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Revered U.S. law firm Davis Polk recently revoked job offers to three students who the firm believed held leadership roles in student organizations at Harvard and Columbia that signed controversial letters blaming Israel for the Hamas attacks earlier this month that killed at least 1,400 Israelis.
The rescinded offers, first reported by The New York Times, are the latest development in the backlash from college employers, donors, and alumni against the statements that characterized the violence as Israel’s sole responsibility. The letters—and the revulsion expressed by some in response—have set off a tense row on college campuses about free speech and privacy in which several students have been doxxed and vilified for their perceived support of the statements.
Davis Polk said Tuesday that it is reconsidering the decision to rescind offers to two of the three students who are arguing that they had not authorized the letters. The firm told the Times that one of the students was associated with the Harvard Palestine Solidarity Groups, which jointly issued a letter after the Oct. 7 attacks saying it considered “the Israeli regime entirely responsible for all unfolding violence.”