Following University of Texas at Austin School of Law attorney Rhiannon Hamam’s praise of the October 7 terrorist attacks on Israeli civilians by Hamas, a U.S. representative from Texas has called for her removal.
Hamam, an employee of the university’s Ginni Mithoff Program, co-hosts a show called the Popular Cradle Podcast. According to higher education watchdog organization Campus Reform, the podcast was launched in partnership with the Palestinian Youth Movement—which has a track record of supporting terrorism.
“Just as I condemned the antisemitic words and actions of faculty at Cornell University, my alma mater, so too do I condemn Rhiannon Hamam’s bloodthirsty ideology and support of terrorism,” U.S. Rep. Beth Van Duyne (R—24) told Campus Reform.
“The actions and abhorrent nature of faculty such as Hamam are one more reason why many in Congress continue to pursue avenues to restrict or remove federal funding from universities who shield and tolerate these barbarians on campus,” she continued.
Van Duyne argued that Hamam’s social media posts, which reportedly include “Glory to Our Martyrs,” should bar the attorney from employment at the Texas university.
“Such a statement glorifying the mass slaughter of innocent Jewish civilians, including babies who were cooked in ovens, Holocaust survivors gunned down in cold blood, and the use of horrifically violent rape as a weapon of war must absolutely disqualify Hamam from holding a position within such a prestigious and well-respected school of law,” Van Duyne told Campus Reform.
Her statement ended with a call for the university to investigate and terminate Hamam from the faculty.
Hamam was also reportedly one of the 57 individuals at a UT Austin pro-Palestinian protest who were arrested in April of this year for criminal trespass. However, all charges against the group have been dropped.
Other examples previously covered by Texas Scorecard highlight a trend of higher education instructors expressing support for terrorist organizations.
For example, a professor at Texas A&M University last year taught that Hamas was a “charity organization.” Sena Karasipahi also said that the group was a “humanitarian organization.”
Another professor at Texas Tech University named Jairo Funez-Flores has a history of publicly posting antisemitic remarks online. For example, in February, he cursed Israel, the country, and the Super Bowl, saying “F*** the Super Bowl, the US, Israel, and everyone else who doesn’t care about what’s happening in Rafah.” Other posts from the professor include obscene and vulgar language directed at Israel and its supporters.
UT Austin did not respond to Texas Scorecard‘s request for comment.
