Steven Salaita

CHICAGO — Steven Salaita reached a $875,000 settlement with the University of Illinois after he sued the school for firing him because of his tweets during the war on Gaza last year.

The university fired Salaita before he started in a tenured position he was offered.

The deal will pay Salaita about 10 times the annual salary he would have received as a tenured professor in the American Indian Studies program at the university’s flagship Urbana-Champaign campus.

“This settlement is a vindication for me, but more importantly, it is a victory for academic freedom and the First Amendment,” Salaita said in a statement from his legal counsel, the Center for Constitutional Rights and the law firm Loevy & Loevy.

The settlement brings an end to Salaita’s breach of contract lawsuit against university trustees and administrator.

Salaita had sought reinstatement as well as financial damages.

“This is an important victory, even if the bigger fight isn’t over,” Salaita added in a post on Facebook. “At this point I am ready to move beyond this particular matter and continue doing what I love – teaching, writing, organizing, and contributing in whatever way I can to struggles for justice.”

“The University believes that reaching a settlement with Dr. Salaita is the most reasonable option to fully and finally conclude all of the pending issues,” Urbana-Champaign Interim Chancellor Barbara Wilson said.

“Although the amount is significant, it is less than what we would spend if the case were to continue and proceed to trial over the next year,” she added.

The university statement said Salaita would receive a lump sum of $600,000, while the remaining amount would cover his legal fees.