Open Letter to the Penn State Community Regarding Palestine Solidarity

We, the undersigned Penn State faculty and community members, affirm the right of members of our community to support Palestinian human rights, to articulate their desires for a free Palestine, and to express criticism of Israeli state violence and occupation. We also affirm the right of members of our community to criticize Zionism without being accused of antisemitism. We condemn antisemitism in all forms.

We share our community’s expressions of mourning and grief for Israelis and others who have been killed and kidnapped, and condemn Hamas’s mass violence of October 7. Israeli occupation and oppression have institutionalized violence in Palestine for decades. Understanding the contexts in which it occurs does not detract from our condemnation of violence, especially that which targets civilians. 

Yet, an exception apparently is made for Palestinians when it comes to expressions of solidarity. Media and universities refer to the “Israeli-Hamas” war as if Hamas is a nation/state and a symmetrical war is ongoing. This framing avoids the word “Palestine” or “Palestinians,” implying that everyone in Gaza is a terrorist representative of Hamas. Such narratives ignore decades of Israeli occupation, blockades, and bombardment of Palestinians living in Gaza. 

The 16-year-long blockade of Gaza, coupled with occupation, determines where Palestinians can live and study, their caloric intake, and their access to potable water. The blockade of Gaza restricts access to food, water, and medical supplies. There are more than 2.3 million Palestinians living in Gaza, more than half of whom are under the age of 18. Gaza is one of the most densely populated regions on earth. Most of the Palestinians confined to Gaza’s open-air prison are refugees whose families were driven from their homelands in the creation of Israel.

The violence Palestinians are currently facing began long before Hamas’s October 7 attack on Israel.  Palestinians are collectively and disproportionately targeted by Israeli violence. We further note that in the West Bank, where Hamas is not a presence, Palestinians also live under occupation and Israeli state violence under a system that human rights organizations, and even some Israelis, call an apartheid regime. Thus, even if Hamas never existed, Palestinians would still face occupation, humiliation, and Israeli state violence.

Penn State’s Palestinian students, faculty, and staff, as well as those in solidarity, face condemnation for calling attention to the history of Israeli state violence. They report feeling silenced in their classrooms and targeted when they protest in public. At other institutions of higher education Palestinians and those expressing solidarity with them have been doxed, fired, and otherwise harassed and victimized. This is the result of how universities erase Palestine and Palestinians in their framing of contemporary events, as well as the concerted efforts of right-wing organizations to tarnish any criticism of Israeli state violence as antisemitic.
 
We concur with President Bendapudi, who wrote on October 9, “As an educated community that works to create not only an inclusive society, but also a greater understanding of our complex world, we urge Penn Staters from all backgrounds to come together to discuss our shared humanity, to comfort those in need and to most importantly, hope for peace.” This means we need to affirm Palestinian community members’ rights to speak and protest. We want our Palestinian students and colleagues who feel silenced to know that your lives matter, that we see you, and we stand in solidarity with you as you affirm your existence. 

FACULTY MEMBERS
(affiliation offered for identification purpose only)

