censorship

By Mehmet Rakipoğlu and İbrahim Özcoşar | – Exeter, UK and Mardin, Türkiye (Special to Informed Comment; Feature) – In the aftermath of 7 October 2023 – when Hamas’s surprise “Al-Aqsa Flood” attack and Israel’s devastating genocidal war on Gaza shook global politics – Western academia has entered its own crisis. From the United States […]

Academic Freedom

Protesting Northwestern U’s Flawed Compulsory Training on Criticism of Israel as “Antisemitism”

Committee on Academic Freedom

Committee on Academic Freedom | Middle East Studies Association | – Letter to Northwestern University expressing concern about its flawed compulsory anti-bias training and its threats against students who refuse to complete it Henry S. Bienen Interim President, Northwestern University nupresident@northwestern.edu Dear President Bienen and Colleagues: We write on behalf of the Middle […]

Authoritarianism

Federal Court: Trump Administration Violated First Amendment By Deporting Foreign Citizens for Pro-Palestinian Advocacy

Middle East Studies Association

Middle East Studies Association | – NB: The MESA news release below has been expanded with extended quotes from the Knight First Amendment Institute and Judge William G. Young that were only given as hyperlinks in the original. In Landmark Ruling, Federal Court Says Trump Administration Violated First Amendment By Deporting Foreign Citizens for Pro-Palestinian […]

censorship

Protesting the Suspension of a Scholar at the University of Kentucky for Statements on Palestine

Committee on Academic Freedom

Committee on Academic Freedom | Middle East Studies Association of North America | – Letter to the University of Kentucky regarding the suspension of Professor Ramsi Woodcock for his statements about Palestine Eli Capilouto President, University of Kentucky elic@uky.edu James C. Duff Dean, J. David Rosenberg College of Law University of Kentucky jim.duff@uky.edu […]

censorship

Jimmy Kimmel’s Reinstatement shows the Power of Noncooperation

Waging Nonviolence

Disney’s reversal on Jimmy Kimmel’s suspension wasn’t an act of corporate consciousness — it was a strategic retreat forced by coordinated pressure. Joe Worthy ( Waging Nonviolence ) – The attempt to silence late-night host Jimmy Kimmel has backfired in a big way, with Disney/ABC now reversing the “indefinite suspension” it announced last week. This […]

censorship

Kimmel Saga no Laughing Matter: Trump and the North Koreanization of America

John Feffer

( Foreign Policy in Focus ) – Jesters once had considerably more leeway than the average person to make fun of the king. If otherwise loyal subjects made light of their leader, they could lose their head. Jesters, however, could test the limits of the possible with relative impunity—until they crossed the line and lost […]

Academic Freedom

Protesting UC Berkeley handing Names of Faculty and Students to Dept. of Education

Committee on Academic Freedom

Committee on Academic Freedom | Middle East Studies Association of North America | – Letter to UC Berkeley regarding the university’s submission to the Department of Education of 160 names of persons associated with allegations of antisemitism President James B. Milliken Office of the President University of California president@ucop.edu Chancellor Rich Lyons Office of […]

Authoritarianism

Stephen Colbert: “We are all Jimmy Kimmel”

contributors

The Late Show: “We Are All Jimmy Kimmel | The Easy Way Or The Hard Way | Trump Urges NBC To Cancel Fallon And Mey…”

censorship

Israeli Forces’ Attack on Sanaa kills Journalists

Human Rights Watch

Israel, Yemen Authorities Targeting Media Workers Niku Jafarnia Bahrain and Yemen Researcher, Middle East and North Africa Division ( Human Rights Watch ) – A new report by Human Rights Watch documents attacks by all the warring parties in Yemen on journalists. An attack on a media center in Sanaa, the capital, by Israeli forces […]