The University of Minnesota agreed to pay Holocaust studies scholar Raz Segal $250,000 to settle a dispute over the withdrawal of a job offer. Segal, an Israeli American academic, had been offered a position to lead the institution’s Center for Holocaust and Genocide Studies in June 2024.
The university rescinded the offer five days after extending it, following public criticism of Segal’s statements regarding Israel’s military actions in Gaza. In an op-ed published in Jewish Currents the week following Hamas’s October 7, 2023 attack on Israel, Segal characterized Israel’s military response as a “textbook case of genocide.” Two professors on the center’s advisory board resigned in protest of his hiring.
Documents obtained through public records requests revealed that donors had communicated concerns about the appointment to university leadership. In messages to the university’s interim president Jeff Ettinger, donors characterized certain of Segal’s statements as containing language they viewed as offensive and warned that fundraising efforts for the center could be negatively affected by his hiring. One donor email specifically mentioned the possibility of Jewish donors withdrawing support from the university.
Segal responded to the settlement by stating that the controversy represented a contradiction, noting his background as a Jewish scholar whose family includes Holocaust survivors. He framed his position on the Gaza conflict as consistent with his academic focus on genocide prevention.
The University of Minnesota characterized the settlement as containing no admission of liability or wrongdoing by either party. A university spokesperson indicated the institution remains committed to its educational mission. Segal currently holds a position as associate professor of Holocaust and genocide studies at Stockton University in New Jersey, where he directs a master’s degree program in the field.
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