We, the undersigned, condemn the interference by the Austrian Students’ Union (ÖH), the Jewish Austrian Students’ Union (JÖH) and others in a lecture series organized by the Institute for African Studies, the research platform Mobile Cultures and Societies and the Association Dar al Janub.
The Institute for African Studies already hosted Dr. Greg Thomas, associate professor for Black Studies and Literature in English from Tufts University on 29th of May 2018. Professor Thomas gave a talk titled The Complete Fanon: African Revolution, Black Power Movement, and Neo-colonial Imperialism.
Another lecture is scheduled for the 21st of June. I will be given by former Black Panther member Dhoruba bin Wahad, who will reflect upon the Black Panther struggle and his 19 years of imprisonment in the US.
The attempt to prevent both lectures is based on the argument that the Association Dar al Janub supports the Palestinian-led international Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions movement for freedom, justice and equality for the Palestinian people. Therefore—according to the argument—the association should not be allowed to hold events at the University of Vienna or even just to engage in cooperation with various departments and academic staff.
We strongly believe that such efforts violate academic freedom and the right to free speech at the University of Vienna.
The invitation of Greg Thomas and Dhoruba bin Wahad aims to open up the academic space to engage with Black Civil Rights activists, their community struggles for justice and equality and their histories. These histories are entangled with transnational solidarity campaigns which include the BDS movement, as Angela Davis reminded us in her talk at the University of Vienna on the occasion of its 650th anniversary in 2015.
As much as we respect and support the democratic value of student unions to actively participate in debates about University politics and events planned on campus, we are deeply concerned about the attempt to prevent the upcoming lecture by Dhoruba bin Wahad and to exercise pressure on the Institute of African Studies to withdraw from cooperation with Dar al Janub.
We urge the University of Vienna and the board of the Institute of African Studies to support open discussions and the upcoming event.
Signatures (so far):
Dr Nick Evans, University of Cambridge
Max Leak, Oxford University (Alumnus)
Jonathan Rosenhead, Emeritus Professor, Department of Management, London School of Economics
Professor Dr. Richard Seaford, University of Exeter, UK
Dr Les Levidow, Senior Research Fellow, Open University, UK
Dr Anne Alexander, University of Cambridge
Tom Hickey, University of Brighton, UK
John Chalcraft, Professor of Middle East History and Politics, Government
Department, London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE)
Jonathan M Woodham, Emeritus Professor of Design History, Brighton
James Dickins, Prof. of Arabic, University of Leeds, United Kingdom
Dr Patricia McManus, School of Humanities, University of Brighton
Dr Don Crewe PhD, School of Social Sciences, Leeds Beckett University, UK
Dr Mette Wiggen, School of Politics & International Studies (POLIS), University of Leeds
Dr Rasha Soliman – University of Leeds
Professor Matt Meyer, Senior Research Scholar, UMass/Amherst Resistance Studies Initiative; UN representative, International Peace Research Association
Dr Lori Allen, SOAS, University of London
Dr Theodore Koulouris, Senior Lecturer in Media Theory, School of Media, University of Brighton
Ruth Orli Moshkovitz, University of Vienna (alumna)
Dhoruba al-Mujahid bin Wahad, former member of the Black Panther Party and Black Liberation Army
Prof. Neve Gordon, Marie Curie Fellow, School of Law, Queen Mary University, London
Bob Brecher, Professor of Moral Philosophy, University of Brighton UK
Dr Robin Dunford, School of Humanities, University of Brighton
Ray Bush, Professor of African Studies and Development Politics, POLIS, University of Leeds
Barnaby Raine, Columbia University
Dr Clint Le Bruyns, Director, Theology and Development Programme, University of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa
Prof. Marwan Rashed, Sorbonne Université, department of Philosophy
Mag. Peter Unterweger, Secretary, Int’l Metalworkers Federation, ret.
