We are living in truly extraordinary times.We recently witnessed the United Nations special rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Palestinian territories, Francesca Albanese, being sanctioned by the United States for doing her job – that is, documenting Israel’s abuses against Palestinians during its ongoing military assault on Gaza.
But with more than 58,000 Palestinians killed to date in Gaza, the case for Israel is weaker than ever. So, for Israel’s sake, we need to silence and ban everything.
Of course, silencing and censorship have been the modus operandi of the pro-Israel camp since October 2023.
In the immediate aftermath of the Hamas attack on Israel, they came for all those who insisted that the history of Palestine and Israel did not begin on October 7, 2023, and for pointing to the longer history of occupation, settler colonialism, or the siege of Gaza since 2007 – they were silenced, censored, and punished.
Those were the days of the now‑discredited reports of “beheaded babies”.
Across the US and Europe, some faced death threats and social media attacks, while others were reprimanded by employers and line managers for criticising Israeli policies or publicly expressing pro-Palestinian views.
In schools across Maryland, Minnesota, Florida and Arizona, teachers were suspended and student clubs shut down for pro-Palestine activism. University professors in the US and the United Kingdom were reported to the police for “liking” or sharing pro-Palestinian social media posts. Advertisement
In May 2024, Maura Finkelstein became the first tenured academic to be dismissed for anti-Zionist speech. She was fired from Muhlenberg College after po …
