May 1, 2025, 8pm Eastern / 7pm Central / 5pm Pacific - Zoom
Authoritarianism, Free Speech, and the Weaponization of Antisemitism with Attorney Meerah Shah and Professor Joseph Howley
Major Jewish organizations and political figures have attacked advocacy for Palestinian rights as antisemitism long before the shocking October 7, 2023 Hamas attack on Israel. The unprecedented international movement that arose in response to Israel’s vengeful destruction of Palestinian life and society in the Gaza Strip in retaliation for October 7 prompted a vast escalation of attacks on Palestine solidarity activists. Why were universities and colleges particularly targeted during the Biden administration? Who else is in the crosshairs? Why has the Trump administration weaponized the false claim that advocating for Palestinian rights is antisemitism as a leading edge in its broader authoritarian program? How are attacks on Palestine-related freedom of expression connected to the broader program of the MAGA authoritarians? How are people resisting these attacks?
Meera Shah is a senior staff attorney at Palestine Legal. She oversees Palestine Legal's attorney network and supports the organization’s casework and advocacy related to free speech, academic freedom, and anti-Palestinian discrimination. She joined Palestine Legal in 2019 after several years working for human rights organizations and law school clinics serving marginalized communities.
Joseph Howley is Associate Professor of Classics at Columbia University. He teaches Latin, the history of the book, and Literature Humanities in Columbia’s Core Curriculum. He was active in defending the student encampment at Columbia. On March 12 he spoke at a rally in front of the New York City courthouse where the hearing of Mahmoud Khalil, the recent Columbia graduate and green card holder now detained in Louisiana, took place.