Group of conservative judges vows to not hire Columbia University law students due to anti-Israel protests

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Fear and loathing at Columbia

Students speak out about bias, violence.

A group of 13 U.S. federal judges appointed by former President Trump has vowed not to hire law school students and undergraduates from New York City-based Columbia University due to the school’s handling of the anti-Israel protests that ultimately led to an academic hall being occupied.

In a letter obtained by Reuters which was addressed to Columbia University President Minouche Shafik and Law Dean Gillian Lester, the 13 conservative judges said they lost confidence in the university as an institution of higher education, saying instead it has become "an incubator of bigotry."

"Since the October 7 terrorist attacks by Hamas, Columbia University has become ground zero for the explosion of student disruptions, antisemitism, and hatred for diverse viewpoints on campuses across the nation. Disruptors have threatened violence, committed assaults, and destroyed property," the letter reads. "As a result, Columbia has disqualified itself from educating the future leaders of our country."

The judges offered the administrators guidance on how the university could reclaim its "once-distinguished" reputation, starting with punishing students and faculty with profound consequences for those who participated in campus disruptions and violated established rules regarding the use of university facilities and public spaces as well as threats against fellow members of the school community.

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Anti-Israel protesters rally outside Columbia University in New York City on April 30, 2024. (Rashid Umar Abbasi for Fox News Digital)

They explained that in the past, citizens were warned that trespassing on public spaces was enough to warrant incarceration, and the same conduct should warrant lesser measures like expulsion or termination.

"After all, elite universities purport to train not just law-abiding citizens but future leaders," the letter reads. "Universities should also identify students who engage in such conduct so that future employers can avoid hiring them."

The judges also offered their stance on free speech, saying the university should offer neutrality and nondiscrimination when protecting free speech and enforcing the rules of conduct on campus.

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"Freedom of speech protects protest, not trespass, and certainly not acts or threats of violence or terrorism. Speech is not violence, and violence is not speech," the judges wrote. "It has become clear that Columbia applies double standards when it comes to free speech and student misconduct.

"By favoring certain viewpoints over others based on their popularity and acceptance in certain circles, Columbia has failed as a legitimate, never mind elite, institution of higher education," they added.

The third thing the judges suggested the school do is change the composition of its faculty and administration to restore confidence in Columbia.

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Anti-Israel agitators formed an encampment at Columbia University in New York City. (Peter Gerber for Fox News Digital)

Recent events show that "ideological homogeneity" throughout the university "has destroyed its ability to train future leaders of a pluralistic and intellectually diverse country."

Administrators and professors have been on the front lines of the protests, the judges wrote, while encouraging the spread of bigotry and antisemitism.

"Considering recent events, and absent extraordinary change, we will not hire anyone who joins the Columbia University community – whether as undergraduates or law students – beginning with the entering class of 2024," the letter reads, noting that the objective is not to hamper academic freedom but instead to restore it at Columbia.

William A. Jacobson, president of the Legal Insurrection Foundation and founder of EqualProtect.org, told Fox News Digital he has mixed feelings about judges getting involved in issues not presented to them in the courtroom.

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Anti-Israel agitators build an encampment on Columbia University’s campus in New York City on April 22, 2024. (Peter Gerber for Fox News Digital)

"I actually agree with them on the substance, but I do find it a bit concerning that the judiciary gets involved with these, sort of, counter boycotts," he said.

Just like everyone else, he explained, judges have First Amendment rights, so there should not be any ethical issues, but he finds it concerning when judges get involved with issues involving protests.

While he may not blame a judge for not wanting to hire from Columbia, the collective action of them getting together and issuing a statement rubs him the wrong way.

But Jacobson also said he has no sympathy for the students and faculty at Columbia, many of whom endorsed boycotting Israel.

"What goes around, comes around, and the student body, not all of them, but a significant percentage … support the boycott of Israel," the professor said. "I have no sympathy for Columbia as an institution. But a boycott is a blunt instrument, and therefore you would be boycotting students who are not participating in this, and that’s, again, another thing that I have very mixed feelings on."

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Columbia University President Minouche Shafik leaves the Low Memorial Library on the campus of Columbia University on April 24, 2024. (Fox News Digital)

Eventually, there will be a protest of the protesters or counterprotesters, Jacobson said.

The student and faculty protesters are "so aggressive and so hostile" toward Israel, and so determined to drive Israelis and supporters out of civil society, that he believes it is inevitable that pushback is on the horizon.

Federal judges tend to hire from top tier schools like Columbia, which has become "the poster child" for everything that has gone wrong in academia, Jacobson said.

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"I think it's a little curious that it ends up being 13 federal judges who are the first to send that warning, but I think it is a warning that, and I've said this many times before, that academia has become so radicalized that it cannot be reformed internally," Jacobson said. "The only way to reform it is from outside pressure. I'm not even sure that will work, but it cannot be reformed internally. Places like Columbia are too far gone, and society is going to have to address that. The issue moving forward is not how we are going to reform our universities, because that is going to be a generational effort, but how can we protect society from our universities."

Reuters contributed to this report.