{"id":8601,"date":"2026-04-28T17:28:31","date_gmt":"2026-04-28T15:28:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/elsc.support\/?p=8601"},"modified":"2026-04-28T17:31:21","modified_gmt":"2026-04-28T15:31:21","slug":"oxford-union-stop-the-censorship-restore-susan-abulhawas-full-speech","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/elsc.support\/ar\/oxford-union-stop-the-censorship-restore-susan-abulhawas-full-speech\/","title":{"rendered":"Oxford Union: Stop the Censorship. Restore\u00a0susan\u00a0abulhawa\u2019s\u00a0Full Speech"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>In November 2024, Palestinian author\u00a0susan\u00a0abulhawa\u00a0spoke at the Oxford Union about Israel\u2019s genocide in Palestine. Her speech was watched online by over 250,000 people. The Oxford Union later took it down and reuploaded an edited version, cutting\u00a0nearly two\u00a0minutes without her consent and in breach of their own agreement.\u00a0susan\u00a0had accepted the invitation on the written condition that her speech would not be edited,\u00a0the Oxford Union breached that agreement\u00a0and undermined the rights of a Palestinian\u00a0speaker\u00a0to have her words preserved\u00a0and shared\u00a0in full.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has--font-size\">For 17 months,\u00a0susan\u00a0has demanded that the Oxford Union restore the full speech, honour its contractual and ethical obligations, and honour the intellectual labour and property of an invited Palestinian speaker.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has--font-size\">In\u00a0times\u00a0of\u00a0genocide\u00a0and\u00a0war crimes, the historical record matters.\u00a0Palestinian voices matter.\u00a0They should not be treated as negotiable, editable, or disposable.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has--font-size\">The Oxford Union has cited \u201cpotential legal concerns\u201d to justify the\u00a0edit but\u00a0has failed to\u00a0comply with\u00a0susan\u2019s\u00a0data subject access request to see the information behind those alleged concerns.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n<style>.wp-block-kadence-advancedheading.kt-adv-heading8601_9e89ec-fb, .wp-block-kadence-advancedheading.kt-adv-heading8601_9e89ec-fb[data-kb-block=\"kb-adv-heading8601_9e89ec-fb\"]{font-style:normal;}.wp-block-kadence-advancedheading.kt-adv-heading8601_9e89ec-fb mark.kt-highlight, .wp-block-kadence-advancedheading.kt-adv-heading8601_9e89ec-fb[data-kb-block=\"kb-adv-heading8601_9e89ec-fb\"] mark.kt-highlight{font-style:normal;color:#f76a0c;-webkit-box-decoration-break:clone;box-decoration-break:clone;padding-top:0px;padding-right:0px;padding-bottom:0px;padding-left:0px;}.wp-block-kadence-advancedheading.kt-adv-heading8601_9e89ec-fb img.kb-inline-image, .wp-block-kadence-advancedheading.kt-adv-heading8601_9e89ec-fb[data-kb-block=\"kb-adv-heading8601_9e89ec-fb\"] img.kb-inline-image{width:150px;vertical-align:baseline;}<\/style>\n<p class=\"kt-adv-heading8601_9e89ec-fb wp-block-kadence-advancedheading\" data-kb-block=\"kb-adv-heading8601_9e89ec-fb\">With ELSC&#8217;s support,\u00a0susan\u00a0has escalated the case to the Information Commissioner\u2019s Office and filed a discrimination claim against the Oxford Union, challenging its censorship of her speech. Further claims relating to breach of contract, data protection violations, and copyright infringement are also being considered.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The Oxford Union could restore the full speech tomorrow. It is choosing not to.\u00a0<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>More than\u00a030 public figures and organisations have already signed the open letter calling on the Oxford Union to restore\u00a0susan\u00a0abulhawa\u2019s\u00a0full, uncensored speech.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-align-center\"><strong>We need your help to win this campaign&nbsp;<\/strong>&nbsp;<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-columns is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-is-layout-9d6595d7 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"has--font-size\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.supportsusan.com\" target=\"_blank\" data-type=\"link\" data-id=\"https:\/\/www.supportsusan.com\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">SIGN THE OPEN LETTER<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\"><style>.wp-block-kadence-advancedheading.kt-adv-heading8601_5d8e97-fe_0, .wp-block-kadence-advancedheading.kt-adv-heading8601_5d8e97-fe_0[data-kb-block=\"kb-adv-heading8601_5d8e97-fe_0\"]{font-style:normal;}.wp-block-kadence-advancedheading.kt-adv-heading8601_5d8e97-fe_0 mark.kt-highlight, .wp-block-kadence-advancedheading.kt-adv-heading8601_5d8e97-fe_0[data-kb-block=\"kb-adv-heading8601_5d8e97-fe_0\"] mark.kt-highlight{font-style:normal;color:#f76a0c;-webkit-box-decoration-break:clone;box-decoration-break:clone;padding-top:0px;padding-right:0px;padding-bottom:0px;padding-left:0px;}.wp-block-kadence-advancedheading.kt-adv-heading8601_5d8e97-fe_0 