Oberlin College has suspended a long-controversial professor who called for the elimination of Israel after sexual harassment allegations against him came to light.
The private Ohio liberal arts college just outside of Cleveland has put tenured professor Mohammad Jafar Mahallati on indefinite administrative leave and scrubbed him from the school&#8217;s website.
&#8220;Professor Mahallati was placed on indefinite administrative leave on November 28,&#8221; an Oberlin spokeswoman <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/us/woke-colleges-professor-peace-ousted-alleged-war-crimes-antisemitism-sexual-misconduct" target="_blank" rel="noopener">confirmed</a> to Fox News.
Mahallati <a href="https://www.oberlin.edu/mohammad-jafar-mahallati" target="_blank" rel="noopener">taught</a> religion as well as Middle East and North Africa studies and has previously called himself a “professor of peace.”
However, Mahallati is accused of supporting the Palestinian terror group Hamas, giving students credit for writing anti-Israel blogs, and telling his classes in 2016 that “Israel is a colonialist state” and “Israel is an apartheid state.”
Oberlin made the call to suspend Mahallati after decades-old allegations that he once demanded sex in exchange for good grades surfaced.
Court papers from the 1990s obtained by the Middle East Forum and given to the New York Post allege that when Mahallati was an adjunct professor at Columbia University, a graduate student 11 years younger than he accused the 43-year-old married father of giving her good grades in exchange for sex.
Mahallati allegedly invited the woman to his home, supposedly to interview her for a research assistant position, but then “made repeated sexual advances” and promised good grades for sexual favors, she claimed. The two then had sexual encounters at his office as well as at his Manhattan apartment for 15 months, she alleged.
Mahallati allegedly threatened to withhold her grade if she did not stay silent, and when she did go to Columbia’s administration, he accused her of fraudulently submitting the same paper twice, the woman claimed.
The woman, a 32-year-old Palestinian Christian, sued both Mahallati and Columbia at the time, accusing the professor of trying to damage her reputation and academic career.
Mahallati denied the claims at the time in 1997 and tried to claim diplomatic immunity even though he had not been Iran’s ambassador to the United Nations since 1989.
“We take all allegations of sexual harassment and abuse extremely seriously,” a spokeswoman for Oberlin <a href="https://nypost.com/2023/12/06/news/campus-anti-semite-suspended-after-sex-for-grades-claim/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">told</a> the New York Post. “We would not hire a faculty member who we knew to have a history of sexual harassment of a student, colleague or staff member.”
Mahallati, 71, has also taught at Georgetown and Princeton.
In September, the Department of Education <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/federal-anti-semitism-probe-launched-into-oberlin-college-over-professor-of-peace-who-called-for-israels-elimination" target="_blank" rel="noopener">launched</a> a federal anti-Semitism probe into Oberlin College over Mahallati. The investigation is examining whether Oberlin violated Title VI, which protects students from discrimination based on race or national origin.
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The probe could result in Oberlin losing some of the millions in federal funding it receives every year — last year the school received $5 million in federal grants.
While Iran’s ambassador to the United Nations, Mahallati is also accused of defending the Supreme Leader of Iran’s fatwa calling for the assassination of the novelist Salman Rushdie over Rushdie’s novel, “The Satanic Verses.”
Rushdie was <a href="https://nypost.com/2022/08/12/nj-man-matar-hadi-with-sympathies-toward-iran-arrested-in-stabbing-of-salman-rushdie/?utm_source=partner&amp;utm_campaign=conservnewsd" target="_blank" rel="noopener">stabbed</a> in 2022 by a supporter of the Iranian regime while speaking at an event in upstate New York.
Also while Iran’s ambassador, Mahallati <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/us/oberlin-professor-of-peace-iranian-ambassador-destruction-of-israel-1989-speech" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a> at the United Nations in 1989 that Palestinian-controlled land’s “occupation by Zionist usurpers is a transgression against all Muslims of the world and its liberation is therefore a great religious obligation and commitment.”
Mahallati’s classes at Oberlin were canceled in the spring. Previously, students boycotted and protested the professor’s classes, <a href="https://oberlinreview.org/26171/news/continued-college-inaction-provokes-second-protest-against-mahallati/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">alleging</a> that he covered up crimes against humanity in Iran in the 1980s.

Universities Anticipate High Numbers Of Students

Oberlin College Suspends ‘Professor Of Peace’ Who Called For Israel’s Elimination After Sexual Harassment Allegations

Oberlin College Suspends ‘Professor Of Peace’ Who Called For Israel’s Elimination After Sex Harassment Allegations

American Universities

College

Education

Hamas

Israel

Oberlin College

Sexual Harassment

Woke Culture

The Department of Education has launched a federal anti-semitism probe into Oberlin College over a professor of peace studies who called for the elimination of Israel.
The probe by the Education Department&#8217;s Office for Civil Rights was launched on September 29, the New York Post <a href="https://nypost.com/2023/11/02/news/oberlin-faces-federal-probe-over-antisemitism/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a>. The investigation is examining whether Oberlin violated Title VI, which protects students from discrimination based on race or national origin.
The probe could result in Oberlin losing some of the millions in federal funding it receives every year — last year the school received $5 million in federal grants.
The private Ohio liberal arts college just outside of Cleveland employs tenured professor Mohammad Jafar Mahallati, who <a href="https://www.oberlin.edu/mohammad-jafar-mahallati" target="_blank" rel="noopener">teaches</a> religion as well as Middle East and North Africa studies. Mahallati has previously called himself “professor of peace.”
The probe was spurred by a 2019 complaint from Oberlin College graduate Melissa Landa, who sent the Education Department a dossier of allegedly antisemitic incidents from between 2014 and 2017. The dossier focuses on Mahallati.
Mahallati is accused of supporting the Palestinian terror group Hamas and giving students credit for writing anti-Israel blogs as well as telling his classes in 2016 that “Israel is a colonialist state” and “Israel is an apartheid state.”
Mahallati, 71, was previously Iran’s ambassador to the United Nations. During that period, he is also accused of defending the Supreme Leader of Iran&#8217;s fatwa calling for the assassination of the novelist Salman Rushdie over Rushdie&#8217;s novel, &#8220;The Satanic Verses.&#8221;
Rushdie was <a href="https://nypost.com/2022/08/12/nj-man-matar-hadi-with-sympathies-toward-iran-arrested-in-stabbing-of-salman-rushdie/?utm_source=partner&amp;utm_campaign=conservnewsd" target="_blank" rel="noopener">stabbed</a> in 2022 by a supporter of the Iranian regime while speaking at an event in upstate New York.
Also while Iran&#8217;s ambassador, Mahallati <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/us/oberlin-professor-of-peace-iranian-ambassador-destruction-of-israel-1989-speech" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a> at the United Nations in 1989 that Palestinian-controlled land&#8217;s &#8220;occupation by Zionist usurpers is a transgression against all Muslims of the world and its liberation is therefore a great religious obligation and commitment.&#8221;
Mahallati has also taught at Columbia, Georgetown, and Princeton.
Mahallati&#8217;s classes at Oberlin were canceled in the spring. Previously, students boycotted and protested the professor&#8217;s classes, <a href="https://oberlinreview.org/26171/news/continued-college-inaction-provokes-second-protest-against-mahallati/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">alleging</a> that he covered up crimes against humanity in Iran in the 1980s.
An Oberlin spokeswoman <a href="https://nypost.com/2023/11/02/news/oberlin-faces-federal-probe-over-antisemitism/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">told</a> the Post that Mahallati was on “sabbatical” this semester.
The complaint against Oberlin also accuses the school of failing to protect Jewish students, saying that in 2014, members of Students for a Free Palestine at the school put over 2,000 black flags outside Rosh Hashanah services, allegedly implying that Jewish students were responsible for events in Israel.
The Department of Education&#8217;s probe comes after last month, when Hamas launched deadly terrorist attacks on Israel that killed more than 1,400 people, including children. Israel is now waging a massive counteroffensive, <a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/israel-hamas-war-gaza-palestinians-death-toll-ground-offensive-expected/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">launching</a> airstrikes in Hamas-controlled territory and preparing for a ground offensive.

