Cornell reports Austin Franco to civil rights office after Handshake exchange
Cornell reported austin franco ’28 to the Office of Civil Rights after a Handshake exchange in which he allegedly wrote, “Not interested in working for a jew. Thanks.” The message came after he applied on May 26 for a growth and sales role at VrfyID, then continued a series of back-and-forth messages over the following days.
The exchange became public when Gabe Einhorn posted a screenshot on X on June 8. Einhorn said the post drew over two million views in less than a week, while Franco said he later learned of the post on Monday morning and began facing doxxing and intimidation.
VrfyID Handshake exchange
Franco first applied to the VrfyID role through Handshake on May 26, according to the account shared in the exchange. Gabe Einhorn said Franco was accepted in the first round, and Aiden Einhorn then asked him on May 29 to set up a time for a meeting.
Franco replied the same day with times he was available. Gabe Einhorn said he and Aiden offered two dates for students to attend, and Franco did not attend either. On June 8, after Aiden followed up again, Franco replied, “Not interested in working for a jew. Thanks.”
June 8 X post
Gabe Einhorn posted the screenshot on X that same day and wrote, “Sad world.” He later said he crossed out Franco’s name to “prove a point to people that antisemitism exists” without causing personal damage to Franco.
Comments on the post revealed Franco’s crossed-out last name through a photo editing software, which led to his identity being revealed publicly. Einhorn also described himself as a “proud Jew” who always wears a kippah.
Franco June 9 response
Franco responded on X on the morning of June 9, writing, “My experiences with Jews have not been pleasant … this is not to say I havent had positive experiences, but on the aggregate that is not the case,” and “Given that I have been doxed and intim[id]ated by your community including having my personal life investigated for no other reason than a sin.” He also said he had identified Gabe and Aiden Einhorn as Jewish from their “first and last name, LinkedIn, and physiognomy.”
After the post spread, Franco said he found out about it on Monday morning and began facing “digging up personal information, harassing via email and phone employers, and receiving threats,” according to his statement. Cornell’s report to the Office of Civil Rights puts the dispute into the university’s bias-incident process, while the public X post pushed the case beyond campus and into the broader online response around the exchange.
