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Let us consider the curious case of Helyeh Doutaghi, an Iranian-born associate research scholar at Yale University Law School, whose tenure has come to an abrupt and ignominious end. The reason? Her alleged ties to the Samidoun Network, a Canada-based outfit branded a terrorist organization by the U.S. State Department, and a "sham charity" fronting for the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, another U.S.-designated terrorist group.
One might have thought that such affiliations would raise eyebrows at an institution of Yale's stature, but it seems the rot of ideological indulgence runs deep.
Doutaghi was sacked on Friday, three weeks after being placed on administrative leave following these damning allegations. Yale, in its wisdom, sought clarification. "Over the last three weeks, Yale has repeatedly requested to meet with Ms. Doutaghi and her attorney to obtain clarifying information and resolve this matter," said spokesperson Alden Ferro. "Unfortunately, she has refused to meet to provide any responses to critical questions, including whether she has ever engaged in prohibited activity with organizations or individuals that were placed on the Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons list ('SDN List')."
Doutaghi was sacked on Friday, three weeks after being placed on administrative leave following these damning allegations. Yale, in its wisdom, sought clarification. "Over the last three weeks, Yale has repeatedly requested to meet with Ms. Doutaghi and her attorney to obtain clarifying information and resolve this matter," said spokesperson Alden Ferro. "Unfortunately, she has refused to meet to provide any responses to critical questions, including whether she has ever engaged in prohibited activity with organizations or individuals that were placed on the Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons list ('SDN List')."
A refusal to cooperate, a silence that speaks volumes. And so, the university, perhaps belatedly grasping the gravity of the situation, terminated her forthwith.
This is no minor affair. Doutaghi held the lofty title of deputy director of the Law and Political Economy Project at Yale since October 2023. Her bio on the Palestine Center for Public Policy website boasts of her work on "the intersections of the Third World Approaches to International Law (TWAIL), encompassing Marxian and postcolonial critiques of law, sanctions, and international political economy."
This is no minor affair. Doutaghi held the lofty title of deputy director of the Law and Political Economy Project at Yale since October 2023. Her bio on the Palestine Center for Public Policy website boasts of her work on "the intersections of the Third World Approaches to International Law (TWAIL), encompassing Marxian and postcolonial critiques of law, sanctions, and international political economy."
She is also slated to join the University of Tehran [Go Camel Jumpers] as a post-doctoral fellow, where she will toil on "completing her manuscript on Iranian sanctions regime and neoliberalism." Quite the résumé for someone now entangled in such a sordid mess.
The allegations first surfaced from Jewish Onliner, a Substack "Empowered by A.I. capabilities," and Doutaghi’s response was telling—not of innocence, but of indignation.
The allegations first surfaced from Jewish Onliner, a Substack "Empowered by A.I. capabilities," and Doutaghi’s response was telling—not of innocence, but of indignation.
"Rather than defend me, the Yale Law School moved within less than 24 hours of learning about the report to place me on leave," she whined on X. "I was given only a few hours’ notice by the administration to attend an interrogation based on far-right AI-generated allegations against me, while enduring a flood of online harassment, death threats, and abuse by Zionist trolls, exacerbating ongoing unprecedented distress and complications both at work and at home."
No due process, she claims, no time to consult her attorney. One might ask: if the accusations are baseless, why not simply answer Yale’s questions and be done with it?
This saga unfolds against a broader backdrop. The Trump administration, to its credit, has taken a firm stand against the creeping anti-Semitism plaguing America’s Ivy League. "Immediate action will be taken by the Department of Justice to protect law and order, quell pro-Hamas vandalism and intimidation, and investigate and punish anti-Jewish racism in leftist, anti-American colleges and universities," declares a White House fact sheet.
This saga unfolds against a broader backdrop. The Trump administration, to its credit, has taken a firm stand against the creeping anti-Semitism plaguing America’s Ivy League. "Immediate action will be taken by the Department of Justice to protect law and order, quell pro-Hamas vandalism and intimidation, and investigate and punish anti-Jewish racism in leftist, anti-American colleges and universities," declares a White House fact sheet.
Trump promised to deport Hamas sympathizers and revoke student visas—a promise already bearing fruit. Columbia University, another hotbed of such unrest, saw $400 million in federal funding yanked after its feeble handling of anti-Israel protests. On Friday, it capitulated, promising "significant policy changes" to appease the administration.
Doutaghi’s fall is but a symptom of a larger malaise—a moral and intellectual decay within these once-venerable institutions. Yale, which weathered anti-Israel protests and a graduation walkout last year, now finds itself excising a figure whose short-term contract was, conveniently, nearing its April end. One wonders how many more such cases lurk beneath the surface, waiting to be exposed. The reckoning, it seems, has only just begun.
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Doutaghi’s fall is but a symptom of a larger malaise—a moral and intellectual decay within these once-venerable institutions. Yale, which weathered anti-Israel protests and a graduation walkout last year, now finds itself excising a figure whose short-term contract was, conveniently, nearing its April end. One wonders how many more such cases lurk beneath the surface, waiting to be exposed. The reckoning, it seems, has only just begun.
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