30 April 2026
The European Legal Support Center (ELSC) has posted on the Oxford Union, the university’s debating club, which has treated the Palestinian-American author Susan Abulhawa outrageously. Abulhawa, speaking at the Union nearly two years ago, invited the audience to consider if the description of genocide would even be questioned if it was Jewish Israelis rather than Palestinians who were the victims of a military assault comparable to the one inflicted upon the Palestinians in Gaza since October 2023. Abulhawa’s description of the human costs of the assault was devastating and she almost singlehandedly won the debate against a clutch of Israeli apologists. The Union, however, wasn’t prepared to leave it there, and censored the video of her speech. As summed up by the old American phrase “banned in Boston”, the Union’s censorship will no doubt further increase interest in her speech. All the same, it is appalling that the Union should abase itself by joining in the attempt to silence the Palestine voice. We urge you to sign the ELSC petition!
European Legal Support Center (ELSC) writes on X:
Susan Abulhawa spoke at the Oxford Union in November 2024 about the Israeli genocide in Palestine. Over 250,000 people watched her speech. The Oxford Union took it down and reuploaded an edited version cutting nearly two minutes without her consent and in breach of their own agreement. For 17 months, Abulhawa has demanded that the Oxford Union restore the full speech, honor its obligations, and respect the intellectual labor of an invited Palestinian speaker. The Oxford Union could restore the full speech tomorrow. Instead, it continues to erase part of a Palestinian author’s testimony from the public record. In times of genocide and war crimes, the historical record matters. Palestinian voices matter. They should not be treated as negotiable, editable, or disposable. Over 30 public figures and organisations have already signed the open letter calling for the full speech to be restored. JOIN them. Add your voice today: https://supportsusan.com
The same link will get you to the missing two minutes of her speech: https://x.com/jarrarraida/status/2049194809210859663
