Statement: Academic Institutions Must Defend Free Speech
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The International Committee for Peace, Justice and Dignity issued the following statement on 23 December, signed by 155 distinguished members of academia and human rights advocacy:
Academic Institutions Must Defend Free Speech
We, the undersigned, oppose the coordinated campaign to deny academics their free speech rights due to their defense of Palestinian rights and criticism of the policies and practices of the state of Israel. Temple University in Philadelphia, USA and the University of Sydney, Australia have been under great pressure to fire, respectively, Marc Lamont Hill and Tim Anderson, both senior academics at their institutions, for these reasons. Steven Salaita and Norman Finkelstein have already had their careers destroyed by such attacks. Hatem Bazian, Ahlam Muhtaseb, William Robinson, Rabab Abdulhadi and others have also been threatened.
The ostensible justification for such action is commonly known as the “Palestinian exception” to the principle of free speech. One may freely criticize and disrespect governments – including one’s own – religions, political beliefs, personal appearance and nearly everything else except the actions and policies of the state of Israel. Those who dare to do so will become the focus of well-financed and professionally run campaigns to silence and/or destroy them and their careers.
We recognize that much of the free speech that occurs in academic and other environments will offend some individuals and groups. However, as has been said many times before, the answer to free speech that some may find objectionable is more free speech, not less. We therefore call upon all academic institutions, their faculty and students, as well as the public at large, to resist such bullying tactics and defend the free speech principles upon which they and all free societies and their institutions are founded.
Signed,
- Abbas Ali, chair, Inminds Human Rights Group
- Abbas Hamideh, Co-Founder, Al-Awda Palestine Right to Return Coalition
- Abby Martin, journalist, former host, “The Empire Files”
- Abe Hayeem, Architect, peace activist and founder member of Architects & Planners for Justice in Palestine
- Adam Kossoff, University of Wolverhampton
- Adrian Grima, poet, professor of Maltese literature
- Ahlam Muhtaseb, Professor, University of California San Bernardino; co-director, “1948: Creation and Catastrophe”
- Ajamu Baraka, Human rights defender, former Green Party Vice Presidential candidate
- Alice Walker, author, novelist, Pulitzer Prize winner
- Alicia Jrapko, US National Coordinator, International Committee for Peace
- Alison Weir, founder, If Americans Knew; author, “Against Our Better Judgment”
- Amal Wahdan, Political and human rights activist
- Amani Barakat, National Chair, Al-Awda Palestine Right to Return Coalition
- Anat Matar, Tel Aviv University
- Andrea Balduzzi, Researcher, Università di Genova, Italy (retired)
- Anthony Gonzales, American Indian Movement – West
- Anthony Hall, Editor-in-Chief, American Herald Tribune
- Avi Shlaim, Emeritus Professor of International Relations at the University of Oxford
- Barbara Erickson, journalist and author
- Ben Norton, journalist
- Bernard Regan, St Mary’s University
- Blake Alcott, ecological economist; director of One Democratic State in Palestine (England) Limited
- Brian Winston, University of Lincoln
- Dr. Burhan Ghanayem, Retired, National Institutes of Health
- Carlos Latuff, cartoonist
- Carlos Prieto Del Campo, Editor, New Left Review (Spanish), Madrid
- Charlotte Kates, International Coordinator, Samidoun Palestinian Prisoner Solidarity Network
- Cynthia McKinney, Former Member of US House of Representatives
- Dan Kovalik, Labor and human rights attorney
- Prof. Daniel Boyarin, University of California, Berkeley
- David Heap, University of Western Ontario, Canada
- David Klein, California State University, Northridge; Organizing Collective, US Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel
- Debra Zimmerman, Executive Director, Women Make Movies
- Derek Summerfield, Hon Sen Clin Lect, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience King’s College London
- Diana Carminati, former associate professor in University of Turin, Italy
- Diana Johnstone, Writer and commentator
- Dina Matar, SOAS, UK
- Dorothy Reik, President, Progressive Democrats of the Santa Monica Mountains
