Palestinian Liberation is the Grammar of our Freedom - On the Moral Bankruptcy of the University 

We write as workers and students of the university to reiterate our conviction that the struggle for Palestinian liberation is our collective cause. The occupation of Palestine is a frontline in the endurance of colonialism and its myriad sites: seas, borders, camps, and settlements. The occupation of Palestine has embodied global anticolonial solidarity since at least the early twentieth century. Such solidarity and mobilization further deepened with the outbreak of anticolonial struggles in the mid-twentieth century and continued to strengthen since the 1970s. Today, we continue in their footsteps.

Calls for Palestinian liberation grow louder in the face of air strikes and televised mass murder. But the occupation of Palestine is no punctuated experience; it structures everyday life. It shows us that the Nakba of 1948 is a constantly unfolding event. It is an ongoing system of apartheid that undergirds Israel’s existence as an ethno-national state. This colonial history is not a primordial rivalry between Arabs and Jews, nor is it a conflict between two equal powers. Settler colonialism in Palestine is a century-long process, as well as an instrument of British and later American imperialism.

Israel’s siege of Gaza only reasserts the country’s colonial power over Palestine. The siege is a tightening chokehold on the Palestinian struggle against years of blockade, fragmentation, controlled resources, restricted mobility, and, increasingly, starvation.

We refuse to participate in a discursive war that renders some lives more grieveable than others. Our stratified vocabulary of mourning and victimhood forecloses the critical recognition that lying beyond the border walls and fences, there is a shared humanity. Wrapped in the rhetoric of mainstream media and politicians is the claim that people who risk everything to overthrow the chains of racialized oppression do not deserve to live. The echoes of the decolonizing war in Algeria, the anti-apartheid movement in South Africa, and the ongoing struggle for Black liberation ring loudly. The same racialized logic that rendered these movements the work of primitive, violent savages now demands we condemn Palestinians as uncivilized and barbaric. We refuse the status quo that these constructions uphold.

Pro-Palestinian speech is met with McCarthyite backlash on university campuses. Institutions of higher education have abdicated their responsibility to protect the lives and well-being of Arab, Black, Brown, Indigenous, and Muslim students. University administrations’ calls for “diversity,” “equity,” and “inclusion” conspicuously disregard the long-suppressed Palestinian claim to life. Our institutions produce vacuous statements while far-right organizations – bankrolled by donors with endowed university centers – harass, threaten, and actively harm marginalized students. Death threats and doxxing against students and faculty who speak out against the occupation of Palestine and systemic violence have become the norm.

Across the Global North, the classroom is compromised by capitalist capture, which constrains the liberatory potential of our thought. Behind the veneer of neutrality lies the dollar. Our university endowments – growing in value thanks to investments in a racialized prison industrial complex that stretches from Israel to the United States – are bloated by the eager affirmation of white supremacy. The university derives dividends from bloodshed via weapons and oil investments that produce the Middle East as a fractured geography of war. Today, the university is one of capitalism’s most productive agents. Our universities are not financially bankrupt; they are morally so.

The apartheid wall, the border fence, the prison bar, and the police cordon are conjoined sites of struggle fragmented in appearance only. Liberalism’s limited vocabulary has thinned our perceptions of the possible, suturing the future to the ruins of procedural democracy. We recognize these systems at work in our own lives, in our poisoned politics, and in the fragmented solidarity that renders us all complicit today. 

Neutrality cannot be the condition for participation in the university. Dissent is pedagogy. Knowledge is politics. In the interstices of the university, we insist on different relations of learning and struggle that remember and reenact the classroom as a space for protest.

Palestinian liberation is the grammar of our collective freedom. Palestinians offer us a language that can force the locks and break the chains of domination that structure our world. To accept the existence of an ethnostate predicated on dispossession and genocide would be to foreclose the very possibility of justice. 

