University of Southern California: Anti-Hamas Speech on Campus Punished

On November 9, 2023, University of Southern California professor John Strauss told pro-Palestinian student protesters gathered on campus, “You people are ignorant. Really ignorant. Hamas are murderers. That’s all they are. Every one should be killed, and I hope they all are.” A viral video of just the final sentence of Strauss’s comment circulated on social media and multiple students and faculty complained to the university. In response, USC restricted Strauss to remote teaching for the remainder of the semester. On November 20, FIRE wrote USC, calling on it to allow Strauss to return to his in-person teaching duties. On June 18, 2024, USC notified Strauss that it had officially closed the investigation, dismissed the complaints, and would not be pursuing any disciplinary action against him.