Herman De Ley, Emeritus Professor, University of Ghent, Belgium
Naor Ben-Yehoyada, Assistant Professor of Anthropology, Columbia University
Dr Sam Durrant, Associate Professor in Postcolonial Literature, School of English, Leeds University
Dr Ghada Karmi, Institute of Arab and Islamic Studies, University of Exeter, UK
Agustin Velloso, Lecturer, Universidad Nacional de Educacion a Distancia, Madrid – Spain
Javier Barquin Ruiz, Associate Professor, Departament Didáctics and School Planning, Faculty of Education,Malaga University, Spain
Prof. Haim Bresheeth, Professorial Research Associate, Faculty of Arts and Humanities, School of Oriental and African Studies And Director of Camera Obscura Films, SOAS University of London
María-José Lera, Professor, Dpt. Psicología Evolutiva y de la Educación, Universidad de Sevilla, Spain
Dr Sai Englert, SOAS, University of London
Jean-Pierre Bouché , Research Director (retired), CNRS, France
Josef Pampalk, PhD, retired lecturer at Dept. African Studies, University Vienna
Efia Nwangaza, Executive Director, Malcolm X Center, Greenville, SC USA
Dror Warschawski, Research Associate, CNRS, Paris, France
Wilhelm Langthaler, author and activist
Isabel Frey, Junior Researcher, VUmc, Amsterdam
Iris Hefets, Psychoanalyst, Berlin, Germany
Rabah Tahraoui , Professeur des universités, retraité de l’université de Rouen, France
Dr Peter E Jones, Sheffield Hallam University, UK
Dr. Daniel Winkler, Ass.-Prof., Romanistik, Universität Wien
Mag. Dr. Arno Sonderegger, Privatdozent, Senior Lecturer, Institute of African Studies, University of Vienna
Dr. Bea de Abreu Fialho Gomes, Senior Lecturer, Institut für Internationale Entwicklung, Universität Wien
Mag. Elke Christiansen, StudienService Institut für Internationale Entwicklung
Dr. Walter Sauer, Univ. Prof., Historian, Univ. Vienna
Immanuel Harisch, PhD-candidate, Platform Mobile Cultures and Societies, University Vienna
Dr. Erwin Ebermann, Senior Lecturer, Institut für Afrikawissenschaften, Universität Wien
Prof. Dr. Henning Melber, University of Pretoria and University of the Free State, Bloemfontein President of the European Association of Development Research and Training Institute
Javier Barreda, Lecturer on Arab and Islamic Studies, University of Alicante, Spain
Ivar Ekeland, former president, the University of Paris-Dauphine
Dr Victoria Margree, University of Brighton
María López Villalba, Departamento de Traducción e Interpretación, Facultad de Filosofía y Letras, Universidad de Málaga – Spain
Dr Elisa Greco (Uni Leeds) – Editorial Working Group of Review of African Political Economy
Prof. Gabrielle Lynch (Uni Warwick) – Editorial Working Group of Review of African Political Economy
Emeritus Professor Peter Lawrence (Uni Keele) – Editorial Working Group of Review of African Political Economy
Dr Jorg Wiegratz (Uni Leeds) – Editorial Working Group of Review of African Political Economy
Dr Colin Stoneman (Uni York retired) – Editorial Working Group of Review of African Political Economy
Dr Morris Szeftel (Uni Leeds, retired) – Editorial Working Group of Review of African Political Economy
Professor Graham Harrison (Uni Sheffield) – Editorial Working Group of Review of African Political Economy
Dr Hannah Cross (Uni Westminster) – Editorial Working Group of Review of African Political Economy
Dr Branwen Gruffydd Jones (Uni Cardiff) – Editorial Working Group of Review of African Political Economy
Dr Alex Beresford (Uni Leeds) – Editorial Working Group of Review of African Political Economy
Dr Akin Iwilade (Uni Leeds) – Editorial Working Group of Review of African Political Economy
Clare Smedley – Editorial Working Group of Review of African Political Economy
Dr Reginald Cline-Cole (Uni Birmingham) – Editorial Working Group of Review of African Political Economy
Dr Laura Mann (LSE) – Editorial Working Group of Review of African Political Economy
Dr Janet Bujra (Uni Bradford retired) – Editorial Working Group of Review of African Political Economy
Dr Peter Dwyer (Ruskin College) – Editorial Working Group of Review of African Political Economy
Dr Leo Zeilig – Editorial Working Group of Review of African Political Economy
Dr. Ingeborg Grau, Univ.Lekt. i.R.