Demands within a system where liberation is neither a category of thought nor action cannot meet our moment. Palestinian liberation is a practice of refusal. We cannot seek justice from a system committed to the permanent deferral of redistribution. We cannot imagine yielding to a status quo wherein condemning genocide is relegated to political positioning. What is needed now goes beyond all previous policy prescriptions. Talks of ceasefire and humanitarian aid, peace processes, and multi-national dialogues have only resulted in the continual theft of Palestinian land. 

We take our cues and lead from Palestinian voices within the university, beginning with the echoes of Birzeit University’s Union of Professors and Employees: 

We in occupied Palestine — and all Palestinians — have no illusions in the poetic dreams of the triumph of the pen over the sword because the sword has cut too deeply into our flesh at the hands of an enemy who has been granted by the hypocritical international community and the destiny of imperial history to claim a monopoly on both the sword (that which acts to kill) and the pen (that which narrates the acts of killing). As intellectuals and academics working in occupied Palestine, we have to use our words, however futile they may feel in such critical times. We also have faith in the bold souls of our people, our resistance and the triumph of freedom, and in our inalienable rights. We recognize and proclaim that at this critical and urgent historical juncture, we shall overcome – justice shall overcome. We are not your passive victims; we have been murdered, maimed, and displaced by a setter state driven by an ideology of insane hatred and bloody violence, but we will not be silenced. Our resistance shows us the path forward, and we remain steadfast, and we shall triumph.

We join our colleagues in their resistance. We recognize that decolonization is a material practice. We call for the land back. We are mobilizing a coalition of students and workers at institutions of higher learning who refuse to accept the rules of the colonial university. We demand a Free Palestine. This is the horizon of our collective freedom. 

Our call is open to all students and workers in higher institutions across the globe to sign. If you support the letter and would like to add your institution to the above list, please fill out the details below. Your personal information will not be displayed or shared, and you can sign the letter anonymously. 

Signed by students and workers at:

  1. Alexandria University, Egypt
  2. Aligarh Muslim University, India
  3. Aljamea-tus-Saifiyah, Pakistan
  4. Ambedkar University Delhi, India
  5. The American University in Cairo, Egypt
  6. American University of Beirut, Lebanon
  7. Ashoka University, India
  8. The Autonomous University of Barcelona, Spain
  9. Azim Premji University, India
  10. Bard College, USA 
  11. Baruch College, USA
  12. Berlin University of the Arts, Germany
  13. Birla Institute of Technology and Science, Pilani, India
  14. Birmingham City University, England
  15. Boğaziçi University, Turkey
  16. Boston University, USA
  17. Brac University, Bangladesh
  18. Brandeis University, USA
  19. Brigham Young University, USA 
  20. Brooklyn College, USA
  21. Brown University, USA
  22. Butler University, USA
  23. Cà Foscari University of Venice, Italy
  24. California Institute of Technology, USA
  25. California Institute of the Arts, USA
  26. The Catholic University of America, USA
  27. Carnegie Mellon University, USA
  28. Cégep André-Laurendeau, Canada 
  29. Central European University, Austria
  30. Chapman University, USA
  31. Christ University, India
  32. City University New York, USA
  33. City, University of London, England
  34. Chennai Mathematical Institute, India
  35. Christ University, India  
  36. The Claremont Colleges, USA
  37. Clark University, USA
  38. College of Wooster, USA
  39. Columbia University, USA
  40. Concordia University, USA
  41. Dartmouth College, USA
  42. Delft University of Technology, Netherlands
  43. De Montfort University, England
  44. DePaul University, USA
  45. Drexel University, USA
  46. Duke University, USA
  47. Elmhurst University, USA
  48. Emory University, USA
  49. Erasmus University Rotterdam, Netherlands
  50. European University Institute, Italy 
  51. ETH Zurich, Switzerland
  52. Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
  53. Fielding Graduate University, USA
  54. Film and Television Institute of India, India
  55. Forum Transregionale Studien, Germany 
  56. Freie Universität Berlin, Germany
  57. Fulbright University Vietnam, Vietnam
  58. Georg August University of Göttingen, Germany 
  59. Georgia Institute of Technology, USA
  60. George Washington University, USA
  61. Ghent University, Belgium
  62. The Graduate Institute Geneva, Switzerland
  63. Guilford College, USA
  64. Hamad Bin Khalifa University, Qatar
  65. Hampshire College, USA
  66. Harran University, Turkey
  67. Harvard University, USA
  68. Hertie School, Germany
  69. Hitotsubashi University, Japan 
  70. Hochschule Geisenheim University, Germany
  71. Humboldt Universität zu Berlin, Germany
  72. Hunter College, USA
  73. Indian Institute of Technology Bombay, India
  74. Indian Statistical Institute, India
  75. Indiana University, USA
  76. Institute of Physics, Bhubaneswar, India
  77. Institute Paul Bocuse, France
  78. Istanbul University, Turkey
  79. Jadavpur University, India
  80. Jamia Millia Islamia, India
  81. Jawaharlal Nehru University, India 
  82. Johns Hopkins University, USA
  83. Karachi University, Pakistan 
  84. Karel de Grote University College, Netherlands
  85. Kennesaw State University, USA
  86. Kent State University, USA 
  87. King’s College London, England
  88. Kyoto University, Japan
  89. Lancaster University, England
  90. Lebanese University, Lebanon
  91. Leeds Arts University, England
  92. Leipzig University, Germany 
  93. Lesley University, USA
  94. Lewis & Clark College, USA
  95. London School of Economics and Political Science, England
  96. Long Beach City College, USA
  97. Manipal Academy of Higher Education, India
  98. Maryland Institute College of Art, USA
  99. Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts, USA
  100. Massachusetts Institute of Technology, USA
  101. McGill University, Canada 
  102. McMaster University, Canada 
  103. Middle East Technical University, Turkey
  104. Middlebury College, USA
  105. Mount Holyoke College, USA
  106. Mount Royal University, Canada 
  107. Moore College of Art & Design, USA
  108. National Institute for Oriental Languages and Civilizations, France
  109. New Mexico State University, USA 
  110. New York University, USA 
  111. The New School for Social Research, USA
  112. Northeastern University, USA 
  113. Northwestern University, USA
  114. The Ohio State University, USA
  115. Oklahoma State University, USA
  116. Passaic County Community College, USA
  117. Paris Dauphine University, France
  118. The Pennsylvania State University, USA
  119. Pepperdine University, USA
  120. Pontifical Catholic University of Chile, Chile
  121. Pontifical Javierian University, Colombia
  122. Pratt Institute, USA
  123. Princeton University, USA
  124. Queen's University, Canada
  125. Rama Devi Women's University, India
  126. Ram Manohar Lohiya National Law University, India
  127. Rhode Island School of Design, USA
  128. Royal College of Art, England
  129. Royal Holloway, University of London, England
  130. Rutgers University, USA
  131. Rutgers University-New Brunswick, USA
  132. Sabanci University, Turkey 
  133. Saha Institute of Nuclear Physics, India
