Susan Abulhawa wins fight to restore censored Oxford Union speech on Israel apartheid

Palestinian American author Susan Abulhawa has won her fight to restore a speech censored by the Oxford Union.  A settlement was reached following a legal challenge over the removal of passages from the high-profile debate about Israeli abuses and Zionist ideology.

The Electronic Intifada reported earlier this week that the agreement meets Abulhawa’s central demand: the edited recording has been removed and her original address restored to the debating society’s platforms.

“I am pleased that the integrity of my intellectual labour is now preserved in full,” Abulhawa said.

The Palestinian novelist delivered the speech on 28 November 2024 during a debate on whether Israel was an apartheid state engaged in genocide. The proposition won by 278 votes to 59.

Watch full video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c2Y-aycEqs0&t=12s

According to the European Legal Support Center (ELSC), which represented her with support from Bindmans LLP, the original recording attracted around 250,000 views within a week. The Union subsequently replaced it with a version cutting five sections without her consent.

The deletions included her references to booby-trapped toys in southern Lebanon and allegations of sexual torture against Palestinian detainees, including her account of the death of Gaza surgeon Dr Adnan Al-Bursh. Other cuts removed criticism of Zionist claims to supremacy and of conduct during the Gaza genocide.

“Every word of that speech was carefully crafted for accuracy and style specific to me” Abulhawa said.  “I laboured over its content not to win a debate, but to contribute to history’s audit of this extraordinary time of a horrific livestreamed genocide.  In altering my words, the Oxford Union not only perverted my intellectual property without consent, but they also violated the public trust by distorting the historic record to suit a partisan narrative, thereby depriving the public and future generations of the full truth. Their decision to edit my speech is egregiously unethical. It tramples on the principles of open debate and freedom of expression—the very ideals the Oxford Union purports to uphold”.

Abulhawa said she had agreed to participate on the express condition that her speech be published unedited and had received repeated assurances to that effect, The Electronic Intifada reported.

READ: ‘Israel is an apartheid state responsible for genocide’: Oxford Union passes historic motion

The Union’s lawyers argued that the passages contained anti-Semitic tropes or unproven allegations and could expose those publishing them to prosecution for inciting racial hatred. Her lawyers rejected that characterisation, arguing that the remarks addressed Israeli abuses and Zionist ideology, rather than Jews or Israelis collectively.

ELSC filed a discrimination claim alleging that Abulhawa had been treated less favourably because of her Palestinian identity and anti-Zionist beliefs. The organisation also said the Union had failed to implement an internal Standing Committee vote to restore the full recording.

Abulhawa also requested access to personal information the Union held about her, seeking to understand the basis for censoring her speech. According to ELSC, the Union initially withheld some information on the grounds that disclosure could incriminate it. Although it later abandoned that justification, ELSC said it still failed to provide all the requested personal data. 

The dispute was referred to the UK’s data protection regulator, the Information Commissioner’s Office.

Lawyers of Abulhawa also contrasted her treatment with that of fellow debate participant Mosab Hassan Yousef, whose disparaging remarks about Palestinians remained unedited.

The publication reported that barrister Pete Weatherby KC, consulted by ELSC, found no reasonable grounds to suspect the incitement offences invoked by the Union.

In the settlement announcement, the Union reaffirmed its commitment to free speech and expressed regret that the dispute had arisen.

The publicly announced agreement contains no admission of liability, and other settlement terms remain undisclosed.

“Palestinians should not fear those who seek to bully us into submission,” Abulhawa said.

READ: Oxford Union votes that Israel poses ‘greater threat’ to regional stability than Iran