Katherine M. Franke
is an American legal scholar who specializes in gender and sexuality law.
She began her legal career as a civil right litigator, then worked at the New York City Commission on Human Rights as a supervising attorney before becoming an executive director of the
National Lawyers Guild. Franke also taught at the
University of Arizona
The University of Arizona (Arizona, U of A, UArizona, or UA) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Tucson, Arizona, United States. Founded in 1885 by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, it ...
, followed by
Fordham University School of Law before joining the faculty of
Columbia Law School
Columbia Law School (CLS) is the Law school in the United States, law school of Columbia University, a Private university, private Ivy League university in New York City.
The school was founded in 1858 as the Columbia College Law School. The un ...
where she was the James L. Dohr Professor of Law at
Columbia Law School
Columbia Law School (CLS) is the Law school in the United States, law school of Columbia University, a Private university, private Ivy League university in New York City.
The school was founded in 1858 as the Columbia College Law School. The un ...
.
In January 2024, during the
Gaza War
The Gaza war is an armed conflict in the Gaza Strip and southern Israel fought since 7 October 2023. A part of the unresolved Israeli–Palestinian conflict, Israeli–Palestinian and Gaza–Israel conflict, Gaza–Israel conflicts dating ...
and the related
student protests, Franke raised concerns about Israeli students coming to Columbia “right out of their military service” in response to an incident on campus. Following an external investigation, in January 2025, Franke said she had been effectively terminated from Columbia although the university characterized it as retirement.
Education
Franke received a
B.A. from
Barnard College
Barnard College is a Private college, private Women's colleges in the United States, women's Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college affiliated with Columbia University in New York City. It was founded in 1889 by a grou ...
of
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York, commonly referred to as Columbia University, is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Churc ...
in 1981. She graduated from
Northeastern University School of Law in 1986. She received an
LL.M. and
S.J.D. from
Yale Law School
Yale Law School (YLS) is the law school of Yale University, a Private university, private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. It was established in 1824. The 2020–21 acceptance rate was 4%, the lowest of any law school in the United ...
in 1993 and 1999, respectively.
Career
Franke began practicing law in the 1980s as a civil rights litigator, having received a grant from the MacArthur Foundation to work on addressing social discrimination faced by people with
AIDS
The HIV, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is a retrovirus that attacks the immune system. Without treatment, it can lead to a spectrum of conditions including acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). It is a Preventive healthcare, pr ...
. She then joined the New York City Commission on Human Rights as a supervising attorney in its newly created AIDS division. In 1990, Franke was named executive director of the
National Lawyers Guild.
Franke began her academic career in 1995 at the
James E. Rogers College of Law of the
University of Arizona
The University of Arizona (Arizona, U of A, UArizona, or UA) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Tucson, Arizona, United States. Founded in 1885 by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, it ...
and then taught at
Fordham University School of Law from 1997 until 2000, when she joined the Columbia Law faculty.
Franke received a
Guggenheim Fellowship
Guggenheim Fellowships are Grant (money), grants that have been awarded annually since by the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation, endowed by the late Simon Guggenheim, Simon and Olga Hirsh Guggenheim. These awards are bestowed upon indiv ...
in 2011 to carry out research on the costs of winning marriage rights for same sex couples and
African Americans
African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from any of the Black racial groups of Africa ...
during the mid-19th century, and her research was published into the book ''Wedlocked: The Perils of Marriage Equality'' (2015).
In 2018, Franke traveled to Israel as part of a 14-member human rights delegation touring Israel and the West Bank. However, she was detained and deported with Israeli authorities accusing her of ties to the
Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement.
Israeli-Palestinian conflict
In October 2023, following the start of the Gaza War, Franke co-authored an open letter, signed by more than 150 Columbia faculty, entitled "in defense of robust debate about the history and meaning of the war in Israel/Gaza", which was later criticized in a subsequent letter signed by 300 other Columbia faculty members.
In January 2024, a odiferous, possibly hazardous, substance was released at pro-Palestinian students at university on the Columbia University campus. One of the students suspended in connection with the incident was identified as a former member of the
Israel Defense Forces
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF; , ), alternatively referred to by the Hebrew-language acronym (), is the national military of the State of Israel. It consists of three service branches: the Israeli Ground Forces, the Israeli Air Force, and ...
(IDF).
In a subsequent interview with ''
Democracy Now!
''Democracy Now!'' is an hour-long TV, radio, and Internet news program based in Manhattan and hosted by journalists Amy Goodman (who also acts as the show's executive producer), Juan González, and Nermeen Shaikh. The show, which airs live ...
'', Franke said many Israeli students coming straight from military service were known to harass Palestinian and other students.
In December, during a
Congressional hearing on antisemitism, Republican Congresswoman
Elise Stefanik
Elise Marie Stefanik ( ; born July 2, 1984) is an American politician serving as the U.S. representative for . As chair of the House Republican Conference from 2021 to 2025, she was the fourth-ranking House Republican. Stefanik's district covers ...
quoted Franke as saying that 'all Israeli students who have served in the IDF are dangerous and shouldn't be on campus.
Stefanik sources conceded that the Congresswoman had paraphrased a source which had paraphrased another source.
Following this, Franke received violent threats
and claimed people, posing as students, enrolled in her classes to provoke discussions and secretly videotaped her.
In November, an external review concluded that Franke had violated university policies
and, in January 2025, Franke announced her retirement from Columbia.
Her firing was criticised by activists, academics, the
Center for Constitutional Rights, and the UN special rapporteur on the occupied Palestinian territories,
Francesca Albanese.
Personal life
Franke is
out
Out or OUT may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media
Films
*Out (1957 film), ''Out'' (1957 film), a documentary short about the Hungarian Revolution of 1956
*Out (1982 film), ''Out'' (1982 film), an American film directed by Eli Hollander
*O ...
and has spoken on her experiences as a member of the gay community in the 1980s and 1990s, and on being one of few out lesbian professors earlier in her career.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Franke, Katherine
Living people
Year of birth missing (living people)
20th-century American lawyers
20th-century American LGBTQ people
20th-century American women lawyers
21st-century American academics
21st-century American lawyers
21st-century American LGBTQ people
21st-century American women academics
21st-century American women lawyers
American LGBTQ academics
Barnard College alumni
Columbia Law School faculty
Fordham University faculty
Northeastern University School of Law alumni
Place of birth missing (living people)
University of Arizona faculty
Yale Law School alumni