ISRAEL-US-POLITICS-DIPLOMACY

Federal Anti-Semitism Probe Launched Into Oberlin College Over ‘Professor Of Peace’ Who Called For Israel’s Elimination

Federal Anti-Semitism Probe Launched Into Oberlin College Over 'Professor Of Peace' Who Called For Israel's Elimination

Department of Education

Iran

The head coach of the women’s lacrosse team at Oberlin College, a leftist <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/ohio" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Ohio</a>-based private school, feels that she has been effectively driven out of her job after she voiced opposition to allowing biological males to compete against females in women&#8217;s sports.
<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/burned-at-the-stake-lax-coach-at-uber-liberal-oberlin-college-targeted-over-trans-athlete-stance" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Kim Russell</a>, 56, says the environment at Oberlin has become so hostile that she&#8217;s uncomfortable showing up to work, National Review <a href="https://www.nationalreview.com/news/oberlin-womens-lacrosse-coach-refusing-to-return-to-campus-amid-backlash-over-her-opposition-to-men-in-womens-sports/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a> this week. She was previously demoted and targeted for her stance on transgender athletes, which was posted on a personal social media account.
“I have not gone into the office Monday or Tuesday, so my guess is they will be firing me shortly,” said Russell, who took time off Friday and has still not returned to work.
This summer, Russell made her treatment from Oberlin College public with a group called Independent Women&#8217;s Forum, outlining a series of disciplinary hearings and a bizarre team meeting where Russell was effectively made to listen to her own players shame her for her stance, and outline what they don&#8217;t like about her personally and professionally.
One of the players can be heard seemingly targeting Russell for her race, telling the coach she can’t just work to advance “white feminism.” Others suggested her views had an unacceptable “impact” on the school, which has a high “LGBTQ+ population.” Recalling the meeting, Russell said she felt &#8220;burned at the stake&#8221; and teared up as she expressed that she felt personally attacked &#8220;by these kids that I love.&#8221;
After Oberlin received attention for its treatment of Russell, the administration reportedly removed her from her coaching position and demoted her to “employee wellness project manager.”
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The school&#8217;s media relations department has said that Russell&#8217;s demotion is warranted for “her breach of trust rather than any views she has expressed,&#8221; National Review noted. Russell, feeling uneasy about the team meeting, secretly taped the event. Some of the recordings were included in the IWF&#8217;s video.
“This breach of trust — not her posts, feelings, or beliefs about trans athletes — is why she has been removed from her coaching duties,” the Oberlin spokeswoman said.
In response, Russell has highlighted what she describes as the college&#8217;s retaliatory treatment of her, prompting Russell to release the recordings.
“I’m at a loss anymore for what they’re doing,” she said of the college. “I’m not transphobic or transgressive or unsafe. This is about protecting women’s rights. This is about protecting women’s private spaces. I really don’t understand where the Me-Too movement is, what happened to it?”
<iframe loading="lazy" title="Burned at the Stake: One NCAA Coach&#039;s Battle to Protect Women&#039;s Sports" width="500" height="281" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/mI_OSkTZINc?feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen></iframe>
Related: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/burned-at-the-stake-lax-coach-at-uber-liberal-oberlin-college-targeted-over-trans-athlete-stance" target="_blank" rel="noopener">‘Burned At The Stake’: Lax Coach At Uber-Liberal Oberlin College Targeted Over Trans Athlete Stance</a>

Kim Russell

Lax Coach At Uber-Liberal Oberlin College Demoted, Feels Driven Out Over Trans Athlete Stance

Ohio

Social Issues

Transgender

Transgender Athletes

U.S.

Women's sports

The head coach of the women&#8217;s lacrosse team at progressive <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/ohio" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Ohio</a>-based private school Oberlin College has become a target after she posted a message on her personal Instagram account standing up for biological women in women&#8217;s sports.
Kim Russell, 56, was reportedly subjected to a series of disciplinary hearings after she shared a post congratulating female NCAA swimmer Emma Weyant, who lost her first-place podium spot to transgender athlete Lia Thomas at last year&#8217;s women&#8217;s swimming championships.
&#8220;What do you believe? I can’t be quiet on this … I’ve spent my life playing sports, starting &amp; coaching sports programs for girls &amp; women,&#8221; Russell captioned the Instagram post.
One of Russell&#8217;s players, whom the coach said she was close to, allegedly complained about Russell&#8217;s post to administration. Russell says she was swiftly scolded, told by the associate vice president of athletics that she was &#8220;filled with hate,&#8221; and asked to write an apology letter. But Russell refused.
&#8220;It is my job to be a voice for everyone who is too afraid, who needs to keep their job, who thinks they have to stay in line and toe whatever line that is, who is stuck in the mob and too afraid to rock the boat, because if I don&#8217;t speak out, who is going to speak?&#8221; Russell said in a video for Independent Women&#8217;s Forum (IWF).
Russell recalled being forced into a gathering with Diversity Equity and Inclusion (DEI) officials and her players, which she said turned out to be a gathering where she felt &#8220;burned at the stake&#8221; and personally attacked.
Notably, the coach recorded the meeting. One of the players can be heard seemingly targeting Russell for her race, telling the coach she can&#8217;t just work to advance &#8220;white feminism.&#8221; Others suggested her views had an unacceptable &#8220;impact&#8221; on the school, which has a high &#8220;LGBTQ+ population.&#8221;
&#8220;It is scientific that, biologically, males and females are different. Period,&#8221; a defiant Russell told IWF. &#8220;I don’t believe biological males should be in women’s locker rooms. Where’s the Me Too movement now? What happened to that?&#8221;
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Oberlin gave Fox News a statement claiming that the school is committed to free speech.
&#8220;Freedom to express one’s views is a cornerstone of our democracy and is certainly important to our Oberlin College community,&#8221; the statement said, adding that staffers should &#8220;reflect upon any potentially negative posts and the impact they could have upon your ability to effectively perform the roles and responsibilities of your job.&#8221;
Russell feels like she&#8217;ll soon be fired, though the school has declined to tell her if she&#8217;s broken any of their policies. The coach, though, says she&#8217;s ready for any storm that might be coming.
WATCH:
<iframe loading="lazy" title="Burned at the Stake: One NCAA Coach&#039;s Battle to Protect Women&#039;s Sports" width="500" height="281" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/mI_OSkTZINc?feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen></iframe>
Related: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/three-years-later-gibsons-bakery-finally-receives-36-million-from-oberlin-college-after-false-racism-claim" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Three Years Later, Gibson’s Bakery Finally Receives $36 Million From Oberlin College After False Racism Claim</a>

