SAN DIEGO — Zoom, Facebook and YouTube cancelled use of their platforms Wednesday for the airing of a San Francisco State University sponsored webinar featuring airline hijacker Leila Khaled of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, with Zoom citing its obligation to obey U.S. law.
The Jerusalem Post reported on Tuesday that in response to numerous complaints from lawyers and pro-Israel activists, Zoom had notified San Francisco State University that it would not carry on its service a planned speech at 12:30 p.m. today by Khaled. Her planned Internet speech had been sponsored by SFSU’s Arab and Muslim Ethnicities and Diasporas (AMED) studies program, headed by Professor Rabab Abdulhadi.
Explaining its decision, Zoom commented: “Zoom is committed to supporting the open exchange of ideas and conversations, subject to certain limitations contained in our Terms of Service, including those related to user compliance with applicable US export control, sanctions, and anti-terrorism laws … In light of the speaker’s reported affiliation or membership in a US designated foreign terrorist organization, and SFSU’s inability to confirm otherwise, we determined the meeting is in violation of Zoom’s Terms of Service and told SFSU they may not use Zoom for this particular event.”
It was not known up to the time of the event how Facebook would respond, but the link to webinar was removed by the social media organization. YouTube coverage also was cancelled.
Meanwhile, pro-Israel groups, including Bears for Israel on the UC Berkeley campus across the bay from San Francisco were circulating a petition calling on House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who represents San Francisco, to take a stand on the controversy.
The letter to Speaker Pelosi reads as follows:
We write to you today with fervent urgency, distraught by the welcoming of an international terrorist at San Francisco State University, a public institution within your district. Inviting Leila Khaled to speak on an American campus is not amenable to the values of our great state or country. What’s more is that it creates an inhospitable environment for Jewish students on campus and beyond, during a time when antisemitic violence has gained grotesque momentum in the United States.
Leila Khaled is a longstanding leader of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, a group designated as a terrorist organization by the United States, the European Union, Israel, and other key allies. She was directly responsible for multiple airplane hijackings, and voices support for heinously violent attacks — including but not limited to suicide bombings, opening fire in public spaces, and the murder of children and families, in one instance with a meat cleaver. The normalization of mass violence cannot be accepted, especially in light of American Jews’ vulnerable position in our country today.
There are two problems with allowing Khaled to speak at SFSU. Most importantly, this is a terrifying slight to the Jewish community at SFSU, San Francisco and the country as a whole, effectively condoning aggression towards Jews and Israelis in the name of “social justice.” In the past two years, the American Jewish community has felt the direct impact of anti-Jewish terror — from Pittsburgh, to Poway, to Jersey City, to Monsey. In each of these attacks, innocent Jewish lives have been taken in the name of white supremacist replacement theory, Black Hebrew Israelite “imposter” theory, or some other ideology. We hope that you can understand these ideologies are not valid justifications for the murder of innocent Jewish Americans — and we hope that the violent rhetoric spewed by Leila Khaled and fellow members of her terrorist organization under the guise of “resistance” is similarly unacceptable. To accept such justifications is to affirm the greatest fears of your Jewish constituents — that our lives are disposable, and that we are not safe.
Second, this event supports the continued normalization of violent martyrdom and the stifling of free speech. Your colleague, Rep. Zeldin, has spoken out regarding the danger of using an academic setting to incite violence and recruit for extremism. This week, however, SFSU has taken this incitement to the next level; while already challenged in our transition to the online educational world, some have taken advantage of new loopholes in order to grant extremists access to our institutions — and as a result have allowed a woman who is legally barred from the United States to speak to our students. They aim to glorify a terrorist figure. To entertain the idea that Khaled’s rhetoric could possibly classify as “free speech” is absurd – she has stated there was not enough violence during the intifadas, for example – this is a clear case of incitement towards violence. In fact, allowing Khaled to speak is antithetical to the promotion of free speech. The encouragement of violence invariably has a chilling effect on speech, as the Anti Defamation League warns that “an individual with a demonstrated commitment to violent extremism will undoubtedly discourage students from free expression and exploration.”
We urge you to speak out against this blatant disregard for Jewish safety and American values. We beg you to take a stand against the incitement of violence, and the explicit support for terrorism masked as “resistance.” There are a great many who advocate on behalf of Palestinian justice, but the choice of a terrorist is unacceptable.
Last month, in announcing Khaled’s participation in the planned forum titled “Whose Narratives? Gender, Justice, & Resistance: A Conversation with Leila Khaled,” Prof Abdulhadi said:
I wanted to grow up to become another Leila Khaled. Her steadfastness, resilience and resistance has and continues to be a huge inspiration to me and to generations of Palestinian women. Her stubborn commitment to an indivisible sense of justice and refusal to compromise one type of justice for the sake of another continues to model what it means to be a committed revolutionary.
Zionist groups will undoubtedly become bothered again. They will ask the university to punish us for bringing the voices of marginalized communities to the fore and for shining a light on what oppression and resistance mean.
The Zionist biggest problem is that they simply cannot silence each one of us and cannot prevent all peace and justice loving people from hearing and listening to what we have to say.
“Lets just say that relying on behind the door pressures and alliances with white supremacist powers will not intimidate us. Our students will benefit a great deal from listening to the oral histories of those who can teach Palestine and can teach justice. …”
AMED was reported by the “J” newspaper of Northern California to have contacted the San Francisco State University administration to seek help in finding an Internet forum that would agree to Leila Khaled’s participation. So while this round is over, it appears that this controversy is far from over.
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Donald H. Harrison is editor of San Diego Jewish World. He may be contacted via donald.harrison@sdjewishworld.com
When a number of Jewish terrorists – for that is what they are – who fought in Israels so-called ‘war of independence’ went on to gain the highest of offices in the Zionist state it is beyond both ironiy and hypocrisy for any supporter of Israel to criticise this on-line discussion with Leila Khaled who gave up armed struggle decades ago!
Unfortunately we see the hypocrisy and neo-fascism of many who support Israel on a regular basis not only in stifling open, honest debate but in the wider context of deny Palestinian nationhood, history and culture – shame on you all!