We work for you \u2014 and we\u2019re matching your donation 1:1! <\/strong>Our journalists attend city council and school board meetings, follow tips and make the calls to keep you informed on the important issues in Berkeley. Will you chip in today?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Yes, double my Berkeleyside donation with your matching gift!<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n Faculty and student groups are calling on UC Berkeley to reinstate a lecturer suspended over his in-classroom comments about the war in Gaza<\/a>, while the university\u2019s provost pledged Friday to work with faculty members to clarify policies on academic freedom.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The university told computer science lecturer Peyrin Kao earlier this month it was placing him on six months of unpaid leave<\/a>, citing an optional post-class session<\/a> in which he talked about the relationship between tech companies and the Israeli military \u2014 ending with \u201cFree Palestine\u201d \u2014 and a separate incident in which he said during class that he was on hunger strike<\/a> for a cause he believed in.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Kao\u2019s suspension is one of the biggest flashpoints yet in an ongoing debate over how best to preserve free speech at Cal as universities across the country face political pressure from the Trump administration. Students have launched hunger strikes and held a teach-in to protest UC Berkeley\u2019s move, and about 1,200 students, faculty and alumni have signed a petition<\/a> urging Kao\u2019s reinstatement. The student newspaper, the Daily Californian, slammed the decision<\/a> in an editorial Monday. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Kao became a prominent campus critic of Israel\u2019s campaign in Gaza during his 38-day hunger strike<\/a> earlier this year. He was among the 160 people named in documents related to antisemitism investigations<\/a> that the university shared with the Trump administration.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In recommending that he be disciplined, Provost Benjamin Hermalin cited a University of California policy that bars \u201cmisuse of the classroom\u201d and \u201cpolitical indoctrination\u201d of students. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Critics of the decision say the little-known policy, Regents Policy 2301<\/a>, is being unfairly applied to target pro-Palestinian speech.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWe believe that discipline on this basis threatens the faculty\u2019s fundamental political freedoms as citizens,\u201d the Berkeley Faculty Association, a progressive group that represents about 20% of the university\u2019s tenure-track faculty, wrote in a letter to Chancellor Rich Lyons.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The Faculty Association noted that other University of California policies grant professors freedom of expression<\/a> and the right to present controversial material, as long as there is not \u201csignificant intrusion of material unrelated to the course.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n And it took issue with the university using Kao\u2019s hunger strike and comments he made about it to the press as part of the case against him, since those activities took place outside the classroom.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Celeste Langan, an English professor who sits on the association\u2019s board, said faculty are especially troubled because Kao \u2014 who had been previously cautioned by administrators not talk about the war during class time \u2014 had taken pains to make his comments in an informal session after class had officially ended and he had told students they were free to leave.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cHe tried very hard to obey the rules, and then he was accused of violating their spirit,\u201d said Langan. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Hermalin\u2019s review of Kao\u2019s case said that while the lecturer\u2019s five-minute-long comments about Gaza took place after class time, students might have been blindsided by their content, or had trouble leaving the room before they began. And he said Kao\u2019s hunger strike amounted to in-class advocacy because students could \u201cpresumably\u201d see the physical toll it was taking, and because he shared a link to a website where they could learn the reason for his protest. <\/p>\n\n\n\n A report by UC Berkeley law students on anti-Palestinian discrimination at Cal<\/a> cites one other instance of an instructor being disciplined under Regents Policy 2301. A teaching assistant in a socio-cultural anthropology course reported receiving a warning letter after she shared a statement with students on Zoom that criticized the omission of Palestine from class discussions about colonialism.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Berkeley Faculty Association leaders said they were not aware of any other cases. UC Berkeley spokesperson Janet Gilmore did not respond to a question about whether other faculty had ever been disciplined under the policy, saying the university doesn\u2019t comment on confidential personnel matters. <\/p>\n\n\n\n In a letter sent Friday to the chair and vice-chair of the university\u2019s Academic Senate, a separate body that officially represents tenure-track faculty, Hermalin acknowledged that the university\u2019s policies around academic freedom needed clarification.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI want to thank you for sharing your understandable concerns about our commitment to academic freedom,\u201d he wrote. Without directly addressing the Peyrin Kao case, he asked faculty members to work with him to make sure that guidance to instructors about Regents Policy 2301 is clear and \u201ccases of classroom misuse, while infrequent, can be handled in a principled and consistent manner.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Among the questions he said faculty and administrators should discuss: Who gets to decide whether statements made by an instructor are relevant to a course? How much can professors communicate their views without students feeling pressure to agree with them? What about non-verbal communication, like having a Zoom background that advocates for a particular point of view?<\/p>\n\n\n\n Hermalin also hinted at the pressure university administrators are under in a politically polarized environment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWe continually manage complaints from students, parents and others about course content,\u201d he wrote. \u201cBecause we do not wish, in any way, to be seen as chilling academic freedom, we rarely share these complaints with instructors, because even a simple heads up from (administrators) can be misconstrued as pressure.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWe are all aware of calls, including from elected officials, for us to discipline or dismiss faculty for their writings and social media posts,\u201d he added. \u201cWe have never done so, nor will we.