Andrea Kremser, alumna and Administrative Assistant, Department of Development Studies, University of Vienna (Austria)
Mag. Karl-Heinz Rathke, 5252 Aspach, OÖ
Stefan Kraft, Publizist, Wien
Hannes Hofbauer, Autor und Verleger
a.o. Univ. Prof. Dr. Andrea Komlosy, Institut für Wirtschafts- und Sozialgeschichte, Universität Wien
Prof. Dr. Franz Leidenmühler, Head of the Institute of EU Law, Johannes Kepler University Linz
Michelle Hartman, Professor, Institute of Islamic Studies, McGill University, Montreal, Canada
Dr. Greg Thomas, Associate Professor of Black Studies & English Literature, Tufts University USA
Dr. Norma Rantisi, Professor, Geography, Planning & Environment, Concordia University, Canada
Aziz Choudry, Associate Professor, Department of Integrated Studies in Education, McGill University (Canada)
Dr Nicola Pratt, University of Warwick, UK
Simona Sharoni,, Ph.D, Professor, Women’s and Gender Studies, Merrimack College North Andover Massachusetts, USA
Doris Ghannam, activist, Berlin
Adrienne Carey Hurley, Associate Professor of East Asian Studies, McGill University, Montreal, Canada
Prof. Salim Vally, Faculty of Education, University of Johannesburg
M.Sc. Stephanie Reiß, Technical University Ilmenau
Michael Letwin, Labor for Palestine; Former President, Association of Legal Aid Attorneys/UAW 2325 (NYC); Organizing Collective, USACBI
Malek Abisaab, Associate Professor, McGill University, Montreal, Canada
Dr Matteo Rizzo, SOAS – Editorial Working Group of Review of African Political Economy
Dr. Hilla Dayan, Amsterdam University College
Cynthia Franklin, Professor of English, University of Hawai’i, USA
Audrey Bomse, National Lawyers Guild (US)
Peyman Jafari, Lecturer in Modern History, University of Amsterdam
Dr. Corinna Mullin, Research Associate, School of Oriental and African Studies
Ehab Lotayef, IT & Tech. Services Manager, ECE, McGill University – Canada
Sunaina Maira, Professor, Asian American Studies, Univ of California, Davis
David Klein, Professor of Mathematics, California State University Northridge, USA
Dr Diane Frost, Uni Liverpool – Editorial Working Group of Review of African Political Economy
Julia Preisker, MA, phd-fellow at the Austrian Academy of Sciences
Univ.-Professorin Dr. Petra Dannecker, Universität Wien, Institut für Internationale Entwicklung
Univ.-Prof. Dr. Kirsten Rüther, Universität Wien, Institut für Afrikawissenschaften
Barbara Rohregger, PHD, Social Policy and Social Protection Expert, Venice
Ina Ivanceanu, Head of Science Communication at Oikodrom, The Vienna Institute for Urban Sustainability
Mag. Margareta Mahidi, ehemalige Hörerin des Instituts für Afrikawissenschaft, Universität Wien
Ao. Univ. Prof. Dr. d’Etat Dr. (i.R.) Zohra Bouchentouf-Siagh
Paul Winter, Verlagslektor
Markus Gatschnegg, Internationale Entwicklung
Ao. Univ. Prof. Mag. Dr. Friedrich Frosch, Institut für Romanistik, Universität Wien
Sandra Vlasta, Marie-Skłodowska-Curie-Fellow, Gutenberg-Institut für Weltliteratur und schriftorientierte Medien, Johannes Gutenberg-Universität Mainz
Johann Andreas Müllner (Romanistik, Uni. Wien)
Dr. Wiebke Sievers, Institut für Stadt- und Regionalforschung, Österreichische Akademie der Wissenschaften, Wien
Chandni Desai, University of Toronto
Terri Ginsberg, The American University in Cairo
Charlotte Kates, International Coordinator, Samidoun Palestinian Prisoner Solidarity Network
Jordan S. Kushner, Civil Rights, Attorney, Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA
Prof. Dr. em. Madeline Lutjeharms (Vrije Universiteit Brussel), Belgium
Ebony Coletu, Assistant Professor. Pennsylvania State University
Prof. Ilan Pappé, Professor of History, Director of the European Centre for Palestine Studies, University of Exeter
Dr. Sanaa Alimia, Research Fellow, Leibniz-Zentrum Moderner Orient, Berlin
Mag. Katharina Gartner, MA, PhD Candidate, Department of African Studies, University of Vienna
Dr. Helmut Krieger, University of Vienna
Prof. Moshe Zuckermann, Tel Aviv University
Prof. Tunde Zack-Williams- Editorial Working Group of Review of African Political Economy
Dr Robert Boyce, Department of International History, London School of Economics
Kevin A. Gould, Associate Professor, Department of Geography, Planning and Environment, Concordia University, Canada
Dr. Gabriele Slezak, Institut für Afrikawissenschaften Universität Wien
Akinyele Umoja, Professor and Chair, Department of African-American Studies, Georgia State University
Univ.-Prof. Dr. Alexandra Ganser, Director, Research Platform Mobile Cultures and Societies, Executive Director, ZKS – Centre for Canadian Studies, Department of English and American Studies, University of Vienna
Kevin Potter, University Assistant and Ph.D Candidate, Department of English and American Studies Universität Wien
Dr. Daniela Waldburger, lic. phil. I, Senior Lecturer Swahili, Lektorin
Sprachwissenschaft, Institut für Afrikawissenschaften
Dr. Philipp Bruckmayr, Institut für Orientalistik – Institute for Oriental Studies Universität Wien – University of Vienna
Mag. Dominik Frühwirth, BA.