  1. Alex Lubin, Professor of African American Studies and History
  2. Michael O. West, African American Studies, History, African Studies
  3. Benjamin Schreier, Mitrani Family Professor of English and Jewish Studies
  4. Manuel Rosaldo, Assistant Professor of Labor and Employment Relations
  5. Gabeba Baderoon, Women's, Gender and Sexuality Studies, African Studies and Comparative Literature
  6. Tamir Sorek, Liberal Arts Professor of Middle East History and Jewish Studies
  7. Dan Letwin, Associate Professor of History
  8. Rebecca Tarlau, Associate Professor of Education and Labor and Employment Relations
  9. Timothy Loperfido, Assistant Teaching Professor of English
  10. Joshua Inwood, Professor of Geography and African American Studies
  11. John Champagne, Professor of English, Penn State Erie
  12. Phillip Zapkin, Assistant Teaching Professor of English, University Park
  13. Karen Keifer-Boyd, Professor of Art Education and Women's, Gender, & Sexuality Studies
  14. Erica Brindley, Professor of Asian Studies and History
  15. Sarah J. Townsend, Associate Professor of Spanish and Portuguese
  16. Lorraine Dowler, Professor of Geography and WGSS
  17. Samar Farage, Associate Teaching Professor in Sociology
  18. Sajay Samuel, Clinical Professor of Accounting
  19. John D. Holst, Associate Professor of Lifelong Learning and Adult Education
  20. Paul Kellermann, Teaching Professor of English
  21. Charles E. Jones, Tombros Librarian for Classics and Humanities
  22. Kamesh Madduri, Associate Professor of Computer Science and Engineering
  23. Jonathan Abel, Associate Professor of Comparative Literature and Asian Studies
  24. Sara Liao, Assistant Professor of Film Productions and Media Studies, Bellisario College of Communications
  25. Alicia Decker, Associate Professor of Women's, Gender, and Sexuality Studies, African Studies, and History
  26. Gabby Sumney, Assistant Professor of Film-Video and Media Studies, Bellisario College of Communications
  27. Sascha Meinrath, Palmer Chair in Telecommunications, Belisario College of Communications
  28. Krista Brune, Associate Professor of Portuguese and Spanish
  29. Julio L. Palma, Associate Professor of Chemistry
  30. Judith Sierra-Rivera, Associate Professor of Spanish, Latina/o Studies, and Women's, Gender and Sexuality Studies
  31. Michelle Campos, Associate Professor of Jewish Studies and History
  32. Jesse L. Barlow, Professor Emeritus of Computer Science and Engineering
  33. Lior Sternfeld, Associate Professor of History and Jewish Studies
  34. Gary King, Professor of Biobehavioral Health
  35. Kevin Bell, Associate Professor of English
  36. Manini Samarth, Associate Teaching Professor, English and Women's, Gender, and Sexuality Studies
  37. Magalí Armillas-Tiseyra, Associate Professor of Comparative Literature
  38. Harvey Partica, Assistant Teaching Professor of English
  39. Tracy Rutler, Associate Professor of Women's, Gender, and Sexuality Studies and French and Francophone Studies
  40. Leigha Montes, Lecturer, English department
  41. Darryl Thomas Associate, Professor of African American Studies
  42. Jennifer Black, Assistant Teaching Professor of English
  43. Evan Reynolds, Assistant Teaching Professor of English
  44. Robin Duffee, Assistant Teaching Professor of Communication Arts and Sciences
  45. Kirt Wilson, Associate Professor of Communication Arts & Sciences
  46. Samuel Frederick, Professor of German, Germanic and Slavic Languages and Literatures
  47. Sophia McClennen, Professor of International Affairs and Comparative Literature
  48. Cheryl Sterling, Associate Professor of English and African Studies
  49. Zack Furness, Associate Professor of Communications
  50. Eduardo Mendieta, Professor of Philosophy and Latina/o Studies
  51. Priya Sharma, Associate Professor of Education
  52. Dongwon Lee, Professor, Information Sciences and Technology
  53. Susanne Klausen, Professor of Women's, Gender and Sexuality Studies
  54. Alison Gernand, Associate Professor of Nutritional Sciences
  55. Lisa Flores, Professor of Communication Arts & Sciences and Women's, Gender, and Sexuality Studies
  56. Jennifer Wagner-Lawlor, Professor of Women's, Gender, and Sexuality Studies
  57. Andrea Miller, Assistant Professor of Telecommunications and Women's, Gender, and Sexuality Studies
  58. Charlotte Land, Assistant Professor of Education
  59. Michele Mekel, Associate Teaching Professor of Bioethics and Humanities
