Free speech

Protest against the German Bundestag’s resolution against the Palestinian-led BDS Movement, Berlin, 2019. (Palästina Spricht archives)

IHRA definition is silencing Palestine advocacy across Europe, says report

A European legal center details how the IHRA antisemitism definition has been given 'authoritative power' to target Israel critics in several countries.

By Hebh Jamal June 7, 2023

Palestinians and left-wing activists protest during the Friday weekly demonstration in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood, Jerusalem, February 18, 2022. (Oren Ziv/Activestills

Meta’s clampdown on Palestine speech is far from ‘unintentional’

A report on the social media giant validated Palestinian experiences of censorship in May 2021, but missed how those policies are biased by design.

By Marwa Fatafta October 9, 2022

The Deutsche Welle office in Bonn, Germany, September 1, 2014. (Christian Wolf/CC BY-SA 3.0 DE)

German broadcaster requires employees to ‘support Israel’s right to exist’

Deutsche Welle's new code of conduct marks the latest Israel-related crackdown on free speech in German public life.

By Hebh Jamal September 8, 2022

Latest

(Center left to right) Sachiel Rosen, Hassani Bell, Ahkeel Mestayer, and Julia Retzlaff, four students referred to as the Third World Liberation Front 2016, who were on a hunger strike to defend the funding of the San Francisco State College of Ethnic Studies, raise their joined hands during an emergency press conference in the Quad, May 9, 2016. (Melissa Minton/CC BY 2.0)

How anti-BDS laws paved the way for the assault on critical race theory

Right-wing groups are using similar tactics to silence progressive views on U.S. racism and Israel. So why are many American Jews only opposing the former?

By Abe Asher October 13, 2021

Protest by Students for Justice in Palestine at UC Berkeley, Sep. 23, 2014. (Ariel Hayat/Flickr)

False charges of antisemitism are the vanguard of cancel culture

The right is voicing alarm over progressive views restricting free speech, but says nothing about how antisemitism is weaponized to quash speech on Israel.

By Mairav Zonszein July 28, 2020

Entance of the Ethical Culture School (Fieldston) in New York. (Eden, Janine, and Jim/Flickr)

New York high school sparks public storm over free speech on Israel

The firing of a teacher in an elite private school is part of a significant rise in incidents targeting pro-Palestine speech in secondary education.

By Mairav Zonszein January 26, 2020

Canada’s Prime Minister Justin Trudeau speaks during the 2017 Invictus Games opening ceremonies in Toronto, Canada Sept. 23, 2017. (EJ Hersom)

Even with a liberal government, Canada disregards Palestinian rights

Canada presents itself as a bastion of liberalism. Why are Palestinians left out of its vision?

By Dalya Al Masri December 20, 2019

Israeli security forces take position to protect Jewish visitors as they make their way to visit a Jewish religious site in the West Bank city of Hebron, November 3, 2018. (Wisam Hashlamoun/Flash90)

Why are foreign lawmakers aiding Israel’s attacks on Palestinian rights?

Two resolutions passed by the French parliament and U.S. Congress last week have troubling implications for Palestinians and their allies.

By Amjad Iraqi December 13, 2019

Batya Ungar-Sargon speaking at a conference on racism and anti-Semitism at Bard College.

Reckless charges of anti-Semitism endanger Palestinians

The baseless claims made by The Forward’s Batya Ungar-Sargon at Bard College last week feed the dysfunction of the American debate on Israel-Palestine, making it more difficult for Palestinians and their allies to advocate for their rights. In a strange public controversy last week, Batya Ungar-Sargon, the Opinion Editor at The Forward, published a column claiming that…

By Amjad Iraqi October 16, 2019

President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump visit a memorial outside the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh Tuesday, October 30, 2018, following the mass shooting that left 11 worshippers dead. (Andrea Hanks/White House)

Over 100 Jewish scholars condemn Trump admin for exploiting anti-Semitism

More than 100 Jewish academics sign open letter demanding the Trump administration stop exploiting anti-Semitism in order to quash criticism of Israel on college campuses. Jewish academics are fighting back against the Trump administration’s attempts to silence criticism of Israel on college campuses. More than 100 Jewish scholars have signed an open letter to the U.S. Department…

By Joshua Leifer October 6, 2019

Members and supporters of Fordham Students for Justice in Palestine rally on the university's Manhattan campus against the Fordham administration's refusal to register SJP as a student organization, January 23, 2017. (Joe Catron)

A landmark win for Palestine student activism

Fordham University tried to shut down a Students for Justice in Palestine club over its support for Palestinian rights and BDS. That is, until a New York judge gave Palestine campus activism its first legal victory. By Radhika Sainath Last week, in a landmark ruling, a New York judge ordered Fordham University in Manhattan to recognize a…

By +972 Magazine August 16, 2019

Marc Lamont Hill participates in a CNN panel, August 29, 2014. (Screenshot/CNN)

CNN caves to anti-Palestinian smear campaign

CNN fired commentator Marc Lamont Hill for calling for a free Palestine, after some claimed he meant the destruction of Israel. But his statement is no more a call for the destruction of Israel than the end of Jim Crow was the destruction of America. By Omar Baddar “All the people that live in the…

By +972 Magazine November 30, 2018

Activists march in Boston, Mass. on October 25, 2014, calling for an end to police racial profiling and violence. The protest came in the wake of events in Ferguson, Mo., following the fatal shooting by police of an unarmed black man. (Activestills.org)

A masterclass in Palestine solidarity

By using his platform to elevate marginalized Palestinian views onto the global stage, Marc Lamont Hill’s UN speech challenged the unequal parameters of permissible thought on the conflict. Watching Marc Lamont Hill’s speech at the United Nations on Wednesday was like a breath of fresh air. Unlike the mundane and repetitive remarks made by aging…

By Amjad Iraqi November 30, 2018