- Estee Chandler, Board Member, JVP
- Eva Bartlett, journalist
- Ewa Jasiewicz, activist
- Francesco Orilia, UNIMC, Italy
- Franco Camandona, MD, gynecologist, Italy
- Gayle McLaughlin, former Mayor of Richmond, CA, USA
- George Bisharat, Professor of law, UC Hastings College of the Law
- George Galloway, Broadcaster, writer, former Member of Parliament
- George Paizis, University College London, Honorary Research Fellow
- Gerry Condon, President, Veterans for Peace
- Ghada Karmi, Palestinian doctor, activist, academic and writer; London
- Glen Ford, executive editor, Black Agenda Report
- Graham Dawson, University of Brighton, UK
- Greg Dropkin, Liverpool Friends of Palestine
- Hagit Borer, Queen Mary University of London
- Hagop Kevorkian, Professor of Iranian Studies and Comparative Literature, Columbia University New York
- Haim Bresheeth, Professorial Research Associate, Faculty of Arts and Humanities School of Oriental and African Studies, UK
- Hala Allabadi, Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute
- Hamid Dabashi, Columbia University New York
- Hassan Fouda, Board director, CNI and Tree of Life Educational Fund
- Hatem Bazian, Co-founder and Professor of Islamic Law and Theology at Zaytuna College; National Chair, American Muslims for Palestine
- Herman De Ley, Emeritus Professor, University of Ghent (Belgium)
- Hisham Ahmed, St. Mary’s College of California
- Iain Atack, University of Dublin
- Iain Chalmers, Coordinator; James Lind Initiative
- Ilan Pappe, University of Exeter
- Jackelyn Mariano, Co-chair, National Lawyers Guild International Committee
- James Abourezk, Former U.S. Senator, founder, American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC)
- James Bowen, UCC – National University of Ireland, Cork, Ireland
- James Early, Director of Cultural Heritage Policy at the Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage, Smithsonian Institution
- Jeff Halper, ICAHD founder, Member of the One Democratic State Campaign (ODSC) Coordinating Committee
- Jenny Tonge, Baroness Tonge, Member of the House of Lords
- Jill Stein, Green Party candidate for President, 2016
- Joe Catron, U.S. Coordinator, Samidoun Palestinian Prisoner Solidarity Network; New York City Democratic Socialists of America Anti-War Working Group
- Joe Lauria, Editor in Chief, Consortiumnews
- Joe Lombardo, Founding member of United National Antiwar Coalition,
- Joe Meadors, US military veteran, USS Liberty
- John Adams, Prof. Emeritus, Film & Screen Media Practice, Bristol University, UK
- John Erickson, former Executive Director, Friends of Sabeel North America
- Jonathan Cook, Journalist and author
- Jonathan Rosenhead, Emeritus Professor of Operational Research, London School of Economics
- Judith Bello, Member United National Antiwar Coalition Administrative Committee, Administrator UNAC Blog
- Judit Druks, University College of London
- Jules Townshend, Manchester Metropolitan University
- Katie Miranda, Jewelry designer and artist, Katie Miranda Studios
- Khalil Barhoum, Senior Lecturer. African and Middle Eastern Languages, Stanford University
- Lamis Deek, human rights attorney, Global Justice Human Rights Law
- Lara Kiswani, Executive Director, Arab Resource and Organizing Center (AROC)
- Laura U. Marks, Visiting professor, Visual and Environmental Studies, Harvard University
- Liana M. Allabadi, Arab American University of Palestine
- Lisa Rofel, University of California, Santa Cruz
- Mairead Maguire, Nobel Peace Prize laureate
- Marilyn Levin, co-founder, United National Antiwar Coalition (UNAC)
- Marina Carter, The University of Edinburgh, Scotland
- Marina Rui, University of Genova
- Marjorie Cohn , Professor Emerita, Thomas Jefferson School of Law., former president National Lawyers Guild
- Mark Braverman, Executive Director, Kairos USA, Research Fellow in Systematic Theology and Ecclesiology, Stellenbosch University
- Martin Kemp, Psychoanalyst, UK
- Max Blumenthal, journalist and author
- Medea Benjamin, Co-founder of CodePink and author
- Meron Rapoport, Israeli journalist
- Michael Chanan, University of Roehampton, London
- Michael Edwards, Bartlett School, UCL, London, England
- Michel Chossudovsky, President and director, Centre for Research on Globalization
- Miriam Levin, UK government official
- Miriam Margolyes, Actress and voice artist
- Mnar Muhawesh, Publisher, Mint Press News
- Mohammed Alatar, Film writer and director, “The Iron Wall” and more.
