Brandeis Center for Human Rights has taken on the case of the researcher, referred to as “John Doe” in court documents, whose allegations describe an overtly antisemitic work environment that top university officials reportedly refused to address.
Brandeis Center attorney Paul Eckles tells AFN the legal complaint goes into “great detail” what the researcher endured, such as being mocked as a Jew and harassed over Israel’s treatment of Palestinians.
“In the lab itself,” Eckles alleges, “there was pervasive antisemitism and harassment by the other members of the lab."
The researcher’s time at MIT couldn’t have been worse. He began postdoctoral work there in September 2023, just weeks before Hamas killed and kidnapped Jews in northern Israel.
On numerous college and university campuses, including at MIT, protesters took the side of Hamas and the Palestinians despite the terrorists attacking first. During a campus protest, the researcher alleges he was accosted by pro-Palestinian protesters on campus. He also claims he informed Sally Kornbluth, the MIT president, about the incident.
According to a related Free Beacon story, the lawsuit filed by Brandeis is an amended complaint filed by its attorneys. An original complaint, filed in June, defended other Jewish and Israeli MIT students on campus.
The goal of the lawsuit, Eckles says, is to bring “systemic change” to MIT that supports Jewish students.
“We’re looking for some major reforms,” he says.
A spokesperson for MIT told the Free Beacon the university will “vigorously defend itself in court” over the allegations.
