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The trial of UCLA accounting professor Gordon Klein is underway in Santa Monica, and it’s a doozy. Klein’s suing the university for $22 million after they suspended him in 2020 for refusing to go along with a student demand to grade Black students more leniently following thug George Floyd’s death.
Talk about a case that cuts right to the heart of campus insanity.
Back in June 2020, with the nation reeling from Floyd’s death, a group of Klein’s students emailed him, demanding a “no-harm” final exam that could only boost their grades, with shorter tests and extended deadlines. Their reasoned that they were too traumatized to focus on finals because, as they put it, “we have been placed in a position where we much (sic) choose between actively supporting our Black classmates or focusing on finishing up our spring quarter.” They added, “We believe that remaining neutral in times of injustice brings power to the oppressor and therefore staying silent is not an option.”
They insisted this wasn’t about canceling finals for non-Black students but about asking Klein to “exercise compassion and leniency with black students in our major.” Sounds like a not-so-subtle call for race-based grading, doesn’t it?
Klein wasn’t having it. His response was a masterclass in sarcasm that landed him in hot water. “Thanks for your suggestion in your email below that I give Black students special treatment, given the tragedy in Minnesota,” he fired back. Then he went for the jugular: “Do you know the names of the classmates that are Black? How can I identify them since we’ve been having online classes only?” He didn’t stop there, asking about students of “mixed parentage, such as half Black-half Asian? What do you suggest I do with respect to them? A full concession or just half?”
Klein even pointed out that “a White student from [Minneapolis] might be possibly even more devastated by this, especially because some might think that they’re racist even if they are not.” He capped it off with MLK’s iconic line about judging people by character, not skin color. You’d think that’d be a slam dunk, but no, students screenshotted his email, posted it online, and the outrage, virtue-signaling mob descended.
Back in June 2020, with the nation reeling from Floyd’s death, a group of Klein’s students emailed him, demanding a “no-harm” final exam that could only boost their grades, with shorter tests and extended deadlines. Their reasoned that they were too traumatized to focus on finals because, as they put it, “we have been placed in a position where we much (sic) choose between actively supporting our Black classmates or focusing on finishing up our spring quarter.” They added, “We believe that remaining neutral in times of injustice brings power to the oppressor and therefore staying silent is not an option.”
They insisted this wasn’t about canceling finals for non-Black students but about asking Klein to “exercise compassion and leniency with black students in our major.” Sounds like a not-so-subtle call for race-based grading, doesn’t it?
Klein wasn’t having it. His response was a masterclass in sarcasm that landed him in hot water. “Thanks for your suggestion in your email below that I give Black students special treatment, given the tragedy in Minnesota,” he fired back. Then he went for the jugular: “Do you know the names of the classmates that are Black? How can I identify them since we’ve been having online classes only?” He didn’t stop there, asking about students of “mixed parentage, such as half Black-half Asian? What do you suggest I do with respect to them? A full concession or just half?”
Klein even pointed out that “a White student from [Minneapolis] might be possibly even more devastated by this, especially because some might think that they’re racist even if they are not.” He capped it off with MLK’s iconic line about judging people by character, not skin color. You’d think that’d be a slam dunk, but no, students screenshotted his email, posted it online, and the outrage, virtue-signaling mob descended.
UCLA's cowards caved fast, suspending Klein in June 2020.
Anderson School Dean Antonio Bernardo tut-tutted in a campus message, saying, “Conduct that demonstrates a disregard for our core principles, including an abuse of power, is not acceptable.” He added, “I deeply regret the increased pain and anger that our community has experienced at this very difficult time.”
The university reinstated him by September, but the damage was done. Klein’s lawsuit claims UCLA torched his lucrative expert witness practice, where he pulled in about $1 million a year on cases like Michael Jackson’s wrongful death suit. “By this moment, as a direct and immediate result of [his] public suspension and excoriation, Professor Klein’s expert witness practice had been permanently destroyed,” the suit states.
UCLA’s defense?
The university reinstated him by September, but the damage was done. Klein’s lawsuit claims UCLA torched his lucrative expert witness practice, where he pulled in about $1 million a year on cases like Michael Jackson’s wrongful death suit. “By this moment, as a direct and immediate result of [his] public suspension and excoriation, Professor Klein’s expert witness practice had been permanently destroyed,” the suit states.
UCLA’s defense?
They’re arguing Klein got the boot for his “tone and manner.” Because apparently, it’s not about principle, it’s about hurt feelings. The trial’s expected to wrap up next week, and you can bet it’ll be a circus until then.
This case is a glaring example of how universities bend over backward to avoid being called racist, even when it means punishing a professor for refusing to treat students differently based on race, which by definition, is itself racist.
This case is a glaring example of how universities bend over backward to avoid being called racist, even when it means punishing a professor for refusing to treat students differently based on race, which by definition, is itself racist.
Klein’s standing his ground, and win or lose, he’s exposing the absurdity of it all.
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