Adam Baltner, MA-candidate, University of Vienna
Stephan Bartunek, Magister artium, Autor, Künstler und Aktivist
Ian Barnard, Ph.D., Professor of Rhetoric and Composition, Chapman University, USA
Aneil Rallin, Associate Professor of Rhetoric, Soka University of America
Anne Meneley, Professor, Dept of Anthropology, Trent University, Peterborough, Canada
Peter Chidiac, PhD, Professor, Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, University of Western Ontario, London, Ontario, Canada
Faisal Bhabha, Associate Professor, Osgoode Hall Law School | York University, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Sylvat Aziz, Associate Professor, Visual Arts, Queens University, Kingston Ontario, Canada
Andrew Lugg, Professor Emeritus, Department of Philosophy, University of Ottawa, Canada
Prof. Yosefa Loshitzky, SOAS, University of London, London, UK
Marie-Josée Massicotte, Professeure agrégée – Associate Professor École d’études politiques – School of Political Studies, Faculté des sciences sociales, Université d’Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario
Nadia Abu-Zahra, DPhil (Oxon), Associate Professor | Professeure Agrégée, School of International Development and Global Studies | École de développement international et mondialisation, University of Ottawa | Université d’Ottawa
Alan Shandro, Associate Professor of Political Science, Laurentian University Sudbury, Ontario, Canada
Dr Randa Farah, University of Western Ontario, Anthropology Department, London, Ontario, Canada
Len Findlay, Distinguished University Professor, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada
Graeme MacQueen, Associate Professor (retired), McMaster University, Hamilton, Canada
Nahla Abdo (PhD.) Professor, Department of Sociology and Anthropology, Carleton University, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
Anthony James Hall, Professor of Globalization Studies, University of Lethbridge, Alberta Canada
Omar M. Ramahi, Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, Ontario, Canada
Peter Fitting, professor emeritus, French and Cinema Studies, University of Toronto (Canada)
Heidi Grunebaum, Associate Professor, DST/NRF Flagship on Critical Thought in African Humanities,, Centre for Humanities Research, University of the Western Cape, SOUTH AFRICA
Dr. Christo El Morr, Assistant Professor, York University, Canada
Marty Roth, professor emeritus, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA, (resident of Canada)
Bill Skidmore, Instructor, Institute of Interdisciplinary Studies, Carleton University, Ottawa, Canada
Dr. Budd Hall, Professor, University of Victoria, Victoria, BC, Canada
Anaheed Al-Hardan, Arcapita Visiting Professor of Arab Studies, Middle East Institute, Columbia University, New York
Denise Nadeau, Affiliate Assistant Professor, Department of Religion, Concordia University, Montreal
Dr. Madalena Santos, Instructor, Institute of Criminology and Criminal Justice, Carleton University, Canada
Anaheed Al-Hardan, Arcapita Visiting Professor of Arab Studies, Middle East Institute, Columbia University, New York
Kevin Moloney, Instructor, Dept of Languages, Literatures & Linguistics, York University, Toronto, Canada
Dr. Edwin E. Daniel, FRSC, Professor Emeritus, University of Alberta
Sana Ahmad, MA Sociology, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi
Dr Ronit Lentin, Retired Associate Professor of Sociology, Trinity College Dublin
Raymond Deane, D. Mus (doctorate in musical composition) from the National University of Ireland, Maynooth
Viktoria Metschl, Forschungsplattform „Mobile Kulturen und Gesellschaften“, Universität Wien
Reena Mary George, Lektorin, Institut für Internationale Entwicklung, Universität Wien
Hasiyatu Abubakari, PhD candidate and lecturer, Institute of African Studies, University of Vienna
Mag. Martina Anissa Strommer, M.A., M.A., Global African Diaspora Studies Research Platform, University of Vienna
Hector Grad, Department of Social Anthropology, Universidad Autonoma de Madrid, Spain
Patrick Sakdapolrak, Universität Wien, Institut für Geographie und Regionalforschung
Sumi Hasegawa, Retired Faculty Lecturer, McGill University, Montreal, Qc., Canada
Dr. Lucy Morgan Edwards, London, England (Alumni Imperial College)
Trish Salah, Associate Professor of Gender Studies, Queen’s University, Kingston, Ontario, Canada
Dr. Alisha M.B. Heinemann, University of Vienna
Dr. Niels Harrit, Associate Professor (retired), Dept. of Chemistry, University of Copenhagen, Denmark
Patricia García-Leiva, Lecturer In Social Psychology, University of Malaga, Spain
Yakov M Rabkin, Department of History, University of Montreal, Canada
Nancy S. Jackson, Professor Emerita, University of Toronto, Canada
Bernie Hammond, PhD, Professor Emeritus ,Social Justice and Peace Studies, King’s University College, Western University, Canada
Peter Eglin, Professor Emeritus of Sociology, Wilfrid Laurier University Waterloo, Canada
Professor Lila Abu-Lughod, Department of Anthropology/Institute for Research on Women,Gender and Sexuality, Columbia University, New York
Michael Zvonek, Institut für Romanistik, Universität Wien