  60. Francisco Javier Lopez Frias, Associate Professor, Kinesiology and Rock Ethics
  61. Rishi Krishnamoorthy, Assistant Professor of Education
  62. Gopal Balachandran, Associate Professor of Clinical Law
  63. Uygar Abaci, Associate Professor of Philosophy
  64. Jasna Kovac, Associate Professor of Food Science
  65. Jyoti Balachandran, Associate Professor of History
  66. Ricardo Martinez, Assistant Professor of Education 
  67. Oliver Baker, Assistant Professor of English and African American Studies
  68. Arthur T. Matthews, Teaching Professor Labor and Employment RElations
  69. Mariah Harmon, Assistant Professor of Teacher Education
  70. Linda C. Feltman, Lecturer, Telecomm, Bellisario
  71. Brian Tholl, Assistant Teaching Professor of Italian
  72. Helen O'Leary, Professor of Art, School of Visual Arts
  73. Dana Mitra, Professor of Education
  74. Eilis Kierans, Assistant Teaching Professor of Italian
  75. Matthew Fischer-Daly, Assistant Research Professor, School of Labor and Employment Relations
  76. Eleonora Sartoni, Assistant Teaching Professor of Italian
  77. Cathy Riemer, Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
  78. Nicolás Sacco, Assistant Teaching Professor of Sociology and Demography
  79. Elizabeth Gray, Assistant Teaching Professor of Humanities
  80. Kelly Gallagher, Assistant Research Professor of Nursing
  81. Daniela Aiello, Assistant Professor of Geography
  82. Thomas O. Beebee, Edwin Erle Sparks Professor of Comparative Literature
  83. Brittany Frodge, Assistant Teaching Professor of Spanish
  84. Shabnam Akhtari, Professor of Mathematics
  85. Daniel Cunha, Visiting Fellow, Center for Humanities and Information
  86. Cindy Lin, Assistant Professor, College of Information Sciences and Technology 
  87. Anthony J. Irizarry, Postdoctoral Teaching Fellow, Communication Arts & Sciences
  88. Emily Meneghin, Lecturer, Department of Spanish, Italian, & Portuguese 
  89. Manuel Pulido, Assistant Professor of Spanish and Linguistics
  90. Matthew Carlson, Associate Professor of Spanish, Italian, and Portuguese
  91. Jonathan Eburne, Professor of Comparative Literature, English, and French and Francophone Studies
  92. Michelle Rodino-Colocino, Associate Professor, Media Studies and Women's, Gender, and Sexuality Studies
  93. Sophia L. Ángeles, Assistant Professor of Education
  94. Rosemary J. Jolly, Sparks Professor of Literature and Human Rights
  95. Jacob Lee, Associate Professor of History
  96. Chris Fowler, Associate Professor of Geography and Demography
  97. Julie Gallagher, Professor of History
  98. Scott Burnett, Assistant Professor of African Studies and Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies
  99. Aparna Parikh, Assistant Teaching Professor of Women's, Gender, and Sexuality Studies and Asian Studies
  100. Margarita Lopez-Uribe, Associate Professor of Entomology 
  101. Michelle Bae-Dimitriadis, Assistant Professor of Art Education, Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies, Asian Studies
  102. Lauren Taylor, Assistant Professor of Art History and African Studies 
  103. Sean Goudie, Associate Professor, Department of English, Director, Center for American Literary Studies
  104. Ayesha Siddiqui, Penn State College of Medicine 
  105. Jill M. Wood, Teaching Professor: Women's, Gender, and Sexuality Studies
  106. Janet Neigh, Associate Professor of English, Penn State Erie
  107. Ahmed Rashed, Faculty
  108. Priscila Calatayud Fernandez, Assistant Teaching Professor of Spanish
  109. Anna Ziajka Stanton, Comparative Literature
  110. Hannah Matangos, Adjunct Lecturer, German, College of Art & Architecture
  111. Joan Landes, Emerita Professor of History and Women's Studies
  112. Erin Mallea, Assistant Professor of Art
  113. Nan Elizabeth Woodruff, Emerita Professor, African American Studies and Modern US History
  114. Gretchen Kuldau, Associate Professor of Plant Pathology
  115. Khytam Dawood, Teaching Professor of Psychology 
  116. Jack Isaac Pryor, Assistant Professor of Theater 
  117. Marissa Nicosia, Associate Professor of Renaissance Literature, Penn State Abington
  118. Jack Isaac Pryor, Assistant Professor of Theater 
  119. Colin Smith, Assistant Teaching Professor of Philosophy
  120. Charlotte Eubanks, Professor of Comparative Literature & Asian Studies
  121. Belén Noroña, Assistant Professor, Geography Department
  122. Andrew High, Associate Professor of Communication Arts and Sciences

