Labor and delivery nurse Hesen Jabr was fired by NYU Langone hospital over speech against Palestinian children ‘lost during this genocide’.
A Palestinian-American Muslim nurse at New York University Langone Medical Center was recently terminated after describing Israel’s actions in Gaza as ‘genocide’ during an award acceptance speech.
Hesen Jabr, a labor and delivery nurse, shared a video on Instagram of her speech, made while accepting an award for her exceptional care for patients experiencing perinatal loss.
In her speech, Jabr said, “It pains me to see the women from my country going through unimaginable losses themselves during the current genocide in Gaza.”
“Even though I can’t hold their hands and comfort them as they grieve their unborn children and the children they have lost during this genocide, I hope to keep making them proud as I keep representing them here at NYU,” she added.
In the caption, Jabr explained, “On May 7th, I gave an acceptance speech for an award I received for my work with bereaving mothers who lost their children during pregnancy and childbirth.”
She went on to describe how, upon returning to work on May 22nd, she was summoned to a meeting with the President and Vice President of Nursing at NYU Langone. They discussed how her comments allegedly “put others at risk,” “ruined the ceremony,” and “offended people” due to her tribute to grieving mothers in Gaza.
Jabr recounted that after working almost an entire shift, she was called into an office where she was handed her termination letter by the director of human resources, Austin Bender, and escorted off the premises by a plainclothes police officer.
“This is the paradox that is NYU Langone Medical Center,” Jabr commented.
On Thursday, May 30, an NYU Langone Health spokesperson stated that Jabr had been previously warned not to bring her views “on this divisive and charged issue into the workplace,” according to Reuters.
Since October 7, 2023, Israeli forces have been engaged in a severe conflict in Gaza, resulting in over 35,000 deaths and 79,300 injuries, alongside massive infrastructure damage and a severe humanitarian crisis. Despite provisional measures issued by the ICJ and a UN Security Council resolution calling for an immediate ceasefire, the conflict continues.