‘Burned At The Stake’: Lax Coach At Uber-Liberal Oberlin College Targeted Over Trans Athlete Stance

Lax Coach Kim Russell At Uber-Liberal Oberlin College Under Fire Over Trans Athlete Stance

LGBTQ

Oberlin College is suing four of its insurers after each refused to pay the school for the $36 million in damages it owed to the owners of Gibson’s Bakery, whom the college falsely accused of racism.
When Oberlin College was ordered to pay Gibson’s, the college suggested that the damages were merely a drop in the bucket for the school.
“The size of this verdict is significant. However, our careful financial planning, which includes insurance coverage, means that we can satisfy our legal obligation without impacting our academic and student experience,” the college said in a press release at the time.
But now those insurers have denied the college the millions it has already paid to the Gibson family, Legal Insurrection <a href="https://legalinsurrection.com/2023/08/oberlin-college-sues-insurers-for-refusing-to-cover-36-million-it-paid-gibsons-bakery-for-defamation-and-other-torts/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a>. The college filed the lawsuit in April, but it only came to light this week when The Chronicle-Telegram <a href="https://chroniclet.com/news/361165/oberlin-college-sues-4-insurance-companies-over-gibsons-bakery-settlement/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">obtained</a> a copy of the court filing.
Oberlin is suing Lexington Insurance Company, United Educators Insurance, Mount Hawley Insurance Company, and StarStone Specialty Insurance Company. The college claims the insurance companies wrongfully refused &#8220;to honor promises they made in their respective policies to protect the interests of Oberlin College&#8221; and its former vice president and dean of students, Meredith Raimondo, who helped lead the false charge against Gibson’s Bakery.
The college hopes the court will force the insurers to reimburse the college for the $36 million it has <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/three-years-later-gibsons-bakery-finally-receives-36-million-from-oberlin-college-after-false-racism-claim" target="_blank" rel="noopener">already paid</a> to the Gibsons. One of the insurance companies reportedly gave the college $1 million, but the school argued in the lawsuit that it &#8220;also incurred millions of dollars in defense costs pursuing its appeals,&#8221; appeals the college says the insurance companies urged to potentially lessen the damages. It is unclear how much Oberlin spent on legal fees throughout the lawsuit, trial, and appeals process.
Oberlin had $25 million in commercial umbrella liability coverage from Lexington, a $10 million policy from Mount Hawley, a $5 million policy from StarStone, and $25 million in overlapping educators&#8217; legal liability coverage from United Educators according to the lawsuit, per the Chronicle-Telegram.
&#8220;These policies were intended to provide seamless coverage for lawsuits like the Gibson litigation,&#8221; the lawsuit says. &#8220;Unfortunately, the defendant insurers have failed to pay a penny toward the $36,590,572.48 sum that Oberlin paid the Gibson plaintiffs. They also have failed to pay for the full cost of Oberlin&#8217;s appeals, which were pursued at the behest of the insurers in order to reduce their collective exposure.&#8221;
Oberlin says in its lawsuit that the insurance companies told the college that &#8220;some, if not all, of the damages&#8221; would be covered. But the college contends that Lexington and United Educators &#8220;engaged in a systematic, multi-year effort to avoid their coverage obligations by attempting to shift responsibility from the Gibson lawsuit to each other,&#8221; as well as other insurance companies and to the college itself, Oberlin says in its lawsuit.
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Had the insurers taken a pretrial opportunity to resolve the litigation, Oberlin says, the case could have been settled for less than $10 million.
As The Daily Wire previously <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/worse-you-think-theres-more-oberlin-story-ashe-schow">reported</a>, several non-white Oberlin students attempted to steal alcohol from Gibson’s, a local bakery with a long history of serving the Oberlin community. A Gibson family member working at the bakery that day chased the students out of the store, where they attacked him. He called the police and the students were arrested, pleaded guilty, and admitted race had nothing to do with the incident.
But other students and faculty accused the bakery of racism and staged protests outside, with Oberlin officials fully endorsing and supporting the protestors’ false narrative. Further, while Oberlin claimed in court the protests were peaceful, some demonstrators entered the bakery and harassed customers, taking pictures of them and making disparaging comments. They also blocked customers from moving down the aisles and slashed the tires of a store employee.
Behind the scenes, Oberlin administrators trashed the bakery and anyone who defended it, calling defenders “idiots” and saying, “F*** them.”
Jurors sided with the bakery and awarded $44 million in total damages, which became $36 million after state limits were imposed.

Memorial Arch, Oberlin College

Oberlin College Sues Insurance Companies After They Refuse To Cover $36M Payment To Falsely Accused Bakery

