Loyola Law School. Photo by Rob Corder. Flickr/Attribution-NonCommercial 2.0 Generic Following an antisemitic incident at Loyola Law School, members of the Board of Trustees of Stephen Wise Temple have issued a stern demand for decisive action and a new approach to addressing hate speech against Jewish students.
On April 16, 2024, a student reportedly disrupted a (JLSA) event by screaming antisemitic slurs. The event, at Loyola’s Downtown Los Angeles Campus, featured Israel Defense Forces veterans speaking to the JSLA about their experiences in the Israel-Gaza War. Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) showed up at the event in protest. At one point, a student who has been identified as Grace Obi-Azuike, allegedly made several antisemitic outbursts during the event. reported that Obi-Azuike was not affiliated with SJP.
In a video on ’s X account identifies Obi-Azuike shouting, “Get the f— out of here all you ugly ass little Jewish people in this b—-.” The continued disruptions led to the event ending prematurely.
Loyola University Law School – Grace Obi-Azuike appears to be caught yelling "Get the f*ck out of here all you ugly ass little Jewish people in this b*itch".
Shockingly, she was Loyola's Anti Racism Center Fellow for 2022-2023.
Grace Obi-Azuike graduates in a few weeks.
— StopAntisemitism (@StopAntisemites)
Loyola Law School’s administration responded to the April 17 incident with a statement signed by Brietta R. Clark, the Law School’s Interim Dean and Senior Vice President. The statement, titled “” mentioned antisemitism once, saying “Let me be clear: Antisemitism, Islamophobia, racism, and xenophobia will not be tolerated on our campus.”
The next day, the school issued an unsigned statement, “.” The two-paragraph statement acknowledged that “during an April 16 event planned by the Jewish Law Students Association, community members were subjected to antisemitic insults.”
In their April 24th letter to Dean Clark, the Stephen Wise Temple trustees call Loyola’s first response to the incident “extremely tepid.” The letter claimed that Loyola “had an opportunity to unequivocally denounce the antisemitic slurs at issue. … This is how similar statements have been made in the past when racist and inappropriate slurs have been made about other minority groups. Unfortunately, however, rather than making such a clear statement, you instead stated generally that racism and xenophobia, including Islamophobia, ‘will not be tolerated on our campus.’ The student event at Loyola on April 16 was not disrupted because of Islamophobia or racism in general. It was disrupted by law students who hate Jews. The problem on April 16 was antisemitism, not other forms of generic racism.”
“The student event at Loyola on April 16 was not disrupted because of Islamophobia or racism in general. It was disrupted by law students who hate Jews. The problem on April 16 was antisemitism not other forms of generic racism.”- Stephen Wise Temple Trustees
The trustees are incensed that the initial statement didn’t include direct language rebuking antisemitism, let alone “took multiple days to respond to a clear example of hate speech” directed at the Jewish students. The trustees also lamented that the second statement did not bear the signature of any of the administration.
In addition to the letter, the trustees are establishing a committee on overseeing antisemitism initiatives, which will be chaired by attorney Robert Glassman of the Los Angeles law firm Panish Shea Ravipudi LLP.
“As a board at Stephen Wise, we felt compelled to address the rampant antisemitism plaguing our universities and campuses,” Glassman told the Journal. “There’s no place for those who shout antisemitic slurs in law school or the legal profession.”
The trustees’ letter to Loyola Law School calls for an unequivocal denunciation of these acts and stressed the need for prompt action, including the expulsion of the student.
“This person must not sit for the bar or become a lawyer in this city,” Glassman said. He added that none of the student’s future Jewish colleagues in the legal community “would feel safe with her in this profession” and that “the Jewish students at Loyola certainly do not feel safe with her on campus.”
Addressing broader issues of antisemitism on campuses, Glassman criticized institutional responses to incidents of antisemitism.
“Sensitivity training and condemning all acts of violence and bigotry do nothing, we need real social consequences,” Glassman said. “They need to expel the student who was yelling antisemitic rhetoric. They need to make sure that person doesn’t sit for the Bar, and can’t become a lawyer in this city. If this were about slurs against any other minority group, it would not be tolerated. They would be expelled and made an example of.”
Although Loyola is a Jesuit school, their law school has had many prominent Jewish alumni including activist Gloria Allred, former Screen Actors Guild President Barry Gordon and attorney and entrepreneur Robert Shapiro.
