Beautiful Virgin Islands

Monday, Oct 06, 2025

British University Lecturer Fired for Saying ‘Jewish People Are the Cleverest in the World’

British University Lecturer Fired for Saying ‘Jewish People Are the Cleverest in the World’

University lecturer, 73, sacked for telling colleague 'Jewish people are the cleverest in the world' and 'Germans are good engineers' says he is victim of 'woke' university culture which is 'obsessed with racism' as he launches appeal against ruling.

A university lecturer was sacked after claiming 'Jewish people are the cleverest in the world' and 'Germans are good engineers'.

Stephen Lamonby claimed his comments were not racist or offensive because he was using 'positive stereotypes'.

The 73-year-old also said he 'had a soft spot' for young black men because they are underprivileged as 'many are without fathers' and so 'need all the help they can get'.

An employment tribunal heard the controversial remarks were made during a meeting with Dr Janet Bonar, his course leader at Solent University in Southampton, Hampshire.

The lecturer, who admits he does not know if his appeal will be successful, said: 'It's got so sensitive in these times and you can't ask anything or say anything.

'I said to my students that Germans are good at engineering and [the university] think it's racism.

'The Japanese and the Americans are all good engineers in my opinion too. We are over-sensitive now.

'I think lots of people would agree with what I say but the politically correct people won't.'

Mr Lamonby made similar comments about people from Eastern Europe, specifically citing Lithuanians.

An employment tribunal heard the remarks were made during a meeting with Dr Janet Bonar in the the university canteen in March 2019.

During the meeting Mr Lamonby told her that in his experience people from different countries had become good at certain things due to 'high exposure'.

Following the ruling, Mr Lamonby said he would be appealing, claiming he was a victim of a 'woke' culture and that universities are 'totally obsessed with racism'.






He said: 'I think the judgement came down to the fact the judge was a woke judge.'

He added: 'You can't make any comments [in universities] now because they are totally obsessed with racism and to talk about Jews in the context of racism is crazy because they are not even a race, they are an ethnicity.

'Free speech is totally dead in universities.'

He added: 'It was one of those off the cuff remarks and I know these days people are worried about Muslim terrorists so perhaps I should not have said it.'

Mr Lamonby, who had worked at Solent as a part-time associate lecturer for six years and teaches classes twice a week, claimed that 'Germans are good at engineering' because they are 'exposed to a high level of industry from an early stage in their lives'.

He also said: 'I have a soft spot for young black males. I do think that they are underprivileged and many [are] without fathers etc. need all the help they can get.'

During cross-examination, he was asked whether black people might find it offensive that they might need extra help and he said 'no, not just black people, also Lithuanians'.

He later added: 'I worked in Africa, Brunei, all over the world with these people. Perhaps it is inappropriate of me to say so but sometimes they need extra help.'

During their discussion, Dr Bonar, an engineering lecturer, mentioned she had a degree in physics and Lamonby reacted by saying Jewish people had 'a particular gift' for the subject.

He used Einstein as an example and then asked Dr Bonar if she was Jewish. The lecturer took offence to this and shouted that Mr Lamonby was a racist.

In response, he said: 'I believe that the Jewish are the cleverest people in the world. They are much maligned because of it.

'I asked if you were Jewish because of your ability with maths/physics etc. Which is a speciality of theirs.'

Mr Lamonby claimed Dr Bonar 'flew into a rage, threw chairs about, shouting abuse at me and stormed out'.

However, under cross examination, he amended his account and said: 'I did say temper, but didn't mean throwing chairs, but shoving chairs, but don't see that as relevant.'

Defending himself, he also said: 'I was excited to think she might be one of them – excited to meet a Jewish physicist, who had been my heroes since boyhood.'

A few hours after their argument Dr Bonar emailed Mr Lamonby and said that in future perhaps it would be better if conversations they had were focused on their studies, rather than their 'widely different views on race and national characteristics.'

He replied angrily saying he was 'not used to being smacked down like a schoolboy' and called a racist.

After an investigation was launched, Mr Lamonby defended his comments again and gave another example of 'high exposure' - Eskimos being good at fishing.

He claimed he was 'shocked' by Dr Bonar's reaction and said: 'My comments were simply stating that, arising from my lifetime of experience, I have come to believe that certain nationalities have developed a higher level of skill in some areas.

'This is directly related to the level of exposure to criteria such as industry and education. This is not radical thinking; it is simply a view that reflects environmental privilege in general terms.'

Dr Bonar told the tribunal she felt 'concerned about our students being taught by someone with his entrenched racist views'.

During a final disciplinary hearing he eventually admitted he had 'been clumsy' in his language and 'apologised profoundly' saying he had no intention of being racist.

Despite this, he continued to make 'inappropriate' comments during the hearing, referring to ethnic groups as 'they' and to Jews having 'neurological differences'

Vice Chancellor Julie Hall, who chaired the hearing, said Mr Lamonby did not understand that what he had said was offensive. He was dismissed for gross misconduct.

The tribunal, which was held in Bristol, concluded that the university had a duty to its 'multi-cultural, predominantly young student body' to protect them from potential acts of racism and dismissed his claims of unfair dismissal and breach of contract.

Judge C H O'Rourke said: 'For the avoidance of doubt, I find that it is clearly at least potentially racist to group nationalities, races, ethnic or religious groups, by entire categories and to ascribe certain abilities or talents (or the opposite) to them, when, of course, as with any such group, talents or abilities will vary wildly from individual to individual...

