Madeline Canning (left) and Charlie Kelly (right) share their opinions on JASTA
Photo: Kaylee Spitak
Author: Kaylee Spitak
On September 28, 2016, the Justice Against Sponsors of Terrorism Act (JASTA) was passed by Congress in order to narrow the legal doctrine of immunity for foreign sovereignties. However, the passage of this law also enables families of 9/11 victims to sue the Saudi Arabian government for the event.
Chatham students had much to say on the matter. Charlie Kelly, a first year Political Science major, disagreed passionately with JASTA. “Why would they need to pass a law just so families could sue a government for the acts of others,” Kelly said. “Saudi Arabia stripped Osama Bin Laden of his citizenship years before the 9/11 attacks, so technically he wasn’t even a citizen of the country being sued.”
Photo: Kaylee Spitak
Justina Thornley, also a first year Political Science major, shares a similar view. “It’s ridiculous. Limiting foreign immunity is okay, but to enable families to sue a foreign government just because of something that happened over a decade ago by people who really weren’t involved with that government is stupid.” Thornley hopes for JASTA to be repealed immediately to avoid conflict.
Photo: Kaylee Spitak
Though many students seemed to disagree with the passing of the law, first-year Chemistry major Lauren Calandra takes a more moderate stance on JASTA. “[JASTA] seems like an extremely childish action for the American government to take. It’s immature to pin the actions of a few hundred on an entire country, let alone on a religion that has over one billion followers.” Calandra shares the same view as Madeline Canning, a first-year Marketing major who said, “They really shouldn’t be able to do that. Nothing will be solved through blaming the wrong people for the acts of others.”
Phot: Kaylee Spitak
Bentley Tender, a first year International Business major, also agrees. “It’s time to move on,” Tender said. “We cannot keep blaming Saudi Arabia for the actions of terrorists. This only ruins our already unstable relationships with other countries, not strengthens them.”
Many other Chatham students chose not to comment on JASTA or its implications. There seemed to be a resonating agreement that JASTA left a sour feeling for many on campus, as well as an understanding that closure had to be found somewhere for the afflicted families.