Top law firm Davis Polk announced that they have rescinded job offers from Harvard and Columbia students who signed onto anti-Israel statements in the wake of the Hamas terror attacks, according to NBC News.
The law firm sent an internal email explaining their decision to walk back employment offers from these students, NBC News reported Tuesday.
“These statements are simply contrary to our firm’s values and we thus concluded that rescinding these offers was appropriate in upholding our responsibility to provide a safe and inclusive work environment for all Davis Polk employees,” the email said. (RELATED: Law Firm Rescinds Employment Offer For NYU Bar Association President Who Defended Hamas Attacks)
Top US law firm Davis Polk announces in an internal email that it had rescinded letters of employment for three law students at Harvard University and Columbia University who signed on to organizational statements regarding Israel. https://t.co/LUoG0PPvzT
— NBC News (@NBCNews) October 18, 2023
“At this time, we remain in dialogue with two of these students to ensure that any further color being offered to us by these students is considered,” the email continued.
The email continued, explaining that the statements were oppositional to the firm’s values and that they had an interest in maintaining strong internal morale.
“The views expressed in certain of the statements signed by law school student organizations in recent days are in direct contravention of our firm’s value system. For this reason and to ensure we continue to maintain a supportive and inclusive work environment, the student leaders responsible for signing on to these statements are no longer welcome in our firm; and their offers of employment have thus been rescinded,” the email said.
A large number of student organizations across the country have publicly condemned Israel, moves which have sparked intense backlash from prominent university donors and employers. A coalition of over 30 Harvard student groups co-signed a letter placing the entire blame for the terror attacks on Israel. At Columbia, nearly two dozen student groups signed a letter urging solidarity with Palestinians.
High-profile corporate bigwigs, such as hedge funder Bill Ackman, vowed on Twitter to never hire any of the students who signed onto these letters. Sweetgreen CEO Jonathan Neman concurred, saying that he would like to “never hire these people.”