The organizers of the Open Classroom event, “Whose Narratives? What Free Speech for Palestine” say they had their right to free speech silenced by private tech companies Zoom, Facebook, and Eventbrite when the companies bowed to the fraudulent threat of prosecution. Now the organizers are calling on supporters to demand an end to corporate control of academia and an end to Israel lobby censorship and bullying.

On April 12 Facebook removed the event page for a panel on Palestine. The next day the tech company shut down the page for the academic program, the Arab and Muslim Ethnicities and Diasporas (AMED) Studies program at San Francisco State University, that sponsored it.

In a struggle that is eerily similar to the battle for the Mexican American Studies a decade ago, teachers, students, and community activists in California are fighting to defend the content and pedagogy of ethnic studies.

Fallout continues over Zoom’s censorship of a San Francisco State University academic forum featuring Leila Khaled. “Zoom should not be allowed to interfere with nor have any power over the content of our curriculum and classrooms,” Dr. Rabab Abdulhadi tells Mondoweiss.

Three tech giants censored an online class featuring Palestinian, Black, Jewish and South African activists at San Francisco State University, after pro-Israel advocacy groups complained. “This is a dangerous attack on free speech and academic freedom from Big Tech: Zoom cannot claim veto power over the content of our nation’s classrooms and public events,” said Dima Khalidi, director of Palestine Legal. “The threat to democracy is elevated by the fact that Zoom’s decision to stamp out discussion of Palestinian freedom comes in response to a systematic repression campaign driven by the Israeli government and its allies.”

Zoom has announced that it will deny its services to San Francisco State University today and block an online panel featuring Leila Khaled from happening with its software. Pro-Israel groups, including the Act.IL app which is partially funded by the Israeli government, are taking credit for helping cancel the event.

South African anti-apartheid activist Ronnie Kasrils reflects on how an upcoming event with Leila Khaled has sparked an unexpected correspondence with old classmates.

Laura Whitehorn writes that San Francisco State University President Lynn Mahoney’s championing of Zionism is shocking and runs directly counter to embracing a “diversity of opinions”—something the university claims to uphold.