Courts

false accusations

Lawsuit

Oberlin College, Barnard College, American University, New York University, and the University of Maine — these are just some of the <a href="https://nypost.com/2023/01/23/spoiled-children-of-privilege-trying-to-burn-atlanta-down/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">alma maters</a> of the surprisingly privileged rioters recently <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/alleged-far-left-rioters-attack-police-smash-office-buildings-in-atlanta" target="_blank" rel="noopener">arrested in Atlanta</a>. They’ve been charged with domestic terrorism, criminal trespass, aggravated assault, and other crimes under Georgia law.
The rioters — driven to defend a forest and prevent a police training center from opening — had allegedly been attacking police officers and EMTs, vandalizing public and private property, and preventing access to private land. During the arrests, law enforcement uncovered explosive devices, gasoline, road flares, mortar-style fireworks, edged weapons, pellet rifles, gas masks, and a blow torch.
This would be upsetting, but perhaps unsurprising, if these crimes were committed by affected locals — a displaced homeowner, an angry taxpayer, or families affected by police violence. But these young individuals are a traveling crew of suspected criminals from states like Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New York, Oregon, Tennessee, and Washington. They riot under the name Defend the Atlanta Forest today, but tomorrow it might be any one of the almost <a href="https://defendtheatlantaforest.org/solidarity/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">600</a> groups that endorse Defend the Atlanta Forest’s cause.
If these rioters terrorized communities under an ISIS or Hamas banner, we would ask how well-off adherents in their 20s and 30s became so radicalized. These young adults have not suffered any oppression by the Atlanta loggers or ultra-trained police officers. And yet something has motivated them to travel thousands of miles (explosives in tow) to squat in a forest and &#8220;defend&#8221; half a mile of property they have never seen and oppose the training of police officers they will never encounter.
They are driven by the <a href="https://defendtheatlantaforest.org/faq/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">belief</a> that “police disproportionately harm and imprison black people and people of color” and that the training center will “escalate this structural commitment to racist harm.” And they believe that “ecological destruction constitutes a grave threat to life on Earth,” particularly “Atlanta’s black communities,” and without these trees, Atlanta will face flooding and lose a breeding ground for “many amphibians.”
If this training center were actually going to lead to rampant racism against black people, cause Atlanta to flood, or “life on Earth” to deteriorate, maybe I would be forest squatting too.
But the evidence shows us that criminal behavior, not skin color, drives most police action. And despite our fixation on catastrophic weather events, the data shows that people are today much <a href="https://nypost.com/2022/09/06/theres-plenty-of-good-news-about-the-environment/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">safer</a> from weather — thanks to wealth, driven by energy and innovation. And we’ve got thousands more <a href="https://twitter.com/BjornLomborg/status/1596907524577320960" target="_blank" rel="noopener">polar bears</a> and humpback whales than we used to (at least until <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/wind-farm-blamed-for-surge-in-dead-whales-on-u-s-atlantic-coast" target="_blank" rel="noopener">the windmills</a> do their damage).
It’s not all positive, but the truth is complicated. Radicals don’t care about the truth; they care about a dogma. And, sadly, dogmas are perpetuated at American universities.
Let’s take a look at some of the course offerings at Oberlin College, an easy target. &#8220;Critical Race Theory in Education&#8220; <a href="https://catalog.oberlin.edu/preview_course_nopop.php?catoid=46&amp;coid=174780" target="_blank" rel="noopener">teaches</a> students about “manifestations of racism in the American school system.” &#8220;History of Race in American Cities and Suburbs&#8220; <a href="https://catalog.oberlin.edu/preview_course_nopop.php?catoid=46&amp;coid=173247" target="_blank" rel="noopener">explores</a> “interracial and interethnic contestation/struggle.” &#8220;Climate Change&#8220; <a href="https://catalog.oberlin.edu/preview_entity.php?catoid=46&amp;ent_oid=4398#" target="_blank" rel="noopener">asks</a> students to consider climate change through the lens of “apocalypse” and “dystopia.”
It’s a surprise more Oberlin graduates don’t find themselves arrested in Atlanta. The common theme seems to be that American civilization — schools, cities, productivity — is the enemy.
If institutions in Syria or Afghanistan existed to promote an anti-American narrative meandering toward violence, we’d certainly be watching. We would not reward these institutions with hoards of federal dollars, at the very least.
So too here. If Oberlin College wants to teach &#8220;<a href="https://catalog.oberlin.edu/preview_course_nopop.php?catoid=46&amp;coid=173239" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Queer Trauma Narratives</a>,&#8221; so be it. It’s a free country. But federal money should only be spent in the public interest. It’s past time we question whether our universities promote it.
May Mailman is a senior fellow at Independent Women’s Law Center.
The views expressed in this piece are those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of The Daily Wire.
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ATLANTA, GA – JANUARY 21- A police cruiser on fire as demonstra

Atlanta Rioters Prove Elite Colleges Are Breeding Grounds Of Domestic Terrorism

Antifa

Atlanta

Georgia

New York University

Police

Readers Pass

Rioters

Gibson’s Bakery, which was <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/false-accusations" target="_blank" rel="noopener">falsely accused</a> of <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/racism" target="_blank" rel="noopener">racism</a> by <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/oberlin-college" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Oberlin College</a> officials and won a multi-million-dollar verdict, has finally received the money it is owed after more than three years of waiting.
Legal Insurrection’s William Jacobson <a href="https://legalinsurrection.com/2022/12/finally-the-gibsons-bakery-family-has-been-paid-by-oberlin-college/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">confirmed</a> with the bakery’s lawyers that the family has finally received its share of the more than $36 million it was awarded by a jury in 2019 after suing Oberlin. Sadly, as Jacobson noted, David Gibson and “Grandpa” Allyn Gibson died before the money was ever collected.
Oberlin announced in September that it had <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/oberlin-college-says-it-initiated-36-million-payment-to-gibsons-bakery-which-the-school-falsely-smeared-as-racist" target="_blank" rel="noopener">initiated</a> the $36 million payment to the bakery. Gibson’s attorneys <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/gibsons-v-oberlin-how-an-elite-woke-college-nearly-destroyed-a-family-owned-bakery" target="_blank" rel="noopener">told</a> The Daily Wire at the time that the money had been transferred into an account and lawyers were working on dispersing the funds. Those funds have now been dispersed, which means the bakery can continue to operate, as it was quickly running out of money after losing contracts with Oberlin following the legal saga.
As for what the bakery will do with the money, Lorna Gibson, whose husband David died after the trial but before Oberlin had exhausted all of its appeals, told The Daily Wire in October that she has no plans to shut down or move the store and live off of the money.
“This store has been here for over 137 years and is a stable part of this community,” Lorna said. “My husband gave his life for this store and I’m not about to let it go down.”
Lorna told The Daily Wire that because the money had not been dispersed yet, the store was still struggling. She said the “shelves are pretty much empty” and they were down to just three employees. Students and faculty at Oberlin still avoid the store, and the family detailed the extent of the college’s continued campaign against the bakery in one of their earlier court filings.
“The continuing conduct of which the Gibsons have become aware and which has brought the Gibsons to their knees include the following: Oberlin College’s authorized new student tour guides are still being heard to say don’t shop at Gibsons Bakery when the tours pass in front of the store; neither the College, its administrators, nor its professors have resumed any ordering of the Gibson’s products for College events; and notices still denigrating the Gibsons are posted in College buildings for students and their families to see,” the Gibsons wrote in a motion before Oberlin was forced to pay the damages it owed the family.
But while Oberlin students and employees continue to snub the bakery, Lorna said that alumni and people from the community and around the country have been helping the business survive, while also expressing disappointment in how Oberlin handled the situation.
“We have received amazing and overwhelming support,” Lorna said, but noted that no current students or faculty have reached out to apologize or offer support.
“It’s been tough,” Lorna said. “Real, real hard. My husband loved his job. He was in the candy store just five days before he died. My father-in-law also loved the store and everyone who walked by would sit down and talk to him. But after everything happened with Oberlin, he would sit out front and no one would talk to him. It was heartbreaking.”
According to Legal Insurrection, a jury awarded the Gibsons $25 million plus interest and attorney’s fees for a total of nearly $32 million (this was after state caps on damages). Interest accrued at about $4,000 per day following the June 2019 verdict, which put the final total at more than $36 million.
As The Daily Wire previously reported, Oberlin has never apologized to the Gibsons for how the college treated the family. In its announcement that it had initiated payment to the family, Oberlin bragged that the damages were merely a drop in the bucket for the school.
“The size of this verdict is significant. However, our careful financial planning, which includes insurance coverage, means that we can satisfy our legal obligation without impacting our academic and student experience,” the college’s press release said.

