Investigation Launched Over Offensive Comments by Professor

The chancellor of the State University of New York has labeled the remarks made by Hunter College professor Alison Friedman as “patently offensive and abhorrent.” Despite this, she remains in her teaching position as of Tuesday.

“Her comments were undeniably offensive,” said President Felix Matos Rodriguez, emphasizing that Hunter College President Cantor shares this view.

Freidman, who is an associate professor of biology and a parent, is under scrutiny from three separate committees after she was overheard saying that black students are “too stupid to know they go to a bad school” during a meeting with a local education board.

Both Hunter College and the city Department of Education are undertaking their own investigations into Friedman’s comments. Matos Rodriguez addressed the matter when Representative Alicia Hyndman (D-Queens) inquired about it during a budget hearing regarding higher education in Albany.

“While we await the findings of the investigation, we are also appalled by the comments,” he remarked.

Matos Rodriguez couldn’t specify how long the investigation would last but indicated it shouldn’t take long.

As the probe continues, Friedman has been permitted to keep teaching at Hunter College, which raises questions about potential racial bias.

When asked by Hyndman if she was still in the classroom, Matos-Rodriguez replied simply, “Yes.”

Friedman, who was arrested, made her controversial comments during a livestreamed Community Education Council meeting on February 10, where she interrupted a Black eighth-grade student discussing the potential closure of their school.

On the broadcast, she stated, “They’re too stupid to realize they’re going to a bad school.” She further asserted, “If you train black people enough, they’ll know how to use their backs; you don’t have to tell them anymore.”

In her defense, Friedman claimed she was not racist but was attempting to explain systemic racism to her children using “examples of clearly racist metaphors.” However, her full statement was not entirely clear due to audio issues.

The backlash against her comments has been significant, and she is facing increasing calls for her dismissal.

Friedman holds a PhD from New York University, where she studies and teaches cellular neurophysiology, focusing on the neural adaptations that contribute to atypical social behavior.