A B.C. college instructor who was fired after calling the Oct. 7, 2023 attack on Israel an “amazing, brilliant offensive” was reinstated this week, then resigned. Langara College terminated Natalie Knight’s employment in January 2024, but the decision was contested by her union, which filed a grievance under the Labour Relations Code. An arbitrator awarded Knight’s reinstatement Wednesday. On Thursday, the Federation of Post-Secondary Educators of B.C.—and Local 14, the Langara Faculty Association—described the outcome as a victory for academic freedom and freedom of expression. “I understand many in our community were hurt and offended by what Dr. Knight said,” LFA president Pauline Greaves said in a statement. “But collegial dialogue and tolerance for views we don’t like are the bedrock of a robust, engaged academic environment. Dr. Knight should never have been fired, and an injustice has been corrected.” The former English instructor’s remark regarding the Hamas attack was made at a rally off campus on Oct. 28, 2023, and drew condemnation from the Jewish Federation of Greater Vancouver and others. Knight was initially placed on leave before Langara reinstated her without discipline on Jan. 18, 2024, following an investigation that determined she had not violated any college policies. The instructor was subsequently fired after speaking at another rally on campus days later. In a statement shared by her union, Knight said: “I share this victory with everyone who has faced intimidation or threats to their livelihood for speaking out about the ongoing war in Gaza.” “Looking forward, it is my hope that this case will serve to protect those who continue to express solidarity with the more-than-77-year Palestinian struggle for national self-determination,” she added. In arbitrator Randy Noonan’s decision, he accepted Langara’s position that it had no intention of stifling pro-Palestinian speech, and was only concerned about faculty comments that could “reasonably been interpreted to be celebrating acts of violence against innocent civilians.” Noonan also noted the college received “many communications” from the community raising that same concern. Following Knight’s reinstatement, a spokesperson for Langara confirmed she had resigned from her role, but did not provide any further details. One of the FPSE’s claims regarding her firing was that the college had succumbed to pressure from Selina Robinson, who was then B.C.’s minister of post-secondary education. The union pointed to a social media post Robinson shared the day before Knight’s employment was terminated, in which she expressed disappointment that the instructor still had “a public post-secondary platform to spew hatred and vitriol.” Both Robinson and Langara denied she had any sway on the process, and the arbitrator agreed that was the case, calling it “regrettable” that the college had not said so publicly at the time. “I also accept that the minister’s public comments could be viewed as indicating she may have been involved in improperly influencing the employer’s decision,” Noonan added. “It is understandable that the faculty association raised this concern.”