'While Mr Lamonby sought to argue that his stereotyping (which it was) was positive, such 'positivity' is nonetheless potentially offensive to the recipient.

'A Jew told they are good at physics - because they are a Jew - may well consider that as demeaning their personal intellectual ability/hard work.

'Secondly, it could also be simply grossly offensive, as the person may not actually be Jewish, but feel some characteristic is being ascribed to them.

'Thirdly, even if they are Jewish, they may quite properly consider it none of Mr Lamonby's business.'

The London-based engineer now works freelance and his specialist company Plusfilm, which provided film sets with stunt vehicles, has been dormant for seven years.

Newsletter

Related Articles

Beautiful Virgin Islands
0:00
0:00
Close
Munich Airport Reopens After Second Drone Shutdown
France Names New Government Amid Political Crisis
Trump Stands Firm in Shutdown Showdown and Declares War on Drug Cartels — Turning Crisis into Opportunity
Surge of U.S. Billionaires Transforms London’s Peninsula Apartments into Ultra-Luxury Stronghold
Pro Europe and Anti-War Babiš Poised to Return to Power After Czech Parliamentary Vote
Jeff Bezos Calls AI Surge a ‘Good’ Bubble, Urges Focus on Lasting Innovation
Japan’s Ruling Party Chooses Sanae Takaichi, Clearing Path to First Female Prime Minister
Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs Sentenced to Fifty Months in Prison Following Prostitution Conviction
Taylor Swift’s ‘Showgirl’ Launch Extends Billion-Dollar Empire
Trump Administration Launches “TrumpRx” Plan to Enable Direct Drug Sales at Deep Discounts
Trump Announces Intention to Impose 100 Percent Tariff on Foreign-Made Films
Altman Says GPT-5 Already Outpaces Him, Warns AI Could Automate 40% of Work
Singapore and Hong Kong Vie to Dominate Asia’s Rising Gold Trade
Trump Organization Teams with Saudi Developer on $1 Billion Trump Plaza in Jeddah
Manhattan Sees Surge in Office-to-Housing Conversions, Highest Since 2008
Switzerland and U.S. Issue Joint Assurance Against Currency Manipulation
Electronic Arts to Be Taken Private in Historic $55 Billion Buyout
Thomas Jacob Sanford Named as Suspect in Deadly Michigan Church Shooting and Arson
Russian Research Vessel 'Yantar' Tracked Mapping Europe’s Subsea Cables, Raising Security Alarms
New York Man Arrested After On-Air Confession to 2017 Parents’ Murders
U.S. Defense Chief Orders Sudden Summit of Hundreds of Generals and Admirals
Global Cruise Industry Posts Dramatic Comeback with 34.6 Million Passengers in 2024
Trump Claims FBI Planted 274 Agents at Capitol Riot, Citing Unverified Reports
India: Internet Suspended in Bareilly Amid Communal Clashes Between Muslims and Hindus
Supreme Court Extends Freeze on Nearly $5 Billion in U.S. Foreign Aid at Trump’s Request
Archaeologists Recover Statues and Temples from 2,000-Year-Old Sunken City off Alexandria
China Deploys 2,000 Workers to Spain to Build Major EV Battery Factory, Raising European Dependence
Speed Takes Over: How Drive-Through Coffee Chains Are Rewriting U.S. Coffee Culture
U.S. Demands Brussels Scrutinize Digital Rules to Prevent Bias Against American Tech
Ringo Starr Champions Enduring Beatles Legacy While Debuting Las Vegas Art Show
Private Equity’s Fundraising Surge Triggers Concern of European Market Shake-Out
Colombian President Petro Vows to Mobilize Volunteers for Gaza and Joins List of Fighters
FBI Removes Agents Who Kneeled at 2020 Protest, Citing Breach of Professional Conduct
Trump Alleges ‘Triple Sabotage’ at United Nations After Escalator and Teleprompter Failures
Shock in France: 5 Years in Prison for Former President Nicolas Sarkozy
Tokyo’s Jimbōchō Named World’s Coolest Neighbourhood for 2025
European Officials Fear Trump May Shift Blame for Ukraine War onto EU
BNP Paribas Abandons Ban on 'Controversial Weapons' Financing Amid Europe’s Defence Push
Typhoon Ragasa Leaves Trail of Destruction Across East Asia Before Making Landfall in China
The Personality Rights Challenge in India’s AI Era
Big Banks Rebuild in Hong Kong as Deal Volume Surges
Italy Considers Freezing Retirement Age at 67 to Avert Scheduled Hike
Italian City to Impose Tax on Visiting Dogs Starting in 2026
Arnault Denounces Proposed Wealth Tax as Threat to French Economy
Study Finds No Safe Level of Alcohol for Dementia Risk
Denmark Investigates Drone Incursion, Does Not Rule Out Russian Involvement
Lilly CEO Warns UK Is ‘Worst Country in Europe’ for Drug Prices, Pulls Back Investment
Nigel Farage Emerges as Central Force in British Politics with Reform UK Surge
Disney Reinstates ‘Jimmy Kimmel Live!’ after Six-Day Suspension over Charlie Kirk Comments
U.S. Prosecutors Move to Break Up Google’s Advertising Monopoly
×