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The Center for Constitutional Rights (CCR), National Lawyers Guild (NLG), Jewish Voices for Peace, CODEPINK, and 11 other human rights organizations issued a statement defending their free speech rights. In part, they said:
"We, the undersigned, condemn efforts, both on and off campus, to silence student speech in support of Palestinian rights, and affirm the First Amendment rights of students to engage in such speech.""It is not anti-Semitic to criticize the conduct of the State of Israel. It is not "hate speech" to challenge violations of international law and internationally recognized human rights standards."
They cited the Supreme Court's Terminiello v. Chicago decision. It ruled speech "may indeed best serve its high purpose when it induces a condition of unrest, creates dissatisfaction with conditions as they are, or even stirs people to anger."
"Speech is often provocative and challenging. It may strike at prejudices and preconceptions and have profound unsettling effects as it presses for acceptance of an idea."
Speech is constitutionally protected. Without it, all other rights are endangered. In Keyishian v. Board of Regents, the Supreme Court ruled that protecting free expression "is nowhere more vital" than on campuses.
Academic freedom shares equal importance. Silencing anyone for unpopular or other political views can't be tolerated in free societies. Millions support Palestinian rights worldwide.
FAU and other students are constitutionally protected to do it. So is everyone. Censorship is abhorrent everywhere.
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