rich 1.0 Action Network https://actionnetwork.org <link href='https://actionnetwork.org/css/style-embed-v3.css' rel='stylesheet' type='text/css' /><script src='https://actionnetwork.org/widgets/v6/letter/nocccd?format=js&source=widget'></script><div id='can-letter-area-nocccd' style='width: 100%'><!-- this div is the target for our HTML insertion --></div> Arab American Civic Council https://actionnetwork.org/groups/arab-american-civic-council https://can2-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/share_options/facebook_images/000/363/410/original/ActionNetwork_Temp_-_NOCCCD_(1500_%C3%97_600_px).jpg The South West Asian and North African (SWANA) Faculty and Staff Association at North Orange County Community College District published a statement on May 12, 2022 mourning the unprovoked killing of Palestinian-American journalist Shireen Abu Akleh by Israeli occupation forces. The statement was also posted on the NOCCCD SWANA website.   The SWANA Faculty and Staff Association was shocked to find out that the letter was removed from the District webpage. The removal of the letter from the District pages is clearly motivated by a one-sided public response to the letter. This was evident in the Board of Trustees meeting on May 24, in which our community endured racist language that equated Palestinians with terrorists, and relied on the racist trope that SWANA folks are exceptionally anti-Semitic. This false accusation when supporting Palestinians isn't new, and is inherently racist. ACT NOW: Contact NOCCCD Board of Trustees and Demand That They Protect Academic Freedom Email the NOCCCD Board of Trustees and CC the Chancellor to show your support of the statement mourning the killing of an American journalist. Demand that they protect our academic freedom in an institution of higher education. https://actionnetwork.org/letters/nocccd