Constitution

Efforts to legally declare any criticism of Israeli policy to be sanctionable anti-Semitism have reached a crisis point

Taking an Oath on the Qur’an, like Mamdani, attests its Long History in America

But it does me no injury for my neighbour to say there are twenty gods, or no god. It neither picks my pocket nor breaks my leg

Constitution

Who’s Responsible When a Military Order is Illegal? (Don’t Ask Donald Trump!)

Tomdispatch

By Nan Levinson ( Tomdispatch.com ) – Any story about resistance within the military must begin by recognizing that it’s not an easy thing to do. Apparently, that’s true even for a much-decorated retired Navy commander, former astronaut, and sitting United States senator. I’m talking about Arizona Senator Mark Kelly. He was one of six Democratic […]

Academic Freedom

MESA Board Statement concerning the detention of Dr. Vahid Abedini

Middle East Studies Association

Middle East Studies Association | – Update: Dr. Abedini has been released from detention. The Middle East Studies Association (MESA) was disturbed to learn of the detention of Dr. Vahid Abedini, the Farzaneh Family Assistant Professor of Iranian Studies at the University of Oklahoma (OU). Dr. Abedini was detained on November 22 by U.S. Immigration and […]

Academic Freedom

First Circuit Judges Strike down Israel Lobby Suit against MIT for Permitting Gaza Protests

Juan Cole

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – Erik Uebelacker at Courthouse News Service reports that a three-judge appeals panel of the US Court of Appeals, First Circuit, in Boston, struck down a lawsuit by a pro-Israel pressure group against the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) alleging that the university permitted pro-Palestine students to harass Jewish students. The […]

Bill of Rights

Our Fourth Amendment Rights Are Endangered Like Never Before

OtherWords

Trump is trying to disappear the part of the Constitution that stops the government from searching your house — or seizing you — without a warrant. By Mitchell Zimmerman | ( Otherwords.org ) – Suppose the police want to get illegal drugs off the streets. So they begin stopping pedestrians at gunpoint, shoving them against […]

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 […]

Bill of Rights

Corrupt DoJ Shields Trump on Epstein, Extorts CBS and Columbia U. in Protection Racket

Dan Dinello

Chicago (Special to Informed Comment; Feature) – Gangster president Trump and his Justice Department lackeys are engaged in a coordinated cover-up of his entanglements with pedophile Jeffrey Epstein by unleashing a blizzard of insults, lies, and worn-out conspiracy accusations to deflect criticism. So far this hasn’t worked. But the same authoritarian tactics that have failed […]