UNDERGRADUATE STUDENTS, GRADUATE STUDENTS, STAFF, ALUMNI, PARENTS AND COMMUNITY MEMBERS

  1. Sophia Maier, Graduate Student in Communication Arts and Science
  2. Michael Young, Doctoral Candidate in English
  3. Jennifer Buchan, Doctoral Candidate, Communication Arts and Science
  4. Kristina Bowers, PhD student, English Department and Women's, Gender, and Sexuality Studies Department
  5. Talia Kibsey, Doctoral Student, Communication Arts and Sciences
  6. Shewit Mikael, PhD Student, Communication Arts and Sciences
  7. Chanel Lange-Maney, PhD Student, Geography and Women's, Gender, and Sexuality Studies
  8. Matthew Parnell, Doctoral Candidate, Communication Arts & Science
  9. Natalie Bennie, PhD Student, Communication Arts & Sciences
  10. Sergio Peña, PhD Student, Department of Communication Arts and Sciences
  11. Lynsey Medd, PhD Student, Communication Arts & Sciences
  12. Harrison Lucas, PhD student, Communication Arts and Sciences
  13. Ryan Hall, Graduate Student, Communication Arts and Sciences
  14. Madeline Jupina, PhD Student, Communication Arts & Sciences 
  15. Mike Delayo, PhD Student, Communication Arts & Sciences
  16. Boni Richardson, graduate student
  17. Maria Vetter, Community Member
  18. Cheyenne Zaremba, Communication Arts and Sciences Department
  19. DJ Barger, PhD Student, Communication Arts & Sciences
  20. Mai Atta, Doctoral Candidate, Lifelong Learning and Adult Education
  21. Ömer Faruk Özdemir, PhD Candidate at Computer Science and Engineering
  22. Anwarul Karim, Graduate Student, Department of Mechanical Engineering 
  23. Mariam safyeldeen, MA student, Department of Comparative Literature
  24. Kate Rawson, Student Affairs 
  25. Sawsan Salah, Biobehavioral Health 
  26. Etta Habegger, Community Member 
  27. Arisha Tariq, Medical Student 
  28. Wafa Aziz, Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, PSCOM
  29. Ahmed Abdeen, Penn State College of Medicine
  30. Benjamin Ayer, Medical Student
  31. Abdul Wasay Paracha and Penn State college of Medicine 
  32. Annette Appiah, graduate student
  33. Shareef Shaheen - MD/PhD Student, Department of Microbiology and Immunology College of Medicine
  34. Rafay Nasir, MD Class of 2024
  35. Billal Alamarie, Medical Student @ Penn State College of Medicine 
  36. Alpha Tall and Penn State College of Medicine
  37. Chris Pallés, MD/PhD Student
  38. Mariana Ortiz Penn State College of Medicine 
  39. Linda Qiu, Medical student class of 2026  
  40. Vanna Giang, MD student
  41. Brianna Papoutsis, Penn State College of Medicine
  42. Brianna Evans, PSCOM
  43. Laecey Foster PA Student, Penn State College of Medicine
  44. Himi Begum, Penn State College of Medicine 
  45. Hyelim Sim, Penn State College of Medicine
  46. Rizwan Mohammed, Community Member
  47. Bilal Alamarie, Penn State College of Medicine
  48. Ahsan Jawed, Senior at PSU Harrisburg
  49. Vraj Shah, Penn State College of Medicine
  50. Hali Kim, Penn State College of Medicine
  51. Suhail Shafi, Community member
  52. Samia Malik, community member
  53. Mohamed Ibrahim, Alumni
  54. Azra Syed, community member
