Is the tide turning against anti-Israel protests at companies and universities?

Without permission, two Microsoft employees held a vigil for ‘victims of the Palestinian genocide” last Thursday at the company’s headquarters in Washington state. Later that same day, both event organizers were fired.

“Due to privacy and confidentiality concerns, we cannot provide specific details,” Microsoft shared in an email statement the next day. It did clarify that it “terminated the employment of certain individuals” – Abdo Mohamed and Hossam Nasr – “in accordance with internal policies,” and that it “remains committed to maintaining a professional and respectful work environment.”

According to The Jerusalem Post, Mohamed and Nasr were “part of a coalition of Microsoft employees calling themselves ‘No Azure for Apartheid’ in alleged protest against the sale of Microsoft’s cloud computing technology to Israeli government.”

The former Microsoft employees told The Associated Press says Microsoft has “many community members … who have lost family, friends or loved ones.” Mohamed felt that “Microsoft really didn’t have the space for us where we can come together and share our grief and honor the memories of people who can no longer speak for themselves.”

However, some outlets do marked the fact that of the two, “Nasr had previously been subject to internal investigations by Microsoft on more than one occasion, including for posting anti-Semitic memes online, according to his social media.” He was too exposed for calling Microsoft “an evil Zionist company facilitating and enabling genocide” in an Instagram post.

“Nasr co-founded Harvard Alumni for Palestine,” The Post Millennial reported“and co-chaired the university’s Palestine Solidarity Committee, an alternative name for Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP), which is linked to terrorism and the anti-Semitic Boycott, Divest, Sanction movement against the Jewish state.”

Mohammad, the outlet added, shared on LinkedIn that “he must find a new job in the next 60 days or he will be deported.”

Since then Hamas attacked Israel on October 7, 2023, there were numerous and consistent protests around the world. Over the past year, largely due to left-wing activism, there have been cases of anti-Semitism “rose by 200% compared to the same period the year before.”

Several universities faced anti-Israel protests that caused chaos campuses. In many cases, Jewish students were denied access to class as Hamas supporters took up positions encampments and barriers. In July, anti-Semitic activists went to Union Station in Washington, D.C., abort and burning American flags and assaulting police officers. Many of these protests went largely without consequence.

It now appears that an increasing number of universities and companies are choosing to address destructive and disruptive behavior.

Microsoft’s decision to fire Mohamed and Nasr is not a unique occurrence. Google in April dismissed up to 50 employees in connection with the actions of the group “No Tech for Apartheid” that protested “the company’s cloud computing contract with the Israeli government.” Earlier this month, Brown University’s Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) group attended suspended for “alleged threats and intimidating actions during a campus event” such as “banging on cars, yelling obscene language, and making racist comments toward others.” The daily caller explained how “the demonstrators protested the university’s decision not to divest from ten companies linked to Israel, next a divestment vote on October 9.”

When asked whether companies in general are starting to adopt stricter rules around protests, Chris Gacek, senior fellow for regulatory affairs at the Family Research Councilreplied: “Every company has its own culture.”

“It strikes me that maybe there is some kind of recognition that in order to run a company like Microsoft,” there has to be “some kind of free range of ideas and expression,” he told The Washington Stand, adding admits: “These kinds of things can’t really happen,” with employees putting their opinions first without company approval.

In addition, Gacek addressed the likelihood that some companies, such as Microsoft, will at least recognize that “October 7 was a big problem.” It can be “a daunting admission,” he pointed out, and it is to the benefit of organizations to be alert to how they respond to it. However, Gacek ultimately came to the conclusion that what is unfolding might be something we just have to let play out.

Only Microsoft can provide the exact reasons why it fired Mohammed and Nasr, and it has chosen not to do so.

“We are not part of the company,” Gacek noted. “It’s one thing to read it from an outside story,” but from the inside, many of these organizations that are starting to shut down protests could simply find themselves in a position where they’ve just had enough. ‘ and ‘don’t want to change their business in… (an) environment that is politicized and dirty.’

Microsoft and others are responding to “a lot of things in the culture right now,” Gacek added. “Reasonable people can see the coercive nature of Israel’s treatment.”

“Maybe the tide is turning,” he speculated.

Originally published on WashingtonStand.com