fbpx

Professor On Leave After Tweeting ‘COVID-19 Is Another Jewish Revolution’

A professor at a university in Michigan has been placed on administrative leave after the student newspaper unearthed a series of his anti-Semitic tweets.
[additional-authors]
November 25, 2020
Photo by Michael Barera/Wikimedia Commons

A professor at a university in Michigan has been placed on administrative leave after the student newspaper unearthed a series of his anti-Semitic tweets.

The Torch first reported on November 18 that Ferris State University Astronomy and Physics Professor Thomas Brennan’s past tweets included “Covid19 is another jewish revolution” as well as various references to the “Jewish mafia.” He also has tweets referring to COVID-19 as a hoax and calling the Holocaust a “Zionist eugenics program.”

On November 23, University President David L. Eisler released a statement announcing that Brennan was placed on leave on November 19 and that the university is investigating Brennan over his tweets.

“Last week the University learned of racist, anti-Semitic and homophobic slurs made on Twitter that appear to be posted by Thomas Brennan, an assistant physical science professor in the College of Arts, Sciences and Education,” Eisler said. “Individually and collectively we were shocked and outraged by these tweets. They are extremely offensive and run counter to the values of our University and our commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion. Our students, faculty, staff and members of the community are upset and offended by these comments, and they should be.”

He added that in August, Brennan had “disrupted a College of Arts, Sciences and Education Zoom meeting” where “he expressed via video and chat that COVID-19 death rates in the United States were exaggerated, and the pandemic and rioting were leftist stunts. These comments both surprised and offended those attending the meeting. Dean Williams addressed this in a message to the College’s faculty and staff, and disciplined Dr. Brennan.”

Eisler concluded his statement with a call for the university to unite and “begin to repair the damage from these actions.”

Brennan responded with a statement of his own on November 23, calling The Torch article “a hit piece” and denied being “a science-denier, racist and anti-Semite.” He stated that while he doesn’t believe the pandemic as a hoax, the “severity is being exaggerated by revolutionary leftists in the media and government who ‘never let a good crisis go to waste.’ The end result of this hysteria, if left unchecked, will be a mandatory vaccine.” He also added that this would result in the need for electronic vaccination certifications to enter public places and will manifest “in the form of injectable or micro or nanotechnology in the vaccine itself” which would be a sign “of the mark of the beast.”

The professor then stated that he uses his Twitter account to push the envelope and “sometimes say things that sounds inflammatory or strange” and now he’s a victim of cancel culture. He then addressed some of the specific tweets, arguing that one of his tweets used the word “n—–” in one of his tweets to “try and neutralize its power” and that he supports Israel and that believes the Holocaust was real.

“The Holocaust was perpetuated against the Jews in order to hijack their nation and take them hostage,” Brennan said. “Hitler and the Nazis were the mean to this end. Hitler was a golem, an evil monster whose rise to power only happened because he had financial support from global elites in the United States, Great Britain and other countries.”

Brennan also said that “only a small number of” Jewish elites are involved in an “international conspiracy” and that most of the elites in this conspiracy aren’t Jewish.

“Israel and the Jews should not be blamed for the crimes of a small number of mobsters like Jeffrey Epstein or Ghislaine Maxwell who used pedophile blackmail to control American politicians,” Brennan said.

 

The Stop Antisemitism.org watchdog tweeted, “These people are teaching young, impressionable students.”

Did you enjoy this article?
You'll love our roundtable.

Editor's Picks

Latest Articles

Sushi Day Recipes with Marisa Baggett

Whether you’re a longtime sushi lover or a newbie to preparing this creative cuisine, Baggett’s recipes are a delicious way to mark the holiday.

What Antisemitism Requires of Us

The current Jewish debate cannot end with a choice between fighting antisemites and strengthening Jewish life. Both are necessary, but neither fully answers what this moment requires.

Is History Asking Too Much of Us?

The question for the Jewish people today is not merely whether we believe in the future but whether we are willing to become the kind of people that the future requires.

Rosner’s Domain | Can Israel’s Image Be Fixed?

Israelis view themselves as fighting for survival, just, fair, moral and brave, while the rest of the world sees something else entirely, viewing Israel as a country that has lost its brakes, destabilizing the order and running amok without justification.

Nothing to Fear but Fear

If I toss out a can of baked beans that expired one day earlier for fear of botulism, what do you think goes through my mind when it comes to bears, mountain lions, sharks and rattlesnakes?

The Many-States Solution

As we weigh the benefits and downsides of a potential two-state solution, the unguaranteed but plausible prospect of an unprecedented regional peace should be considered as part of that discussion.

What Can AI Do for Us?

The question is not whether Jewish communities will use AI; they already are. The question is whether we will adopt these tools passively, or shape them deliberately according to Jewish values, Jewish learning, and Jewish responsibility.

More news and opinions than at a Shabbat dinner, right in your inbox.