as a result of these policies and practices, infringing upon her rights under Title VI, Title VII, under California law and as well as under her contractual agreement with CCA.”

“The deliberate transformation of the CCA campus into a political battleground underscores a concerning trend where the Middle East conflict is a constant presence in the academic life of every member of the CCA community, whether faculty, student or administration. From the moment one steps onto campus, the relentless energy focused on this issue is palpable. However, what is particularly troubling is the one-sidedness of the rhetoric, whereby the Jewish State is consistently vilified and delegitimized. Members of the College community are effectively forced into a position where they must either align with the prevailing narrative or risk ostracism.”

Moreover,  “CCA’s enforcement of the view that the Jewish State is genocidal and illegitimate, devoid of its inherent right to self-defense or existence, is a calculated assault on intellectual diversity and academic freedom. The steps and mechanisms described in this Complaint are intended to, and do in fact, stifle dissenting voices and undermine the very foundation of scholarly inquiry and discourse.”

All this is the context for Fiss’s encounter with the pro-Hamas students that occurred on October 26, 2023.

The encounter and how the College railroaded Fiss in response is described in excruciating detail in the complaint. It is worth quoting at length to give readers an understanding of just how pompous and ignorant the pro-Hamas students are–to the point of self-parody– and the strikingly Orwellian manner in which the College handled Fiss afterwards.

The lawsuit says that on October 26 three members of the newly-recognized Students for Justice in Palestine, a notorious pro-Hamas group, were staffing a table in the “nave,” the main campus thoroughfare.

“As Dr. Fiss traversed the CCA nave towards her office, one of these students called over Dr. Fiss to their table.”

The student demanded that Fiss contact the federal government and demand a ceasefire in Gaza.

“Dr. Fiss saw that the people at the table had hung up a handmade poster that called for the “liberation of Palestine” “From the River to the Sea.” Dr. Fiss was troubled by the display, as her understanding of the “River to the Sea” phrase is associated with the Palestinian nationalist movement, advocating for a free and independent Palestine from the Jordan River to the Mediterranean Sea, which encompasses the entirety of historic Palestine, including what is now Israel.”

She asked the students if she could take a picture of the display. They eagerly consented.

“The students did not object in any way to Dr. Fiss taking this photograph. Indeed, Plaintiff had a clear right to take the photograph under California law because when Plaintiff took the photograph, the SJP members were at that table precisely because it was in public, and they therefore had no expectation of privacy. At no time during their interaction—even after Dr. Fiss intimated that she was not wholly in agreement with the SJP members about the issues they were discussing—did those students inform or in  any way indicate to Plaintiff that they   revoked her consent to being photographed by Plaintiff, nor did they ask Plaintiff to delete the photograph. In fact, their demeanor suggested a level of comfort and approval with her photographing them.”

This is important because the College would later charge Fiss with taking the picture without their consent–an obvious fabrication.

Regardless, as the encounter went down it seemed the students did not understand the meaning of the from the River to the Sea slogan they were parroting.

“Dr. Fiss asked one of the women staffing the table what they meant by the slogan “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free.” Rather than answer her, this woman turned around and ripped the poster down.”

The student then proved herself a huge ignoramus,

“Next, that student told Dr. Fiss that Hamas didn’t have real weapons to commit the crimes they were accused of committing after they broke through the barrier into Israel on October 7. The student made this claim despite the plethora of videos taken by the Hamas terrorists themselves committing those crimes. The student further informed Dr. Fiss that even within Gaza, Hamas had no weapons and that the only missiles Hamas had were unexploded Israeli ordnance.”

“Dr. Fiss asked the students where they got their news from, and what sources were they reading? At this point, another of the students, later identified by a CCA Human Resources official as Maryiam Alwael, explained she was from the Middle East and therefore knew the real story there. When Dr. Fiss asked that student where in the Middle East she was from, the student said Kuwait. Dr. Fiss then brought up the challenges Palestinians faced in Kuwait, citing the deportation of over 300,000 Palestinians from Kuwait in 1991. Alwael responded by expressing confusion, claiming she had no knowledge of the events mentioned by Dr. Fiss and attributing it to a potential language barrier or misunderstanding.”

For confronting the student with the truth about how Kuwait mistreated Palestineans Fiss was later charged with bullying and harassment.

But at the time of the encounter,  Fiss next told the students not to view ethnic groups in such monolithic terms, which is an obvious tool of critical inquiry but antithetical to the woke formulation of oppressor and oppressed.

“Dr. Fiss highlighted the nuanced perspectives among Middle Eastern students at CCA regarding Hamas and Iran’s support. She underscored her commitment to intellectual  diversity, explaining her deliberate consumption of varied news sources and academic viewpoints to guard against the echo chamber effect perpetuated by social media. Thus Dr. Fiss told those sitting at the table that she wasn’t sure that all students from the Middle East would necessarily agree with their views on Hamas, noting that she knew several Middle Eastern students at CCA, for example, who opposed Hamas and Iran’s support for the terrorist group. Dr. Fiss then told the students that she herself tries to read news and academic articles from a wide range of political viewpoints to ensure that she doesn’t end up in an echo-chamber as is so prevalent with the influence of social media.”