Three Years Later, Gibson’s Bakery Finally Receives $36 Million From Oberlin College After False Racism Claim

Gibson’s Bakery Finally Receives Verdict Money From Oberlin College After False Racism Claim

Racism

Gibson’s Bakery has been a staple of the city of Oberlin, Ohio, since 1885. A family-owned small business, the bakery serves the city’s population of more than 8,000 residents, half of whom either attend or work for nearby Oberlin College, a small and highly selective liberal arts college.
For decades, Oberlin and Gibson’s lived in harmony, with the college contracting the bakery to provide goods and services for students while those who attended and worked at the school frequented the small business.
That all changed on November 9, 2016, when three underage black Oberlin students — Jonathan Aladin, Endia Lawrence, and Cecelia Whettstone — entered Gibson’s Bakery and attempted to purchase a bottle of wine with a fake I.D. Aladin presented the fake I.D., and Allyn D. Gibson, a descendent of the owners who was clerking at the store that day, noticed he had two more bottles of wine hidden in his jacket, according to a police report. 
Allyn told Aladin he was calling the police and took out his phone to take a picture of the student, who slapped it away, striking Allyn in the face. Aladin and his accomplices ran from the store and Allyn pursued after Aladin assaulted Allyn’s father. Allyn held onto Aladin outside the store, and when police arrived, they found the three students attacking Allyn as he lay on the ground.
The three students were arrested and charged with assault, while Aladin was also charged with robbery. 
Nearly a year later, the three students pleaded guilty to their crimes, and read statements that said: “I believe the employees of Gibson’s actions were not racially motivated. They were merely trying to prevent an underage sale.”
But in the days following the shoplifting incident, students — aided by Oberlin faculty and administrators — heavily protested the bakery and accused it of having a long history of racism. The Oberlin Student Senate also passed a resolution falsely claiming Gibson’s “has a history of racial profiling and discriminatory treatment of students and residents alike” and telling students they should “immediately cease all support, financial and otherwise, of Gibson&#8217;s.” This resolution was emailed to every student and publicly displayed at the school’s student center for the next year.
For the two months after its students attempted to shoplift a local business, Oberlin suspended its purchasing agreement with Gibson’s, claiming this was done to de-escalate the situation. Oberlin said the bakery was to blame for the situation, claiming in a statement after Gibson’s sued that “Gibson bakery&#8217;s archaic chase-and-detain policy regarding suspected shoplifters was the catalyst for the protests &#8230;. The guilt or innocence of the students is irrelevant to both the root cause of the protests and this litigation.”
It is important to remember the shoplifting incident at Gibson’s Bakery wasn&#8217;t the only thing going on in November 2016. Just one day before Oberlin students attempted to steal the wine, Donald Trump was elected president of the United States, an election that angered liberals across the country and spurred protests and riots. It was under this backdrop that the protests against the bakery occurred, with many believing the protests had more to do with the election than any minor incident in town. 
Oberlin president Marvin Krislov admitted as much in an email to students following the protests, writing: “This has been a difficult few days for our community, not simply because of the events at Gibson’s Bakery, but because of the fears and concerns that many are feeling in response to the outcome of the presidential election. We write foremost to acknowledge the pain and sadness that many of you are experiencing.”
Oberlin was also dealing with a lack of enrollment at the time of the election and protests, making administrators nervous about going against the students’ outrage. A former Oberlin administrator told the now-defunct Weekly Standard, “A freshman from an east coast big city might come to Oberlin and find there is little for a social justice warrior to do in a small town like this, so they get frustrated. And make issues like this shoplifting thing bigger than it should be, and the school follows along.”
In the aftermath of the protests, Oberlin officials met with members of the Gibson family to discuss moving forward. Oberlin, according to the Gibsons’ civil complaint, said they would reinstate its contracts with the bakery if the Gibsons agreed to not bring criminal charges against first-time shoplifters.
In the five years before this particular incident, 40 adults had been arrested for shoplifting from Gibson’s Bakery, <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2019/06/the-publicly-shamed-sue-oberlin-college-verdict/591379/">according to</a> an Oberlin Police Department investigation. Of those 40 arrested, just six were black, and <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/worse-you-think-theres-more-oberlin-story-ashe-schow">33 were college students</a>. The Gibsons said they lost thousands of dollars a year to shoplifters. A nearby store owner also told a student publication that she <a href="https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/weekly-standard/gibsons-bakery-lawsuit-why-cant-oberlin-fix-a-simple-town-vs-gown-battle">lost about $10,000 a year to shoplifters</a>.
So, an agreement not to prosecute first-time shoplifters was never an option for the bakery.
In November 2017, one year after the shoplifting incident, Gibson’s Bakery filed a civil complaint against Oberlin, accusing the school of libel, slander, and breaking its contracts with the business.
The case went to trial nearly two years later, and the extent of Oberlin’s involvement in the protests was revealed before a jury. Oberlin maintained that its faculty and administrators tried to calm down the protesting students, but multiple people testified that this was untrue. A former Oberlin security director, Rick McDaniel, also testified that he went to the protest and tried to take pictures, but was stopped by someone whom he later identified as Julio Reyes, who was the college’s associate director of the school’s multi-resource center.
Clarence “Trey” James, an African American employee of Gibson’s, said that dean of students Meredith Raimondo (who was named as a defendant in the Gibson’s lawsuit) was “orchestrating” some of the protests.
“[She was] standing directly in front of the store with a megaphone, orchestrating some of the activities of the students,” James testified. “It appeared she was the voice of authority. She was telling the kids what to do, where to go. Where to get water, use the restrooms, where to make copies.”
A city policeman who was maintaining order at the protests, Officer Victor Ortiz, testified that he “didn’t see anyone trying to calm the students down at all.” He described a protest where “people were getting flyers shoved in their faces saying Gibson’s were racist, curse words were chanted, and they chanted how this business was racist too.”
Ortiz said he didn’t see any administrators “instructing the students not to use curse words and didn’t hear any of them tell their students not to shout that Gibson’s is racist.”
It was also revealed at trial that two employees at Oberlin’s music conservatory offices told students they could use their conference room and printers to make copies of the flyers calling Gibson’s Bakery racist. Students were also allowed to use the office’s restrooms and were able to eat pizza purchased for them by the school.
Local reporter Jason Hawk, who edited the Oberlin News Tribune, said that Raimondo repeatedly blocked him from trying to take photos of the protest and handed him a flyer that claimed, “This is a RACIST establishment with a LONG ACCOUNT of RACIAL PROFILING and DISCRIMINATION.”
Local police records, however, showed the bakery had never received an accusation of racial profiling prior to the Oberlin protests, and several black employees of the bakery testified that there had never been a hint of racism from the bakery or its owners.
People in the community had also disputed the allegations of racism against the bakery. When Emily Crawford, an Oberlin employee, emailed her bosses to say she had spoken “to 15 townie friends who are poc [persons of color] and they&#8217;re disgusted and embarrassed by the protest,” she was met with disdain. Tita Reed, a special assistant to Oberlin’s president, responded to Crawford’s concerns by saying, “Doesn’t change a damned thing for me,” according to a copy of the emails obtained by The Daily Wire.
Similarly, when the three shoplifters said in court that race had nothing to do with their arrests, assistant dean of students Antoinette Myers sent Raimondo a text message that read, “I hope we rain fire and brimstone on that store.”
Ultimately, the evidence was overwhelming for the jury, who awarded the Gibson family $11 million in compensatory damages and an additional $33 million in punitive damages, for a total of $44 million dollars. That number was later revised down to $36 million due to state caps on punitive damages.
“All it would have taken was a retraction,” Gibson family attorney Owen Rarric told The Daily Wire. “Allyn Gibson asked for a retraction and Oberlin refused to provide one.”
Thus began a years-long appeals process, with Oberlin trying and failing to get the verdict thrown out. The case ultimately went to the Ohio Supreme Court, who declined to hear it, thereby forcing Oberlin to pay the Gibsons the money they owed.
Finally, on September 8, 2022, nearly six years after the Gibson’s ordeal began, Oberlin announced it had initiated payment to the bakery.
“Oberlin College and Conservatory has initiated payment in full of the $36.59 million judgment in the Gibson’s Bakery case and is awaiting payment information from the plaintiffs. This amount represents awarded damages and accumulated interest, and therefore no further payments are required,” the school said in a press release.
The college, which costs around $35,000 a year to attend and has a nearly $1 billion endowment, also bragged that the damages were merely a drop in the bucket for the school.
“The size of this verdict is significant. However, our careful financial planning, which includes insurance coverage, means that we can satisfy our legal obligation without impacting our academic and student experience,” the college’s press release said.
That money, the Gibson’s attorney Brandon McHugh told The Daily Wire, has been transferred into an account and lawyers are working on dispersing the funds.
As for what the bakery will do with the money, Lorna Gibson, whose husband David died after the trial but before Oberlin had exhausted all of its appeals, told The Daily Wire that she has no plans to shut down or move the store.
“This store has been here for over 137 years and is a stable part of this community,” Lorna said, adding she has no plans to move the store or shut it down and live off of the money. “My husband gave his life for this store and I’m not about to let it go down.”
Lorna told The Daily Wire that because the money has not been dispersed yet, the store is still struggling. She said the “shelves are pretty much empty” and they are down to just three employees. Students and faculty at Oberlin still avoid the store, and the family detailed the extent of the college’s continued campaign against the bakery in one of their earlier court filings.
“The continuing conduct of which the Gibsons have become aware and which has brought the Gibsons to their knees include the following: Oberlin College’s authorized new student tour guides are still being heard to say don’t shop at Gibsons Bakery when the tours pass in front of the store; neither the College, its administrators, nor its professors have resumed any ordering of the Gibson’s products for College events; and notices still denigrating the Gibsons are posted in College buildings for students and their families to see,” the Gibsons wrote in a motion before Oberlin was forced to pay the damages it owed the family.
But while Oberlin students and employees continue to snub the bakery, Lorna said that alumni and people from the community and around the country have been helping the business survive, while also expressing disappointment in how Oberlin handled the situation.
“We have received amazing and overwhelming support,” Lorna said, but noted that no current students or faculty have reached out to apologize or offer support.
“It’s been tough,” Lorna said. “Real, real hard. My husband loved his job. He was in the candy store just five days before he died. My father-in-law also loved the store and everyone who walked by would sit down and talk to him. But after everything happened with Oberlin, he would sit out front and no one would talk to him. It was heartbreaking.”
Still, Lorna said she was holding out hope that someday, her family could reconcile with Oberlin and reinstate the broken contracts.
“I think we can get back on track,” Lorna told The Daily Wire.

