Justice Department official Harmeet Dhillon to speak at Law School
Dhillon, the assistant attorney general for the Justice Department’s civil rights division who has criticized Yale after pro-Palestinian campus protests, is set to speak at a Federalist Society event on Thursday.
Baala Shakya, Photography Editor
A senior Justice Department official who has called out Yale for its handling of pro-Palestinian protests will speak on campus Thursday in an event hosted by the Federalist Society at Yale Law School.
Harmeet Dhillon, the head of the department’s civil rights division, is set to appear in Baker Hall at an event billed as a “fireside chat.”
In April, Dhillon, an assistant attorney general in the Trump administration, reposted an X post by Netanel Crispe ’26, a Jewish student, saying that Jewish students were blocked from crossing through Yale’s campus. Crispe’s post included a video of pro-Palestinian student protestors linking arms to form a circle on Beinecke Plaza and not allowing Crispe to pass through the group.
“DOJ @CivilRights is tracking the concerning activities at Yale, and is in touch with affected students,” Dhillon’s post said.
On the same day as her post, the University revoked the club status of YaliesforPalestine, though the club claimed it was not responsible for organizing the gathering Crispe had posted about.
The Trump administration’s antisemitism task force, coordinated by the Justice Department division Dhillon leads, released a statement the next day saying it was “cautiously encouraged by Yale’s actions” in response to the protest.
In April 2024, after Sahar Tartak ’26, a Jewish Yale student, wrote on X that a protester jabbed her in the eye with a Palestinian flag, Dhillon urged Tartak to take legal action against Yale.
“Sue Yale. Sue every university that refuses to keep students safe based on their religion. Make them regret their choices,” Dhillon responded. “Deplete their endowments. Sue each and every violent protester and organizers. Drain their bank accounts. Sow salt in their career plans.”
David Haungs LAW ’26, the president of the Yale Federalist Society, praised Dhillon in a statement to the News.
“The Yale Federalist Society is proud to bring leaders at the helm of the conservative legal movement to campus. We are excited to host Assistant Attorney General Dhillon, who has transformed the Civil Rights Division of the Justice Department through energetic public service,” Haungs wrote.
Ilani Nurick LAW ’27 and Liz Bailey LAW ’27, the co-presidents of the Yale Law Democrats, criticized Dhillon’s policy stances in a statement to the News.
“We welcome a diversity of voices on campus — we also vigorously disagree with Harmeet Dhillon’s policy choices regarding transgender Americans and her efforts to restrict voting and make the democratic process more difficult to access,” Nurick and Bailey wrote.
Dhillon was a legal advisor for Donald Trump’s 2020 presidential campaign.