Stanford DEI dean on leave after interrupting and confronting federal judge during campus event
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
The associate dean of diversity, equity and inclusion at Stanford Law School is on leave after she was seen on video not doing anything to stop protesters from shouting down a Trump-appointed federal judge who was invited to give a talk at the school.
"Associate Dean Tirien Steinbach is currently on leave. Generally speaking, the university does not comment publicly on pending personnel matters, and so I will not do so at this time," Jenny S. Martinez, the dean of Stanford Law, wrote Wednesday in a memo to the school's community, which was obtained by Fox News Digital.
Protests broke out at the school earlier this month when Judge Kyle Duncan, who serves on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, was invited to speak by conservative legal organization the Federalist Society.
Students shouted at him while holding protest signs on March 9, preventing him from delivering his planned talk. Among the protesters' complaints was how Duncan refused to use a transgender sex offender's preferred pronouns in a 2020 opinion.
Tirien Steinbach, the Stanford University Law School associate dean of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, slams U.S. Circuit Court Judge Kyle Duncan during his presentation at the school as an invited guest on March 9, 2023.(Screenshot/ Vimeo - Ethics and Public Policy Center)
Various videos of the incident show Steinbach not stopping any of the protesters, and at one point even appeared to smirk at a protester's sign during the incident.
Martinez highlighted in her memo Wednesday that Steinbach has received "hateful and threatening messages" following "viral online and media attention."
"Actionable threats that come to our attention will be investigated and addressed as the law permits," she added.
Martinez added in the lengthy memo that "the protest violated the university's policy on disruption."
"Stanford's event disruption policy gives attendees a right to hold signs and to demonstrate disagreement in other ways as long as the methods used do not 'prevent or disrupt the effective carrying out of a University function or approved activity, such as lectures, meetings, interviews, ceremonies… and public events,'" she wrote.
Martinez explained that while some protesters at the gathering stayed within bounds of the school's policies, others "crossed the line in sustained heckling that disrupted the event."
Stanford Law's associate dean of diversity, equity and inclusion Tirien Steinbach is seen during a protest against U.S. Circuit Court Judge Kyle Duncan.(Fox News Digital)
After Duncan was unable to deliver his planned remarks, Steinbach took over and alleged that Duncan causes "harm" through his work as a federal judge. Steinbach also said she was "uncomfortable" by the anger over Duncan's presence on campus.
"I had to write something down because I am so uncomfortable up here. And I don't say that for sympathy. I just say that I am deeply, deeply uncomfortable," Steinbach said, standing feet from Duncan. "I'm uncomfortable because this event is tearing at the fabric of this community that I care about and I'm here to support."
The outburst from protesters led to calls for the school to apologize to the judge, and Republican Texas Sen. Ted Cruz suggested the school reprimand students involved.
A petition from First Amendment group Speech First also circulated calling for Steinbach's removal.
Martinez and Stanford President Marc Tessier-Lavigne ultimately apologized to Duncan in a letter earlier this month, with Martinez doubling down on the apology in her memo on Wednesday.
"The President of the University and I have apologized to Judge Duncan for a very simple reason — to acknowledge that his speech was disrupted in ways that undermined his ability to deliver the remarks he wanted to give to audience members who wanted to hear them, as a result of the failure to ensure that the university's disruption policies were followed," she wrote.
A general view of the buildings of the Main Quadrangle and Hoover Tower on the campus of Stanford University in Palo Alto, California.(David Madison/Getty Images)
The initial apology however, drew more outrage from protesters, with hundreds of students gathering outside of Martinez's classroom last week while wearing masks reading "counter-speech is free speech."
Martinez said in her lengthy Wednesday memo that "the Federalist Society has the same rights of free association that other student organizations at the law school have."
"Students calling for the law school administration to restrict the organization or the speakers it can bring to campus are demanding action inconsistent not only with freedom of speech but with rights to freedom of association that civil rights lawyers fought hard in the twentieth century to secure," she wrote.
Martinez wrote that free speech training will be required for both administrators and students in order to ensure compliance with university policy.
"[I]t should be obvious that the role of any administrators present will be to ensure that university rules on disruption of events will be followed, and staff will receive additional training in that regard," she wrote.
Martinez announced that "as one first step the law school will be holding a mandatory half-day session in spring quarter for all students on the topic of freedom of speech and the academic norms of the legal profession."
Martinez said that the Federalist Society is entitled to the same free speech rights as any other student organization on campus.
"Protest is allowed, but disruption is not allowed," the dean wrote.
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The post-modern American Universty where free speech & freedom of thought are seldom allowed. Chalk up a minor victory for both after the Stanford dean was forced to act. The dean also later wrote that we must protect free speech. Her defense of free speech is refreshing.
Tirien Steinbach has written an op-ed in the WSJ in which she claims the juice is not worth the squeeze. That is the progressive view.
The letter from Martinez is much better than I expected. She didn’t really cave and provided a plausible reason for not punishing the students in that an administrator was present and sanctioning their behavior.
I felt the same way.
I may have to take Stanford Law off my shit list.
It didn't look like she did anything in the video. She just sat there.
The same as Trump did on Jan 6th.
When he should have been telling them to go home.
Actually, he did, though one could argue that it was a bit late:
“I know how you feel, but go home and go home in peace. I know you’re in pain. I know you’re hurt,” Trump said in a one minute video address released on his Twitter account."
Trump releases statement telling supporters in DC to go home (nypost.com)
No, she ranted and raved for several minutes.
Not in the video I saw.
That's what you do when you are the Dean of DEI and support the suppression of free speech.
Spot on!
One of the more crazier things I've learned from this incident is Stanford basically has an administrator for every student. If you ever wonder why costs have skyrocketed...
Wow!
That is crazy.
Just looked and my undergrad college is about three students to one employee.
"associate dean of diversity, equity and inclusion at Stanford Law School"
What a waste of money
Yep, colleges are experts at wasting their customers money. That’s okay though. Online options are eating their lunch more and more each day.
Brick and mortar colleges will continue to lose market share until they get their act together. If that can even happen .....
Steinbach must have forgotten that the only people allowed to scream and disrupt are the MAGA. Her social skills need to be brought in line.
ed to scream and disrupt are the MAGA.
Right. Please provide an example of Maga people shouting down a speaker at a University with the encouragement of an administrator.
Never saw a town hall? Or a school board meeting?
As it should be. I watched the video, and she was100% out of line and flat out wrong. She should have been chastising the nepo babies heckling a judge during a disscusion.