Muslim civil rights and advocacy group calls on College President Jermaine Williams to permit organizers to reschedule event.
The Maryland office of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) today demanded an apology, investigation and explanation from Montgomery College President Dr. Jermaine Williams after students and faculty alleged that administrators threatened disciplinary action against them if they attended an approved film screening about the pro-Israel lobby minutes before the event was scheduled to take place earlier this week at the college’s Rockville campus in Montgomery County, Maryland.
SEE: MESSAGE TO PRESIDENT WILLIAMS
The screening, organized by the college’s Faculty for Justice in Palestine and the Arab Society Club, was to be followed by a discussion on U.S. media and bias in reporting facilitated by professors Dr. Katya Salmi and Dr. Ellen Olmstead. According to an email forwarded to CAIR, date and time stamped twenty minutes before the event was scheduled to begin, Dr. Williams sent a campus wide message summarily declaring the film antisemitic and saying organizers “should forgo its viewing.”
Although President Williams’ email did not explicitly announce the forced cancellation of the screening, CAIR has received complaints from students who allege that campus administrators then threatened students who were waiting in line to attend the film screening, saying they would ‘face disciplinary action’ from the Office of Student Life if they watched the film. The screening did not go forward and has not yet been rescheduled. The film is available for viewing at the college’s library. Students and faculty have expressed concern about speaking out publicly due to fear of retaliation.
SEE: Occupation of the American Mind Scheduled for Screening at Montgomery College
“As faculty and students discuss ideas and debate different topics, public institutions of higher learning have a responsibility to ensure that students and faculty can exercise their First Amendment free speech rights on campuses without fear of retaliation or intimidation,” said CAIR’s Maryland Director Zainab Chaudry. “Our office has observed an alarming trend of attempts by anti-Palestinian groups and actors to cancel, discourage and derail events designed to raise awareness about issues related to Israel and Palestine. We call on Montgomery College to clarify its stance, investigate allegations that administrators threatened disciplinary action against attendees seeking to watch the film, and take appropriate corrective action. We also call on Dr. Williams to apologize for publicly disparaging the diverse group of faculty and student who organized the event and permit them to reschedule it at their convenience.”
Narrated by musician Roger Waters and directed by Loretta Alper and Jeremy Earp, the film The Occupation of the American Mind features interviews with various experts on Israel and Palestine exploring how pro-Israel advocacy has contributed to a pro-Israel bias in American media coverage of the conflict.
A recently leaked internal memo reveals that the New York Times instructed journalists covering Israel’s war on the Gaza Strip to restrict the use of the terms “genocide” and “ethnic cleansing” and to “avoid” using the phrase “occupied territory” when describing Palestinian land.
CNN staff say network’s pro-Israel slant amounts to ‘journalistic malpractice’
Earlier this week, CAIR’s Greater Los Angeles chapter called on the University of Southern California to reverse its decision to cancel the graduation speech of USC student and Class of 2024 valedictorian Asna Tabassum in response to “dishonest and defamatory” attacks and harassment launched by anti-Muslim and anti-Palestinian extremists.
CAIR’s mission is to protect civil rights, enhance understanding of Islam, promote justice, and empower American Muslims.
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CONTACT: CAIR Maryland Director Zainab Chaudry, zchaudry@cair.com, 410-971-6062; CAIR National Deputy Director Edward Ahmed Mitchell, 404-285-9530, e-Mitchell@cair.com; CAIR Government Affairs Director Robert McCaw, 202-742-6448, rmccaw@cair.com; CAIR National Communications Director Ibrahim Hooper, 202-744-7726, ihooper@cair.com, CAIR National Communications Manager Ismail Allison, 202-770-6280, iallison@cair.com