American student Otto Warmbier was imprisoned in North Korea for over a year. Image by youtube

(JTA) — An adjunct professor at the University of Delaware who said American Jewish college student Otto Warmbier “got exactly what he deserved” will not be rehired to teach at the university.

Katherine Dettwyler, who teaches anthropology, criticized Warmbier on social media and in the comments section of an article published on the National Review website.

Warmbier was detained in North Korea for over a year and died shortly after returning home in a coma.

Forwarding the News

Thoughtful, balanced reporting from the Forward and around the web, bringing you updated news and analysis each day.

Terms(Required)

I agree to the Forward's Terms of Service and Privacy Policy

Email(Required)

“Maybe in the US, where young, white, rich, clueless white males routinely get away with raping women,” the professor said. “Not so much in North Korea.”

She also posted that Warmbier behaved like a “spoiled, naive, arrogant U.S. college student who never had to face the consequences of his actions” while he was in North Korea.

Throughout negotiations to return Warmbier home, the family did not disclose that he was Jewish so as not to antagonize North Korea, which believed he was affiliated with the church.

The Forward is free to read, but it isn’t free to produce

I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward.

Now more than ever, American Jews need independent news they can trust, with reporting driven by truth, not ideology. We serve you, not any ideological agenda.

At a time when other newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall and invested additional resources to report on the ground from Israel and around the U.S. on the impact of the war, rising antisemitism and polarized discourse.

Readers like you make it all possible. We’re near the end of our Passover Fundraising Drive, and we have a very ambitious goal of $127,000 by April 21.

This is a great time to support independent Jewish journalism you rely on. Make a Passover gift today!

—  Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO

Make a Passover Gift Today!

$90 $180

$360

Other amount