- Mona Baker, Professor Emerita of Translation Studies , University of Manchester
- Moshé Machover, King’s College London and University of London (retired)
- Nadje Al-Ali, Chair, Centre for Gender Studies , University of London, UK
- Naomi Foyle, Novelist and poet
- Nathalie Grima, Author
- Netfa Freeman, Analyst and Events Coordinator for the Institute for Policy Studies
- Nira Yuval-Davis-Davis, Prof. Emeritus & Honorary Director, Research Centre on Migration, Refugees and Belonging, University of East London UK
- Noam Chomsky, Emeritus professor of linguistics, MIT
- Norman Solomon , Executive Director, Institute for Public Accuracy
- Ofra Lythe, Israeli writer and activist; Author, “Politically Incorrect: Why a Jewish State is a Bad Idea”
- Oren Cohen, Israeli journalist
- Paul Larudee, Former Fulbright Lecturer and govt advisor
- Paola Manduca, University of Genoa, Italy
- Peter Ford, former UK ambassador to Syria and Bahrain
- Peter Phillips, Sonoma State University; former director, Project Censored
- Philip Giraldi, Executive Director, Council for the National Interest
- Philip Weiss, Publisher, Mondoweiss
- Rachel Giora, Tel Aviv University
- Rashid Khalidi, Edward Said Professor of Modern Arab Studies, Columbia University
- Richard Falk, Professor of International Law Emeritus, Princeton University
- Richard Hudson, FBA at UCL, London
- Richard Silverstein, Tikkun Olam
- Rick Sterling, investigative journalist
- Robert Trivers, President, Biosocial Research Foundation
- Ronit Lentin, Trinity College Dublin
- Rumy Hasan, Senior Lecturer, Science Policy Research Unit, University of Sussex, Falmer, UK.
- Sabah Al-Mukhtar, President, Arab Lawyers Association (UK)
- Sai Englert, SOAS, University of London
- Sam Husseini, Independent journalist, senior analyst at Institute for Public Accuracy
- Sami Awad, Executive Director, Holy Land Trust
- Sami Ramadani, Academic
- Sharmine Narwani, Analyst and commentator
- Shir Hever, independent economic researcher and journalist
- Shohini Chaudhuri, Department of Literature, Film, and Theatre Studies, University of Essex, UK
- Snehal Shingavi, Associate Professor, English, University of Texas at Austin
- Stefania Fortuna, UNIVPM, Italy
- Stephen Deutsch, Professor of Post-Production, Faculty of Media and Communication, Bournemouth University, UK
- Swee Ang, MD; co-founder, Medical Aid for Palestinians
- Tariq Ali, Writer and public intellectual
- Ted Honderich , Grote Professor Emeritus Philosophy of Mind and Logic, University College London
- Terri Ginsberg, The American University at Cairo
- Thomas Gumbleton, Retired Roman Catholic auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of Detroit.
- Tim Anderson, University of Sydney
- Tom Hickey, Principal Lecturer in Philosophy and Critical Theory, University of Brighton, UK
- Valerio Gennaro, UO Clinical Epidemiology IRCCS Ospedale Policlinico San Martino, Genoa, Italy
- William “Jimbo” Simmons, American Indian Movement – West
- William I. Robinson, Univ of California, Santa Barbara
- Zahra Billoo, Co-founder, CAIR
- Zuhair Sabbagh, Palestinian academic and researcher
- Note: Affiliations listed for identification purposes only