A Change.org petition that’s gathered more than 40,000 signatures in three days is calling for a Yale professor to be fired over her position in the Israel-Hamas war.
The petition asks that Associate Professor of American Studies, Ethnicity, Race and Migration, and Religious Studies at Yale University Zareena Grewal have her employment immediately terminated. It contends, “She has unequivocally proven that she has no right being in her current role or in the field of education if she considers war crimes against civilians to be acts of resistance.”
The controversy stems from a post on her X account, referencing her Bluesky account. Though her X account is now protected and there are no posts visible on her Bluesky account, the contents of the controversial post shared via screenshot on the petition.
It reads, “My heart is in my throat. Prayers for Palestinians. Israeli (sic) is a murderous, genocidal settler state and Palestinians have every right to resist through armed struggle, [and] solidarity.” It adds a #FreePalestine hashtag.
The petition cites another Oct. 10 tweet allegedly reading, “No government on earth is as genocidal as this settler colonial state,” responding to a tweet from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
The petition notes, “When one is in a position of authority and power, they must be held responsible for that speech. Speech that promotes, advocates, or supports violence, murder, or terrorism cannot and should never be tolerated.”
According to the Yale Daily News, a university spokesperson remarked, “Yale is committed to freedom of expression, and the comments posted on Professor Grewal’s personal accounts represent her own views.”
However, the paper also reported that “University President Peter Salovey condemned Hamas’s attacks on Israeli civilians in a public statement on Tuesday.”
“When a member of the Yale community – faculty or student – raises their voice in support of Hamas, we think not of geopolitics, but of the fact that this person is advocating for an organization that not only has stated its intention to kill members of our community, but has done so,” Rabbi Jason Rubenstein, Yale University’s Jewish Chaplain, told the paper.
The petition has received coverage from a number of conservative media outlets, including Fox News and the National Review, with the latter contending, “Grewal has retweeted approvingly of the kidnapping of women at a music festival, people queuing up in Ben Gurion International Airport fleeing the country, and ‘suicide drones’ employed by Hamas during their raid on Israel.”
The Daily Dot has reached out to Grewal via email.