‘Bakery’ text on shop-window in Granville island public market

Gibson’s V. Oberlin: How An Elite Woke College Nearly Destroyed A Family-Owned Bakery

Court

Oberlin College announced Thursday that it has initiated payment of the $36 million in damages a jury awarded to Gibson’s Bakery after the school supported and encouraged students who falsely accused the family-owned business of racism.
Oberlin said in a press release that it was awaiting payment information from the Gibson family, which sued the university after it nearly destroyed their business with the racism accusations. The payment initiation comes after the Ohio Supreme Court declined to hear Oberlin’s appeal of the damages awarded to the bakery.
“We are disappointed by the Court’s decision. However, this does not diminish our respect for the law and the integrity of our legal system,” the press release said. “This matter has been painful for everyone. We hope that the end of the litigation will begin the healing of our entire community.”
“We value our relationship with the City of Oberlin, and we look forward to continuing our support of and partnership with local businesses as we work together to help our city thrive,” the press release continued.
Previously, Oberlin fought the jury verdict to the bitter end while Gibson’s nearly went out of business. In a court filing, the bakery said the school was continuing to discriminate against the bakery even after the trial vindicated the family.
“The continuing conduct of which the Gibsons have become aware and which has brought the Gibsons to their knees include the following: Oberlin College’s authorized new student tour guides are still being heard to say don’t shop at Gibsons Bakery when the tours pass in front of the store; neither the College, its administrators, nor its professors have resumed any ordering of the Gibson’s products for College events; and notices still denigrating the Gibsons are posted in College buildings for students and their families to see,” the Gibson’s wrote a motion seeking to have the court force the college to pay the damages awarded to the family.
Now that the college has said it has initiated payment, it has revealed how easily it could have paid the $36 million at any time, suggesting the money is a drop in the bucket for the school.
“The size of this verdict is significant. However, our careful financial planning, which includes insurance coverage, means that we can satisfy our legal obligation without impacting our academic and student experience,” the college’s press release said.
In response to the announcement, the Gibson family attorney noted that Oberlin still refuses to acknowledge its wrongdoing.
“With Oberlin’s decision to not pursue any additional appeals, the Gibson Family’s fight is finally over. Truth still matters, and David has overcome Goliath. While Oberlin College has still refused to admit they were wrong, the jury, a unanimous panel from the court of appeals, and a majority of the Ohio Supreme Court decided otherwise. Now, the Gibsons will be able to rebuild the business their family started 137 years ago and keep the lights on for another generation,&#8221; the family&#8217;s attorney said in a statement to The Daily Wire.
As The Daily Wire previously <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/worse-you-think-theres-more-oberlin-story-ashe-schow">reported</a>, several non-white Oberlin students attempted to steal alcohol from Gibson’s, a local bakery with a long history of serving the Oberlin community. A Gibson family member working at the bakery that day chased the students out of the store, where they attacked him. He called the police and the students were arrested, pleaded guilty, and admitted race had nothing to do with the incident.
But other students and faculty accused the bakery of racism and staged protests outside, with Oberlin officials fully endorsing and supporting the protestors’ false narrative. Further, while Oberlin claimed in court the protests were peaceful, some demonstrators entered the bakery and harassed customers, taking pictures of them and making disparaging comments. They also blocked customers from moving down the aisles and slashed the tires of a store employee.
Behind the scenes, Oberlin administrators trashed the bakery and anyone who defended it, calling defenders “idiots” and saying, “F*** them.”
The Gibson&#8217;s home was broken into months after the protests (though it is unclear whether it was related). Business dropped and employees were laid-off. The family was threatened.
Jurors sided with the bakery and awarded $44 million in total damages, an amount that was later reduced to $25 million due to state limits.
“The jury recognized Oberlin College’s bullying tactics. The students admitted their misconduct, but Oberlin College could never admit that they were wrong. They presumed that they could bring the Gibsons to their knees. The power of truth has enabled the Gibson family to survive Oberlin’s onslaught,” the Gibson’s attorneys previously told The Daily Wire.
This article has been updated with comment from the Gibson family.

