Thread by @CUJewsIsraelis

THREAD: There’s a lot of misinformation running around about Grant Miner, president of @Columbia’s graduate student union, and the reason for his expulsion. @UAW and other orgs have been trying to turn this into a labor or free speech issue. It’s not. Let’s clear things up. 🧵

First, let’s make things clear. Grant is not a “peace activist”. On Oct 9th, 2023, he was photographed at a protest holding a sign justifying Oct 7th: “Resistance against occupation is a human right!”. Oct 7th was not "resistance", it was terrorism.

On Oct 12th, 2023, Grant, then vice president of the union, sent an email to the union supporting a statement praising Oct 7th. Grant called Hamas a "militant group" and Oct 7th a "military action". Instead of supporting Jewish union members, Grant actively made their lives worse

April 2024. Grant and the union decided to abuse privileges granted to them under labor law and prevent @Columbia from taking action against CUAD protests by co-sponsoring them. SWC sent out an email saying that all students "must" attend the protest against "the Zionist Entity".

In support of the protest, which featured discriminatory chants of "Zionists off campus now", Grant gave a speech trying to turn Palestine into a "labor issue". If SWC's officially stated position is "Zionists off campus", how can they fairly represent Jewish and Israeli members?

None of this has to do with Grant's suspension though. Grant was expelled because he was arrested at @Columbia's encampment in April, and then arrested again as part of the takeover of Hamilton Hall. It's very simple – Grant broke the rules, and he faced the consequences.

In contrast to what @SW_Columbia and @UAW have been trying to claim, Grant's expulsion had nothing to do with his role as SWC's president. Other students arrested in Hamilton were also expelled. Grant, we know it may hurt to hear this, but you aren't special.

Additionally, Grant wasn't intentionally expelled the day before bargaining, as some have claimed. The disciplinary process had dragged on for months, and it finally reached its natural conclusion. Again, Grant's expulsion had nothing to do with his role as union president!

In response to claims that Grant was "fired", @Columbia said: “It is unfortunate that @SW_Columbia and UAW are attempting to conflate student discipline with employment matters. ... it is simply incorrect to state anyone was ‘fired’ as a result of the UJB disciplinary process...”

So let's make this clear. Grant Miner's expulsion is not a free speech issue. It is not a labor issue. He was arrested and expelled for taking over a campus building. Grow up and stop lying. And @SW_Columbia – maybe focus on your members that actually still go to @Columbia...