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n The university has cited student complaints as one reason for Kao\u2019s suspension. Academic Senate chair Mark Stacey said Hermalin\u2019s letter came after an in-person meeting, though he didn\u2019t say what was discussed or who was included in the meeting. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Lecturers, who tend to be earlier in their careers and have less job security, are subject to different disciplinary procedures than tenure-track faculty. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The university\u2019s Academic Senate investigates and makes recommendations on discipline for tenure-track faculty in a complex, multi-step process. Lecturers accused of misconduct are entitled to a hearing in which they can respond to the charges, and can dispute them through their union. Kao\u2019s union, the University Council-AFT, has filed a grievance arguing UC Berkeley did not have just cause to suspend him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n On Friday, about a dozen student protesters from the group STEM 4 Palestine huddled in the rain outside California Hall, the building that houses the chancellor\u2019s office, and taped a copy of the petition calling for Kao\u2019s reinstatement to the door.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cUC Berkeley\u2019s administration has exhibited a dangerous willingness to interpret regents policy at whim to punish faculty for their activity, speech, and intentions as observed outside of the classroom,\u201d read the petition. It also called on the university to divest from weapons manufacturing and \u201centities directly involved in the apartheid and genocide in Palestine,\u201d and was signed by former NFL player Marshawn Lynch and philosopher Judith Butler, among other faculty, alumni and students.<\/p>\n\n\n\n A member of the group rang the doorbell and asked if they could enter to deliver the petition to the chancellor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cNo, you cannot,\u201d a voice answered. \u201cHave a nice day.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Some of the protesters had fasted for several days in solidarity with Kao, including third-year philosophy and computer science major Stephen Okita. \u201cPeyrin is genuinely loved by the students,\u201d Okita said in an earlier interview with Berkeleyside, pointing out the lecturer\u2019s 4.9 rating on the site RateMyProfessors.com<\/a>. \u201cHe\u2019s a really nice guy and it\u2019s just a really big shame, it\u2019s just complete injustice from the university.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n He added that he thought the ethics of STEM were an appropriate topic for classroom discussion. \u201cIt\u2019s really sad seeing CS students just go into exams and come out and work for Palantir or Google and just participate in the destruction of the world.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Kao himself stood quietly at the side of the group, holding a sign that read \u201cNo Tech 4 Genocide.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI don\u2019t think this is really for me,\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s for the cause. What we\u2019re here for is to show that the university has a double standard where they claim to be pro-free speech but at the same time uphold the Palestine exception to free speech.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Berkeleyside partners with the nonprofit newsroom Open Campus<\/a> on higher education coverage.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n December 9, 2025<\/p>\n\n\n\n October 3, 2025<\/p>\n\n\n\n September 12, 2025<\/p>\n\n\n\n These are uncertain times. Democracy is under threat in myriad ways, including the right of a free press to report the truth without fear of repercussions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n One thing is certain, however: Berkeleyside was built for moments like these. We believe wholeheartedly that an informed community is a strong community, so we’re doubling down on our mission of reporting the stories that empower and connect you when it matters most.<\/p>\n\n\n\n If you value the news you read in this article, please help us keep it going strong in 2026.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n We’ve set a goal to raise $180,000 by year-end and we’re counting on our readers to help us get there. And a bonus: Any gift you make will be matched through Dec. 31 \u2014 so $50 becomes $100, $200 becomes $400. <\/strong>Will you make a donation now in support of nonprofit journalism for Berkeley?<\/p>\n\n\n\n Tracey Taylor Yes, I’ll donate to power local journalism for Berkeley!<\/a>Send a note to the editors.*<\/p>\n\n\n\n Have a comment on this story? See an error that needs correcting? Have a tip, question or suggestion? Drop us a line.<\/p>\n\n\n\n 0 of 600 max charactersEmail*NamePhoneWould you like to be anonymous?NoYes<\/p>\n\n\n\n If you reply “no,” we may publish your comment in a story or newsletter under your name.Israel-Palestine<\/a>UC Berkeley<\/a><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n felicia@berkeleyside.org<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n Felicia Mello covers UC Berkeley and other East Bay colleges as Berkeleyside\u2019s senior reporter for higher education. She works in partnership with Open Campus, a nonprofit newsroom focused on strengthening… More by Felicia Mello<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" After pushback from faculty, Cal\u2019s provost says he wants to open a dialogue on academic freedom. Students circulated a petition to reinstate Peyrin Kao and a few have fasted in solidarity. by\u00a0Felicia MelloDec. 23, 2025 (Berkeleyside.org) We work for you \u2014 and we\u2019re matching your donation 1:1! Our journalists attend city… Continue reading ![\"\"\/](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/assets.citysidejournalism.org\/asset\/4dbc5107-08a1-40c8-830a-4a195a0f805f\/large\/20251211_UCBerTeachin_EG_24.jpg?w=780&ssl=1\")
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Provost solicits faculty input on interpreting UC policies on academic freedom<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Some student protesters fasted in solidarity with Kao before attempting to deliver petition to Chancellor Lyons<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Related stories<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
![\"UC](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/newspack-berkeleyside-cityside.s3.amazonaws.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/large-20251002_PeyrinKao_EG_03.jpg?resize=1200%2C900&ssl=1\")
<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\nUC Berkeley suspends lecturer for sharing pro-Palestinian views in his classroom<\/a><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\nCal sent his name to the Trump administration. He\u2019s still kept up a 38-day hunger strike for Gaza.<\/a><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\nUC Berkeley shares 160 names of students, staff with Trump administration in \u2018McCarthy era\u2019 move<\/a><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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<\/figure>\n\n\n\nLet’s be real …<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Co-founder, Berkeleyside<\/p>\n\n\n\n