The professor said, “I am Hamas,” during the protest. I’m guessing there are some other issues at play here.
Oregon Public Broadcasting reports:
Portland State professor seeks $7 million in discrimination, retaliation lawsuit against universityA tenured professor at Portland State University is alleging the institution has unlawfully discriminated and retaliated against her for nearly a year.The lawsuit, filed Wednesday in state court, stems from professor Yasmeen Hanoosh’s involvement in a pro-Palestine protest that took place off campus last June. A video clip of that protest showed Hanoosh telling a counter protester, “I am Hamas. We are all Hamas,” as she gestured to others around her.The clip was edited in a way that appeared to show the professor in support of the armed militant group Hamas.After the video spread online, PSU responded by placing Hanoosh on paid administrative leave and conducting an internal investigation of the professor’s actions. Portland State President Ann Cudd publicly condemned the video in a university blog post, calling it “reprehensible.”In a tort claim filed in December, Hanoosh’s lawyers said that her comments were taken out of context, sarcastic in nature and protected under free speech law. And they said Hanoosh feared for her own safety after facing online harassment and threats.A lawsuit filed Wednesday goes a step further.The suit, filed in a Multnomah County Circuit Court, says the university “defamed [Hanoosh] by publicly and falsely portraying her as aligned with terrorism and antisemitic ideology, and by making additional false and misleading statements about the nature and context of her speech.”Hanoosh is seeking $7 million in damages from the university for discrimination, retaliation, a hostile work environment, violations of free speech and equal protection laws and defamation. She is also seeking the removal and correction of any public statements made by PSU regarding her participation in last year’s protest.A PSU spokesperson said the university cannot comment on the litigation.
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