Cartoonist Ousted By University Amid Controversial Turmoil

The University of Pennsylvania has cut ties with controversial political cartoonist Dwayne Booth amid accusations of antisemitism, though the university cites budget constraints following federal funding cuts as the official reason for his dismissal.

Key Takeaways

Dwayne Booth, known professionally as “Mr. Fish,” was dismissed from his lecturer position at UPenn’s Annenberg School for Communication after publishing cartoons widely criticized as antisemitic.
UPenn’s interim president Dr. J. Larry Jameson previously labeled Booth’s cartoons as “reprehensible” and “antisemitic” while initially defending his academic freedom.
The termination coincided with the Trump administration freezing $175 million in federal funding to the university.
Booth claims all part-time adjuncts and lecturers were let go due to budget cuts, not because of the controversy surrounding his work.
UPenn was already under scrutiny for handling of antisemitism on campus, with its former president and board chair resigning following a congressional hearing.

Controversial Cartoons Spark Campus Debate

The University of Pennsylvania has dismissed communications lecturer Dwayne Booth, whose political cartoons created in response to the Israel-Hamas conflict drew intense criticism. Booth, who has worked as a cartoonist and writer for two decades under the name “Mr. Fish,” published images that included depictions of Israelis drinking the blood of Gazans and drawings connecting the Holocaust to Israel’s actions in Gaza, prompting widespread condemnation from university leadership and Jewish organizations.

UPenn’s interim president Dr. J. Larry Jameson previously denounced Booth’s work while attempting to balance the university’s commitment to free expression. “The images are reprehensible, and I consider them to be antisemitic,” Jameson stated in an official communication that nevertheless acknowledged the university’s “bedrock commitment” to open expression and academic freedom.

Budget Cuts or Content Control?

While controversy surrounds the timing and motivation behind Booth’s dismissal, the university maintains the decision was financially driven. The termination came shortly after the Trump administration froze $175 million in federal funding to the university. This funding reduction reportedly led to widespread cuts among part-time faculty, according to university statements.

Booth further explained, “My dismissal… had nothing to do with the false accusations from last year that the artwork I produce as a professional editorial cartoonist outside the classroom were antisemitic merely because they were critical of Israel. All part-time adjuncts and lecturers had their courses canceled for the fall semester due to budgetary issues stemming from the attacks by the Trump administration on higher education.”

The American Association of University Professors and several attorneys are reportedly investigating the circumstances surrounding Booth’s dismissal. The university has not responded to requests for comment from multiple news outlets, leaving questions about whether the budgetary explanation represents the complete picture.

Wider Context of Campus Tensions

Booth’s dismissal comes amid broader tensions at the university. UPenn is currently under investigation by both the Department of Education and the House Ways and Means Committee for alleged antisemitism and Islamophobia on campus. The university’s former president Liz Magill and board chair Scott Bok resigned in December following a widely criticized congressional hearing on antisemitism, where Magill’s responses about hypothetical calls for Jewish genocide drew bipartisan condemnation.

On an Instagram post, Booth defended his work this way: “Cartoonists have set themselves willingly into such crosshairs for, quite literally, many centuries. Done effectively, and in service of keeping the democracy strong, I hope it continues.”

Booth has gone further in his criticism of the university, accusing UPenn of handing over private emails of professors and students to congressional committees and threatening those who resist with suspension or dismissal. These allegations add another layer to the controversy surrounding his departure and the university’s handling of politically charged expression.

A History of Controversial Work

Booth joined UPenn’s Annenberg School for Communication in 2015 and gained increased attention for cartoons published following the October 7, 2023, Hamas attacks on Israel. His work frequently appeared alongside columns by author Chris Hedges, who has written that “The Nazis shipped their victims to death camps. The Israelis will ship their victims to squalid refugee camps in countries outside of Israel.” Booth’s visual interpretations of such commentary formed the core of the controversy.

The Washington Free Beacon had previously highlighted Booth’s cartoons, which reportedly led to controversy and threats against him. Booth maintains that his artwork, while provocative, represents legitimate political criticism rather than antisemitism—a distinction rejected by many campus leaders and Jewish organizations who viewed the imagery as crossing into historical antisemitic tropes.