The Nakba is not simply a historical tragedy of the past. On the contrary, there is an ongoing Nakba that continues to seek the erasure, elimination and silencing of Palestinian existence and the Palestinian narrative. For example, on campuses across the United States, Palestinian scholars are subject to racist attacks and the use of “lawfare” – law as a form of warfare – in an attempt to silence their work, voices and research.
One such case is that of Prof. Rabab Abdulhadi, director of the Arab and Muslim Ethnicities and Diasporas (AMED) program at San Francisco State University (SFSU). She has been subject to a series of racist attacks, from the posting of threatening posters around the campus to attempts to target her position. The program itself has received insufficient funding and little university support, and the administration has done little to counter racist attacks or even firmly condemn them.
Now, she, along with several SFSU campus administrators, is being sued by several right-wing Zionist organizations in yet another attempt to shut down Palestinian scholarship. This lawsuit is a compilation of unfounded allegations, misrepresentations and lies by the “Lawfare Project” that attempts to stigmatize Palestinian scholarship and advocacy with the brush of “anti-Semitism,” while, in reality, anti-Arab and anti-Palestinian racism have been allowed to run rampant at SFSU.
Part of the North America Nakba Tour is not only education, but also action. One important action you can take today is to support Professor Abdulhadi and help her defend not only herself, but Palestinian academic practice overall.
- Follow the Defense Campaign’s Facebook page: https://facebook.com/DefendProfAbdulhadi
- Support her legal defense:
https://www.launchgood.com/project/professor_rabab_abdulhadis_legal_fund#/ - Sign the petition:
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeeArXzfd9MNbGqCIqNGnz3y_yFwYo34Gj1AZEdBiJsW_hizw/viewform - Learn More:
The spirit of ’68 lives on! Palestine advocacy and the indivisibility of justice by Dr. Rabab Ibrahim Abdulhadi, at Mondoweiss: http://mondoweiss.net/2017/07/palestine-advocacy-indivisibility/
The Spirit of ’68 Lives On: Zionism as racism, and the network of lies by Dr. Rabab Ibrahim Abdulhadi, at Mondoweiss: http://mondoweiss.net/2017/07/spirit-zionism-network/