A tenured professor at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago finds herself on paid leave after assigning a case study that contained a brief reference to Palestinian civilians. The suspension has ignited questions about academic freedom and how universities handle complaints in an increasingly fraught political environment.
Savneet Talwar, who teaches art therapy and counseling, assigned the two-page case study to her class in April. The assignment asked students to develop an ethical treatment plan for a hypothetical queer, Muslim woman living in the United States. The relevant passage, which reviewers confirmed made up only a small portion of the document, stated that the fictional client felt affected by violence against Palestinian civilians and was critical of her home government's limited response to the situation.
The case study focused primarily on other clinical elements: family history, relationships, immigration status, and psychological care. Palestine appeared nowhere else in the assignment. Israel was not mentioned at all.
Within days of a student complaint, Talwar received a call from a dean asking pointedly whether she had assigned "anything with Palestine in it." She was summoned to an urgent meeting with the provost. Her class was canceled. On April 17, the school notified her of suspension and instructed her not to discuss the matter with students or colleagues.
In an official letter, the school warned that the assignment "may constitute discrimination, harassment and/or retaliation." School officials noted that the complaining student was Jewish and Israeli, and that she had filed separate complaints related to alleged antisemitism and pro-Palestine viewpoints in the department. The dean's letter suggested Talwar should have known better given the existing investigations.
Talwar told journalists she was "stunned" by the action, characterizing it as driven by "the mere mention of the word Palestine." Her attorney, Rima Kapitan, submitted a formal grievance arguing the suspension itself was discriminatory and questioned the school's logic. In a pointed letter, Kapitan asked whether the university expected faculty to "ethnically cleanse Palestinians from course materials" and posed a hypothetical: if a white supremacist student complained about a case study involving police violence against Black people, would the professor face investigation?
Nearly a month after the suspension, school officials cited additional issues involving the same student. They referenced exchanges in which Talwar allegedly characterized an Australian beach attack as "gun violence" without addressing antisemitism, and suggested the student consider whether to attend a lecture by a guest described as a strong anti-Zionist activist. Talwar declined to respond to those allegations, citing confidentiality obligations.
The school has been wrestling with tensions on this front. In late 2023, an Israeli student in the same program sued over alleged antisemitism, citing an assignment that asked students to review images drawn by children depicting Israeli military violence against Palestinians. The department subsequently required faculty to undergo anti-bias training, and school officials have referenced efforts to address the climate within it.
A school spokesperson declined to comment on personnel matters but said the institution is committed to "learning environments in which ideas are freely exchanged."
Talwar said her case reflects broader pressure facing higher education. "We call it the 'P-word' now," she said, referring to faculty reluctance to discuss Palestine on campuses she described as increasingly repressive. "There is no tolerance for the very word." She plans to file a formal employment discrimination complaint against the school.
Author James Rodriguez: "The irony of suspending a professor while invoking commitment to free exchange is too sharp to miss, and the chilling effect on legitimate pedagogy should concern anyone who values universities as places of difficult intellectual work."
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