Among the thirteen trustees who signed the letter on Stephen Wise Temple letterhead are seven Loyola Law School alumni, dating back to the class of 1974.
“We are a large and powerful congregation, eager to use our influence constructively,” Glassman said. “We are committed to ensuring that all Jewish students feel safe. If they need help, they can reach out to us, and we will do everything we can to support them and make life difficult for their antagonists.”
The text of the letter from the Stephen Wise Temple Board of Trustees Members is below:
April 24, 2024
Brietta R. Clark
Interim Dean and Senior Vice President Loyola Law School
Burns 235
919 Albany Street
Los Angeles, CA 90015
Dear Dean Clark:
We are members of the Board of Trustees of Stephen Wise Temple, a reform Jewish Temple with nearly 1600 families. We are also lawyers who work in a wide range of law firms and companies throughout Los Angeles. Many signatories are alums of Loyola Law School. We are all upset by the antisemitic slurs made against Jewish law students at Loyola and by your extremely tepid initial response to them.
On Tuesday, April 16, 2024, a group of law students interrupted an on-campus event organized by the Jewish Law Student Association and made antisemitic slurs and statements to Jewish law students. The incident was widely reported and condemned by major Jewish organizations.
Following the event, on April 17 you distributed a message to the Loyola Law School community. You had an opportunity to unequivocally denounce the antisemitic slurs at issue. This is how similar statements have been made in the past when racist and inappropriate slurs have been made about other minority groups. Unfortunately, however, rather than making such a clear statement, you instead stated generally that racism and xenophobia, including Islamophobia, “will not be tolerated on our campus.”
The student event at Loyola on April 16 was not disrupted because of Islamophobia or racism in general. It was disrupted by law students who hate Jews. The problem on April 16 was antisemitism not other forms of generic racism. When other minority groups are victims of racism, University administrators quite correctly call out the specific form of racism directed at those groups. They do not try to hide the problem by discussing unrelated other issues. When the victims of these kinds of slurs are Jewish we often find this kind of generic, whitewashed response. We expect better from you.
On April 18, the Law School issued a second unsigned statement providing that “During an April 16 event planned by the Jewish Law Students Association, community members were subjected to antisemitic insults. The law school rejects hateful rhetoric—in this case, antisemitism leveled against members of the law school community. Antisemitism has no place on our campus or in our society.” This should have been the message in your initial statement. We are concerned that it took multiple days for the Law School to properly respond to a clear example of hate speech directed toward your Jewish students. And we are concerned that the second statement was unsigned rather than bearing the signature of the Dean.
We strongly condemn and denounce the antisemitic attacks on the Jewish law students at Loyola on April 16. We stand in solidarity with Loyola’s Jewish Law Student Association and Jewish law students everywhere who are affected by the rampant antisemitism pervading law schools throughout our country.
Jeremy Rosen
President, Stephen Wise Temple Partner, Horvitz & Levy
Michael L. Wachtell
Board Member, Stephen Wise Temple Shareholder, Buchalter
Rabin Pournazarian
Vice-President, Stephen Wise Temple Resolve Law Group
James D. Leewong,
Board Member, Stephen Wise Temple Loyola Law School, ’74
Karen Morse Denvir
Board Member, Stephen Wise Temple Loyola Law School, ’05
Victor Svilik
Board Member, Stephen Wise Temple
Golareh Hamid Ramin
Board Member, Stephen Wise Temple Loyola Law School, ’98
Robert Glassman
Board Member, Stephen Wise Temple Partner, Panish | Shea | Ravipudi LLP
Alexsondra Fixmer
Vice-President & Secretary, Stephen Wise Temple Assistant Chief Counsel, The Walt Disney Company Loyola Law School, ’04
Robin Hanasab
Principal, Robhana Group, Inc. Loyola Law School, ’06
Donna Yamini
Board Member, Stephen Wise Temple Principal, Yamini Law Group
Sussan H. Shore
Former Board Member, Stephen Wise Temple Managing Director,
Weinstock Manion ALC Loyola Law School, ’76
Stephen H. Kay
Board Member, Stephen Wise Temple General Counsel, Roku Inc.
Roya Hekmat Melamed
Board Member, Stephen Wise Temple Loyola Law School, ’03
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