  55. Niesha Savory, MDPhD Student
  56. Lauren Yoder, graduate student
  57. Laura Perez, PSCOM
  58. Chandat Phan, Penn State College of Medicine
  59. Andrew Yeich, Graduate Student
  60. Sarah Gehman, PSCOM
  61. Ksenia Varlyguina, Penn State College of Medicine
  62. Rahul Nachnani, Graduate Student 
  63. Gitanjali Bhushan, Penn State College of Medicine
  64. Ikram Mezghani, Penn State College of Medicine, Department of Cellular and Molecular Physiology
  65. Colin Howe Penn State Phd Student 
  66. Radhika Sood, Penn State College of Medicine 
  67. Asma Khursheed, Medical Student
  68. Mahpara Hasan, PSCOM
  69. Nadia Dinunno, MD/PhD Student, Penn State College of Medicine
  70. Iman Farooqi, Penn State College of Medicine
  71. Yessenia Hernandez-Cruz, Penn State College of Medicine, Medical Year 1 Student
  72. Afton Widdershins, Penn State COM MD/PhD Student
  73. Samantha Olson
  74. Amar Kassim, Penn State College of Medicine
  75. Ashley Sun, Penn State College of Medicine 
  76. Katrina Olenwine, Penn State College of Medicine
  77. Joanna Bhasker, Penn State College of Medicine
  78. Swathi Mettela, Penn State College of Medicine
  79. Ian O’Shea, Penn State College of Medicine
  80. Emma Christensen, Penn State College of Medicine
  81. Philip Grayson, PhD Student, Department of English
  82. Krishna Patel, Penn State College of Medicine 
  83. Zekiel Factor, MSTP Student, Penn State College of Medicine
  84. Masanga Kiminu, Penn State College of Medicine 
  85. Denise Ocampo, Penn State College of Medicine
  86. Diba Atar, Penn State College of Medicine
  87. Pabitra Roy, Penn State College of Medicine
  88. Mizuho Obayashi, Penn State College of Medicine
  89. Katrina Gonzales
  90. Swathi Tata, Medical Student, Penn State College of Medicine 
  91. Mia Shoquist, MD Student, Penn State College of Medicine
  92. Dhaval Gandhi, Medical Student
  93. Samyukta Karthik, Penn State College of Medicine
  94. Eion Plenn, Penn State College of Medicine 
  95. Bryan Mesquita, MA student, Communication Arts & Sciences
  96. Michael Madden, Penn State Dickinson Law
  97. Zain Ul Abideen, MD/PhD Student, Penn State College of Medicine
  98. Sonia Chen, Penn State College of Medicine
  99. Veenadhari Kollipara, Penn State College of Medicine
  100. Deniz Parmaksiz, PSCOM
  101. Cara Pearson, College of Medicine
  102. Zachary Aukers, MD class of 2025
  103. Clever Nguyen, Penn State College of Medicine
  104. Taryn McFadden, MSTP Student, PSUCOM
  105. MuznaAli, PSCOM
  106. Alison Liu, PSCOM
  107. Mariana Dejuk, PSCOM
  108. Kyra Chester-Paul, PSCOM
  109. Kushagra kumar, Graduate Student 
  110. Janet Irons, Community member
  111. Mason Ward, Graduate Student, ESM
  112. Nader El Seblani, Staff
  113. Alicia Mack, Community Member
  114. Maaz Ali PSCOM
  115. Evelyne Matthews Advocate for Freedom, Justice & Equality for All! (community member)
  116. Hannah Bennett, MD/PhD student, PSUCOM
  117. Tamra Fatemi-Badi, Staff
  118. Nina Camillone, Ecosytem Science and Management, Staff


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