Throwing bucket of money

Oberlin College Says It Initiated $36 Million Payment To Gibson’s Bakery, Which The School Falsely Smeared As Racist

Oberlin College Says It Initiated $36 Million Payment To Gibson's Bakery, Which The School Falsely Smeared As Racist

Gibson’s Bakery, a family-owned bakery that has operated in Oberlin, Ohio, since 1885, received a major win in its ongoing feud with Oberlin College, which encouraged and supported students and faculty falsely accusing the bakery of racism in 2016.
A jury had awarded the bakery $36 million in damages after Oberlin’s sustained campaign against the shop, and the college fought the verdict with every tool at its disposal. The state Supreme Court on Tuesday declined to hear Oberlin’s appeal, meaning the school will finally have to pay the bakery it has nearly put out of business.
“Truth Still Matters, David can still overcome Goliath. We and the Gibson family are gratified that all judges on the court of appeals and the majority of the Ohio Supreme Court recognized the rights of individuals rather than the bullying tactics of the big institutions,” the Gibson family’s attorneys told The Daily Wire in a statement.
In April, an appeals court upheld the multi-million dollar verdict, The Daily Wire <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/appeals-court-upholds-multi-million-dollar-verdict-against-oberlin-college-for-defaming-gibsons-bakery">reported</a>, but the college appealed to the Ohio Supreme Court. But as Legal Insurrection <a href="https://legalinsurrection.com/2022/08/gibsons-bakery-wins-ohio-supreme-court-refuses-to-hear-oberlin-college-appeal/">reported</a> on Tuesday, the state Supreme Court declined to hear Oberlin’s appeal in a 4-3 <a href="https://www.supremecourt.ohio.gov/rod/docs/pdf/0/2022/2022-ohio-2953.pdf">decision</a>.
The bakery was waiting on pins and needles for the court’s decision, fearing that it would have to close its doors after Oberlin’s continuing actions against Gibson’s. While Oberlin was appealing to the Ohio Supreme Court, the court <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/ohio-supreme-court-rules-oberlin-college-doesnt-have-to-pay-bakery-its-nearly-bankrupted-while-appealing-36-million-verdict">issued an unsigned decision</a> that kept Oberlin from having to make payments to Gibson.
In a statement to The Daily Wire, an Oberlin College spokesperson said the school was &#8220;disappointed&#8221; in the court&#8217;s decision.
&#8220;The issues raised by this case have been challenging, not only for the parties involved, but for the entire Oberlin community,&#8221; the spokesperson said. &#8220;We remain committed to strengthening the partnership between the College, the City of Oberlin and its residents, and the downtown business community. We will continue in that important work while remaining focused on our core educational mission.&#8221;
The Gibson family said the bakery was struggling to survive while waiting for the damages from Oberlin because the school continued to discriminate against the bakery.
“The continuing conduct of which the Gibsons have become aware and which has brought the Gibsons to their knees include the following: Oberlin College’s authorized new student tour guides are still being heard to say don’t shop at Gibsons Bakery when the tours pass in front of the store; neither the College, its administrators, nor its professors have resumed any ordering of the Gibson’s products for College events; and notices still denigrating the Gibsons are posted in College buildings for students and their families to see,” the Gibson’s wrote in their motion to have the court force Oberlin pay the damages awarded to the bakery.
Sadly, the two family members who served as the lead plaintiffs – David Gibson and his father Allyn – passed away before the decision was upheld, though they did live to see the original verdict. David had previously revealed he had been diagnosed with cancer and said that Oberlin was purposefully dragging out the case.
As The Daily Wire previously <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/worse-you-think-theres-more-oberlin-story-ashe-schow">reported</a>, several non-white Oberlin students attempted to steal alcohol from Gibson’s, a local bakery with a long history of serving the Oberlin community. A Gibson family member working at the bakery that day chased the students out of the store, where they attacked him. He called the police and the students were arrested, pleaded guilty, and admitted race had nothing to do with the incident.
But other students and faculty accused the bakery of racism and staged protests outside, with Oberlin officials fully endorsing and supporting the protestors’ false narrative. Further, while Oberlin claimed in court the protests were peaceful, some demonstrators entered the bakery and harassed customers, taking pictures of them and making disparaging comments. They also blocked customers from moving down the aisles and slashed the tires of a store employee.
Behind the scenes, Oberlin administrators trashed the bakery and anyone who defended it, calling defenders “idiots” and saying, “F*** them.&#8221;
The Gibsons home was broken into months after the protests (though it is unclear whether it was related). Business dropped and employees were laid-off. The family was threatened.
Jurors sided with the bakery and awarded $44 million in total damages, an amount that was later reduced to $25 million due to state limits.
“The jury recognized Oberlin College’s bullying tactics. The students admitted their misconduct, but Oberlin College could never admit that they were wrong. They presumed that they could bring the Gibsons to their knees. The power of truth has enabled the Gibson family to survive Oberlin’s onslaught,” the Gibson’s attorneys told The Daily Wire.
This article has been updated to include a comment from Oberlin College.

Family-Owned Bakery Falsely Labeled Racist By Woke Ohio College Gets Major Win In Court

Ohio Supreme Court Declines To Hear Oberlin College's Appeal Of Gibson's Bakery Judgment

