Rep. Ritchie Torres (D-N.Y.) demanded that the American Psychological Association hold an independent investigation into antisemitic and anti-Jewish bias within the trade organization after hearing allegations of bigotry from whistleblowers.
Torres wrote to the APA’s president and president-elect on Wednesday to convey some of the concerns from Jewish psychologists, including that they had received emails with the phrase “Kudos to Hamas” and that the APA’s council of representatives referred to Jews as a “privileged class.”
“These incidents collectively suggest that the APA has not only been dismissive of the legitimate grievances of Jewish psychologists but also permissive of content that traffics in malicious falsehoods against Zionism, Israel and the Jewish community,” Torres wrote.
The letter also highlights the case of Lara Sheehi, a former APA division president who was accused of discrimination against Jews and Israelis while she was a professor at George Washington University.
“Zionism is a form of fascist white supremacy,” she reportedly wrote in 2020.
“If you see this and still entertain for even a split second that Hamas is the terrorist entity, there is literally zero hope for you, your soul, or your general existence as an ethical human being in this world,” she posted in another message in 2021.
GW hired outside investigators who, in 2023, absolved Sheehi of the discrimination allegation. She has since left the university and now works for an institution in Qatar.
Torres told leaders of the APA that as the national professional organization representing 160,000 psychologists and as a beneficiary of federal funding, the APA has an “elevated duty to uphold its stated values of academic integrity, inclusivity and nondiscrimination.”
“The APA’s legitimacy as a scientific and professional institution is at stake,” he wrote. “I call on you to meet this moment with the transparency, integrity and urgency it demands.”