Sonya Posmentier, a tenured faculty member at NYU, has built a public persona not only as a literary scholar but as a radical activist who openly supports extremist pro-Palestinian movements, spreads disinformation about Israel, and helps dismantle standards for campus safety and academic neutrality. Her rhetoric, teaching, and public advocacy all point to a systematic erosion of boundaries between education and ideological indoctrination.
A Pattern of Defending Extremism
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In March 2024, Posmentier criticized NYU for closing public access to an SJP event—defending it despite the group’s known history of glorifying terrorism and spreading antisemitic rhetoric.
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Signed a statement of support for Helyeh Doutaghi, a Yale Law instructor suspended for ties to a terrorist organization, minimizing the allegations as a violation of academic freedom.
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Has repeatedly signed letters whitewashing Hamas and defending “resistance”, including an October 2023 letter that justified attacks against Israeli civilians in the name of Palestinian liberation.
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Posmentier claims that the use of the term “Zionist” in hostile student rhetoric is wrongly categorized as antisemitic—an argument that excuses coded hate speech targeting Jewish students.
Actively Promoting Dangerous Narratives
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In a 2025 rally near Columbia University, Posmentier told fellow faculty they should “take on some of that risk” for students protesting Israel—encouraging faculty to align with individuals who glorify Hamas and advocate for Israel’s destruction.
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Claimed publicly that “the normal functioning of the university is letting right-wing supremacist terror groups threaten to blow up our students”—a baseless and inflammatory accusation aimed at deflecting from real threats facing Jewish students on campus.
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Arrested in 2024 alongside other radical NYU faculty after participating in a banned pro-Palestinian protest. She was later declared persona non grata on campus.
Deep Ties to Anti-Israel Infrastructure
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Posmentier is a longtime supporter of the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) movement, having signed multiple NYU and Princeton-based statements demanding the university divest from companies linked to Israel.
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She is aligned with Jews for Racial and Economic Justice, a fringe organization that amplifies antisemitic voices under the guise of progressive Jewish identity.
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In her own public comments, she has worked to normalize the conflation of Hamas’s terrorism with “resistance” and insists on viewing any condemnation of such acts as an attack on academic freedom.
Bottom Line:
Sonya Posmentier is not just another activist professor—she is an institutional enabler of extremism. From excusing terrorism to attacking Jewish students under the pretense of equity, she has helped foster an academic culture where hate is protected and accountability is condemned. Her position at NYU gives dangerous movements legitimacy—and students deserve better.