The Ohio Supreme Court ruled on Tuesday that Oberlin College doesn’t have to pay the $36 million it was ordered to pay Gibson’s Bakery for defamation, at least while the college continues to appeal the earlier verdict.
The ruling could mean the end of Gibson’s Bakery, a family-owned bakery that has operated in Oberlin, Ohio, since 1885. Oberlin was found to have defamed the bakery when the school supported and encouraged students falsely claiming the bakery was racist because the owner stopped some non-white students from shoplifting.
After a trial, a jury awarded Gibson’s $44 million in damages, but state limitations reduced the final amount to $25 million plus $6 million in attorney’s fees, The College Fix <a href="https://www.thecollegefix.com/ohio-supreme-court-rules-oberlin-doesnt-have-to-pay-36-million-defamation-judgment-while-it-appeals-the-ruling/">reported</a>. With interest, the total comes to $36 million.
But an unsigned decision from the Ohio Supreme Court will keep Oberlin from paying until the court considers the college’s latest appeal, and it is unclear when the court will take up the case, Cleveland.com <a href="https://www.cleveland.com/news/2022/08/ohio-supreme-court-rules-that-oberlin-college-doesnt-have-to-pay-bakery-36-million-judgement-while-appeals-play-out.html">reported</a>. In April, an appeals court upheld the verdict against Oberlin, The Daily Wire <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/appeals-court-upholds-multi-million-dollar-verdict-against-oberlin-college-for-defaming-gibsons-bakery">reported</a>, but Oberlin is appealing the decision to the state’s highest court, in what appears to many to be part of an ongoing effort to stall the case in order to avoid paying.
Legal Insurrection’s William A. Jacobson previously <a href="https://legalinsurrection.com/2022/03/appeals-court-upholds-gibsons-bakery-massive-verdict-against-oberlin-college/">reported</a> that the two family members who served as the lead plaintiffs – David Gibson and his father Allyn – passed away before the decision was upheld, though they did live to see the original verdict. David had previously revealed he had been diagnosed with cancer and said that Oberlin was purposefully dragging out the case.
As The Daily Wire previously <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/worse-you-think-theres-more-oberlin-story-ashe-schow">reported</a>, several non-white Oberlin students attempted to steal alcohol from Gibson’s, a local bakery with a long history of serving the Oberlin community. A Gibson family member who was working at the bakery that day chased the students out of the store, where they attacked him. He called the police and the students were arrested, pleading guilty and admitting race had nothing to do with the incident.
But other students and faculty accused the bakery of racism and staged protests outside, with Oberlin officials fully endorsing and supporting the protesters’ (false) narrative. Further, while Oberlin claimed in court the protests were peaceful, some demonstrators actually entered the bakery and harassed customers, taking pictures of them and making disparaging comments to them. They also blocked customers from moving down the aisles and slashed the tires of a store employee.
Behind the scenes, Oberlin administrators trashed the bakery and anyone who defended them, calling defenders “idiots” and saying “F***” them.
The Gibson’s home was broken into months after the protests (though it is unclear whether it was related), with the elderly patriarch breaking bones in his neck. Business dropped and employees were laid-off. The family was threatened.
Jurors sided with the bakery and awarded them $44 million in total damages, an amount that was later reduced to $25 million due to state limits. In April of this year, the Oberlin College lawyer who failed to defend the school was transferred to Cornell University, The Daily Wire <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/the-oberlin-college-lawyer-responsible-for-the-gibson-bakery-debacle-is-now-at-cornell">reported</a>.
Cornell appointed general counsel Donica Thomas Varner in 2021, even though she was best known for sending an inflammatory email criticizing the jury’s decision to award Gibson’s Bakery $11.2 million in compensatory damages. The email was sent after this decision but before a separate trial awarded the bakery an additional $33 million.
“We are disappointed with the verdict and regret that the jury did not agree with the clear evidence our team presented. Neither Oberlin College nor Dean Meredith Raimondo defamed a local business or its owners, and they never endorsed statements made by others. Rather, the College and Dr. Raimondo worked to ensure that students’ freedom of speech was protected and that the student demonstrations were safe and lawful, and they attempted to help the plaintiffs repair any harm caused by the student protests,” Varner <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/oberlin-college-may-end-paying-bakery-much-more-11-ashe-schow">wrote</a>. “As we have stated, colleges cannot be held liable for the independent actions of their students. Institutions of higher education are obligated to protect freedom of speech on their campuses and respect their students’ decision to peacefully exercise their First Amendment rights. Oberlin College acted in accordance with these obligations.”
The email so inflamed the court it became an issue, with Varner being asked questions about her statements.
Evidence and testimony at trial backed up Gibson’s plight, yet Varner still sent that email, beyond what losing attorneys typically say after losing. Varner’s email may well have cost the college another $30 million, yet she ended up with a new job at Cornell.

Ohio Supreme Court Rules Oberlin College Doesn’t Have To Pay Bakery It’s Nearly Bankrupted While Appealing $36 Million Verdict

Ohio Supreme Court Rules Oberlin College Doesn't Have To Pay Bakery It's Nearly Bankrupted While Appealing $36 Million Verdict

Defamation

It has been more than three years since Oberlin College was ordered to pay Gibson’s Bakery tens of millions of dollars after the school supported and encouraged students who falsely accused the bakery of racism.
Now the Gibson family says the bakery is struggling to survive, stating in a motion to the court that the shop “may only survive for the next couple of months” without Oberlin paying what it owes. The family-owned bakery also said in their motion that Oberlin continues to harm the store and asked the court to execute the judgment against Oberlin.
“The continuing conduct of which the Gibsons have become aware and which has brought the Gibsons to their knees include the following: Oberlin College’s authorized new student tour guides. are still being heard to say don’t shop at Gibsons Bakery when the tours pass in front of the store; neither the College, its administrators, nor its professors have resumed any ordering of the Gibson’s products for College events; and notices still denigrating the Gibsons are posted in College buildings for students and their families to see,” the motion <a href="https://legalinsurrection.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/Gibsons-Bakery-v.-Oberlin-College-Request-to-Enter-Judgment-7-26-2022.pdf">states</a>, according to a copy <a href="https://legalinsurrection.com/2022/07/gibsons-bakery-may-only-survive-for-the-next-couple-of-months-pleads-with-court-to-collect-against-oberlin-college/">published</a> by Legal Insurrection.
“Beginning with the College-supported business disruptions that are already in the record 
and continuing to the present, Dave Gibson and his surviving widow, Lorna, have been required 
to mortgage virtually all of their equity in their home and rental properties to remain viable. The various mortgages are a matter of public record and undoubtedly the Gibsons’ financial distress is known to Oberlin College. Now, Lorna estimates that unless there is a substantial change in circumstances, the bakery may only survive for the next couple of months,” the motion continues.
Sadly, the two family members who served as the lead plaintiffs – David Gibson and his father Allyn – passed away before the decision was upheld, though they did live to see the original verdict. David had previously revealed he had been diagnosed with cancer and said that Oberlin was purposefully dragging out the case.
An appeals court <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/appeals-court-upholds-multi-million-dollar-verdict-against-oberlin-college-for-defaming-gibsons-bakery">upheld</a> the original verdict, which included the large payment, after Oberlin tried to get it thrown out. The college is now appealing to the Ohio Supreme Court, which hasn’t ruled yet. But the appellate court’s ruling mandated the trial court to “execute” the judgment, as Legal Insurrection reported. The Gibson’s are now asking the trial court to comply.
As The Daily Wire previously <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/worse-you-think-theres-more-oberlin-story-ashe-schow">reported</a>, several non-white Oberlin students attempted to steal alcohol from Gibson’s, a local bakery with a long history of serving the Oberlin community. A Gibson family member who was working at the bakery that day chased the students out of the store, where they attacked him. He called the police and the students were arrested, pleaded guilty and admitted race had nothing to do with the incident.
But other students and faculty accused the bakery of racism and staged protests outside, with Oberlin officials fully endorsing and supporting the protesters’ (false) narrative. Further, while Oberlin claimed in court the protests were peaceful, some demonstrators actually entered the bakery and harassed customers, taking pictures of them and making disparaging comments to them. They also blocked customers from moving down the aisles and slashed the tires of a store employee.
Behind the scenes, Oberlin administrators trashed the bakery and anyone who defended them, calling defenders “idiots” and saying “F***” them.
The Gibson’s home was broken into months after the protests (though it is unclear whether it was related), with the elderly patriarch breaking bones in his neck. Business dropped and employees were laid-off. The family was threatened.
Jurors sided with the bakery and awarded them $44 million in total damages, an amount that was later reduced to $25 million due to state limits.

Legal fees

Bakery Falsely Accused Of Racism By Oberlin College Is Struggling To Survive, Begs Court To Force School To Pay Damages

Gibson's Bakery, Falsely Accused Of Racism By Oberlin College, Is Struggling To Survive, Begs Court To Force School To Pay Damages

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