The student she was addressing, Maryiam Alwael, made clear she preferred being an ignoramus

“Alwael responded with a confident smile and said that she “liked her echo chamber.” It was clear then to Dr. Fiss that there was no reason to continue the conversation. Dr. Fiss walked away. “

This was an entirely civil encounter, the lawsuit notes.

“At no time during this discussion did Dr. Fiss raise her voice, violate the personal space of any of the people staffing the table, threaten them or anyone else with violence, with a poor academic grade, or anything else (or even identify herself as a faculty member) nor did Plaintiff denounce their views, or insult them.”

Moreover, “Throughout the entirety of the conversation detailed above, Dr. Fiss exhibited a commendable level of professionalism and adherence to legal and ethical standards. At no point did she engage in behavior that could be construed as coercive or threatening. Dr. Fiss maintained a respectful distance from the individuals present and refrained from any form of verbal or physical aggression. Importantly, she did not exploit her position as a faculty member to intimidate or influence the discussion. Furthermore, Dr. Fiss demonstrated a commitment to academic freedom by engaging in a civil exchange of ideas, without denouncing or insulting the viewpoints of the individuals involved.”

Soon thereafter, Fiss was informed by a College Human Resources official that a student had filed a complaint against her for bulling and harassment.  Fiss was not given a copy of the complaint or even any of the specifics. The HR official just said that

“Dr. Fiss was accused of having had a “harassing and discriminatory interaction” with a student.

Fiss later learned that the student who had filed the complaint was the one who had bragged about being an ignoramus. “ The student who claimed Plaintiff had harassed and discriminated against her, Dr. Fiss later learned, was the SJP person at the table, Maryiam Alwael, the one who claimed she was from Kuwait but who denied Kuwait’s expulsion of 300,000 Palestinian Arabs during the Gulf War.

Fiss was not allowed to hear from her accusers directly or cross-examine them.

On December 12, 2023, the College informed Fiss that she was found guilty of violating school policy against bullying and harassment. She was not allowed to appeal the decision.

The College also said it was punishing Fiss for telling Alwael that Kuwait had mistreated Palestineans.

“Among Dr. Fiss’s alleged offenses was the fact that when she learned one of the women with whom she was speaking was from Kuwait, “you began explaining the history of Alwael’s country to her.” This is clearly a reference to the fact that Dr. Fiss had identified facts which the student did not know or acknowledge— exactly the activity which is normally considered to be the job of a college professor. The CCA decision also found that “The nature and tone of the statements by you caused the students to reasonably believe that you were using your positional power as a Professor to get the outcome you sought, which was for the students to agree with your point of view.” This finding was made in spite of the fact that during the interaction in the school hallway on October 26, 2023, the students did not know who Dr. Fiss   was and did not know that she was a CCA professor.”

The College then warned Fiss that if she ever challenged students again she could be dismissed.

“You must immediately cease this and similar behavior with any student or employee of the college and if you continue to do so again, you will remain subject to further disciplinary action that could result in discharge for cause. “

The lawsuit says this star chamber disciplinary process illegally singled out Fiss because she is Jewish.

“Dr. Fiss’s entirely factual statement to a student about the lives of Palestinians in Kuwait, by contrast, was censured by CCA, as was her encouragement to students to seek   information from sources with which they might not agree. The students’ rejection of that advice—“I like my echo chamber”–reflects exactly the state of mind that college is supposed to cure, and that it is the job of a college professor to address. It is the very essence of academic freedom for a professor to encourage students to learn things they don’t already know.  Dr. Fiss was punished for doing her job simply and only because Dr. Fiss is a Jew committed to the existence of the State of Israel as a Jewish State.”

The California College of Arts filed a motion to dismiss the lawsuit on October 4th of this year. It denied that Fiss is being treated differently than non-Jewish employees–the core of a discrimination claim.

“Plaintiff also fails to plead that there are any similarly situated non-Jewish employees who were treated more favorably than Plaintiff.”

But in her November 5 opposition to the motion to dismiss, lawyer Lori Lowenthal Marcus writes that the manner in which Fiss is being disciplined is sufficient to prove a case of discrimination under Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act.

“CCA’s attack on Plaintiff’s Title VII claim completely ignores the Amended Complaint’s allegations that the Plaintiff was sanctioned, punished and threatened – and that she remains threatened –with dismissal because she spoke to a Kuwaiti student and told the student things the young woman did not know about her country and the Middle East. These punishments included required reeducation and the threat that if the Professor Fiss engages in the same conduct “again, you will remain subject to further disciplinary action that could result in discharge for cause.”

So Among those employment decisions that can constitute an adverse employment action are termination, dissemination of a negative employment reference, issuance of an undeserved negative performance review and refusal to consider for promotion.”

Therefore,”the law is clear that the discipline imposed on Plaintiff is sufficient injury to form the basis of a Title VII claim.”

It is impossible to know when the judge is going to rule on the California College of the Arts motion to dismiss. Sometimes, judges take just weeks to rule on motions. Other times, it can be a month or many months.

The California College of the Arts press office could not be reached for comment as it is closed for the holidays.