  134. San Diego State University, USA
  135. San Francisco State University, USA
  136. São Paulo State University, Brazil
  137. Sapienza University of Rome, Italy
  138. Sarah Lawrence College, USA
  139. School of Oriental and African Studies, England
  140. Sciences Po, France
  141. Shahjalal University of Science & Technology, Bangladesh
  142. Soka University of America, USA
  143. Sorbonne-Université, France
  144. Spelman College, USA
  145. Stanford University, USA
  146. State University of New York - Plattburgh, USA
  147. Stony Brook University, USA
  148. Syracuse University, USA 
  149. Tata Institute of Social Sciences, India
  150. Tajik National University, Tajikistan
  151. Technical University Berlin, Germany
  152. Temple University, USA
  153. Tehran University, Iran 
  154. Temple University, USA
  155. Tilburg University, Netherlands
  156. Thomas Jefferson University, USA
  157. Tulane University, USA 
  158. Union College, USA
  159. University College Dublin, Ireland
  160. University College London, England
  161. Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
  162. Università per Stranieri di Siena, Italy
  163. University for Foreigners of Siena, Italy
  164. University of Amsterdam, Netherlands
  165. University of Antwerp, Belgium
  166. University of Arizona, USA
  167. University of the Arts, USA
  168. University of Bath, England 
  169. University of Bayreuth, Germany  
  170. University of Birmingham, England 
  171. University of Bologna, Italy
  172. University of British Columbia, Canada
  173. University of Bristol, England
  174. University of Calgary, Canada
  175. University of California –Berkeley, USA
  176. University of California – Irvine, USA
  177. University of California – Los Angeles, USA
  178. University of California – San Diego, USA
  179. University of California – Santa Barbara, USA
  180. University of California – Santa Cruz, USA
  181. University of Cambridge, England
  182. University of Cape Town, South Africa
  183. University of Chicago, USA
  184. University of Delaware, USA
  185. University of Delhi, India
  186. University of Denver, USA
  187. University of Dhaka, Bangladesh
  188. University of East Anglia, England
  189. University of Edinburgh, Scotland
  190. University of Georgia, USA
  191. University of Gothenburg, Sweden
  192. University of Göttingen, Germany
  193. University of Granada, Spain
  194. University of Graz, Austria
  195. University of Hartford, USA
  196. University of Hawaii, USA
  197. University of Houston, USA
  198. University of Illinois - Champaign Urbana, USA
  199. University of Illinois - Chicago, USA
  200. University of Iowa, USA
  201. University of Johannesburg, South Africa
  202. University of Kansas, USA
  203. University of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa
  204. University of Leicester, England
  205. University of London, England
  206. University of Manchester, England
  207. University of Maryland, USA
  208. University of Massachusetts – Amherst, USA
  209. University of Massachusetts – Boston, USA
  210. University of Melbourne, Australia
  211. University of Michigan, USA
  212. University of Missouri, USA
  213. University of Namibia, Namibia
  214. University of Nevada, USA
  215. University of New Orleans, USA 
  216. University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill, USA
  217. University of North Carolina – Charlotte, USA
  218. University of North Carolina - Wilmington, USA
  219. University of Notre Dame
  220. University of Oregon, USA
  221. University of Oslo, Norway
  222. University of Oxford, England
  223. University of the Pacific, USA
  224. University of Pennsylvania, USA
  225. University of Pittsburgh, USA
  226. University of Potsdam, Germany
  227. University of Porto, Portugal
  228. University of Quebec in Montréal, Canada
  229. University of Rajshahi, Bangladesh
  230. University of San Diego, USA
  231. University of Siena, Italy 
  232. University of Sheffield, England
  233. University of São Paulo, Brazil
  234. University of South Africa, South Africa 
  235. University of South Florida, USA
  236. University of Southern California, USA 
  237. University of Southampton, England
  238. University of Sydney, Australia 
  239. University of Texas at Austin, USA
  240. University of the South Pacific
  241. University of Tokyo, Japan
  242. University of Toronto, Canada
  243. University of Toronto Scarborough, Canada
  244. University of Vermont
  245. University of Virginia, USA
  246. University of Warwick, England
  247. University of Washington - Seattle, USA
  248. University of Waterloo, Canada
  249. University of Zürich, Switzerland
  250. Utrecht University, Netherlands
  251. Vanderbilt University, USA
  252. Waseda University, Japan
  253. Washington State University, USA
  254. Wayne State University, USA
  255. Wellesley College, USA
  256. Wesleyan University, USA 
  257. West Virginia University, USA
  258. Widener University, USA
  259. William & Mary, USA
  260. Yale University, USA
  261. Yeditepe University, Turkey
  262. York University, Canada 
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