img.kb-inline-image, .wp-block-kadence-advancedheading.kt-adv-heading8601_5d8e97-fe_0[data-kb-block=\"kb-adv-heading8601_5d8e97-fe_0\"] img.kb-inline-image{width:150px;vertical-align:baseline;}<\/style>\n<p class=\"kt-adv-heading8601_5d8e97-fe_0 wp-block-kadence-advancedheading\" data-kb-block=\"kb-adv-heading8601_5d8e97-fe_0\"><a href=\"https:\/\/donorbox.org\/justice-for-susan-abulhawa\" target=\"_blank\" data-type=\"link\" data-id=\"https:\/\/donorbox.org\/justice-for-susan-abulhawa\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">DONATE TO LEGAL COSTS<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\"><style>.wp-block-kadence-advancedheading.kt-adv-heading8601_935dcc-43_0, .wp-block-kadence-advancedheading.kt-adv-heading8601_935dcc-43_0[data-kb-block=\"kb-adv-heading8601_935dcc-43_0\"]{font-style:normal;}.wp-block-kadence-advancedheading.kt-adv-heading8601_935dcc-43_0 mark.kt-highlight, .wp-block-kadence-advancedheading.kt-adv-heading8601_935dcc-43_0[data-kb-block=\"kb-adv-heading8601_935dcc-43_0\"] mark.kt-highlight{font-style:normal;color:#f76a0c;-webkit-box-decoration-break:clone;box-decoration-break:clone;padding-top:0px;padding-right:0px;padding-bottom:0px;padding-left:0px;}.wp-block-kadence-advancedheading.kt-adv-heading8601_935dcc-43_0 img.kb-inline-image, .wp-block-kadence-advancedheading.kt-adv-heading8601_935dcc-43_0[data-kb-block=\"kb-adv-heading8601_935dcc-43_0\"] img.kb-inline-image{width:150px;vertical-align:baseline;}<\/style>\n<p class=\"kt-adv-heading8601_935dcc-43_0 wp-block-kadence-advancedheading\" data-kb-block=\"kb-adv-heading8601_935dcc-43_0\"><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:121px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n<style>.wp-block-kadence-advancedheading.kt-adv-heading8601_3bfd93-93, .wp-block-kadence-advancedheading.kt-adv-heading8601_3bfd93-93[data-kb-block=\"kb-adv-heading8601_3bfd93-93\"]{font-style:normal;}.wp-block-kadence-advancedheading.kt-adv-heading8601_3bfd93-93 mark.kt-highlight, .wp-block-kadence-advancedheading.kt-adv-heading8601_3bfd93-93[data-kb-block=\"kb-adv-heading8601_3bfd93-93\"] mark.kt-highlight{font-style:normal;color:#f76a0c;-webkit-box-decoration-break:clone;box-decoration-break:clone;padding-top:0px;padding-right:0px;padding-bottom:0px;padding-left:0px;}.wp-block-kadence-advancedheading.kt-adv-heading8601_3bfd93-93 img.kb-inline-image, .wp-block-kadence-advancedheading.kt-adv-heading8601_3bfd93-93[data-kb-block=\"kb-adv-heading8601_3bfd93-93\"] img.kb-inline-image{width:150px;vertical-align:baseline;}<\/style>\n<p class=\"kt-adv-heading8601_3bfd93-93 wp-block-kadence-advancedheading\" data-kb-block=\"kb-adv-heading8601_3bfd93-93\"><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>In November 2024, Palestinian author\u00a0susan\u00a0abulhawa\u00a0spoke at the Oxford Union about Israel\u2019s genocide in Palestine. Her speech was watched online\u00a0by over 250,000 people. The Oxford Union later took it down and reuploaded an edited version, cutting nearly two minutes without her consent and in breach of their own agreement. susan had accepted the invitation on the written condition that her speech would not be edited,\u00a0the Oxford Union breached that agreement\u00a0and undermined the rights of a Palestinian\u00a0speaker\u00a0to have her words preserved\u00a0and shared\u00a0in full.<\/p>","protected":false},"author":11,"featured_media":8604,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_kad_blocks_custom_css":"","_kad_blocks_head_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_body_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_footer_custom_js":"","_kadence_starter_templates_imported_post":false,"_kad_post_transparent":"","_kad_post_title":"","_kad_post_layout":"","_kad_post_sidebar_id":"","_kad_post_content_style":"","_kad_post_vertical_padding":"","_kad_post_feature":"","_kad_post_feature_position":"","_kad_post_header":false,"_kad_post_footer":false,"_kad_post_classname":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[129],"tags":[112,48],"test-2":[],"country":[152],"blog_categories":[],"class_list":["post-8601","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-campaigns","tag-anti-palestinian-racism","tag-freedom-of-expression","country-gb"],"acf":[],"taxonomy_info":{"category":[{"value":129,"label":"Campaigns"}],"post_tag":[{"value":112,"label":"Anti-Palestinian Racism"},{"value":48,"label":"Free Speech"}],"country":[{"value":152,"label":"Britain"}]},"featured_image_src_large":["https:\/\/elsc.support\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/ELSC-website-The-Oxford-Union-censored-a-Palestinian-authors-speech.-2-1024x576.png",1024,576,true],"author_info":{"display_name":"Bashar","author_link":"https:\/\/elsc.support\/ar\/author\/bashar\/"},"comment_info":0,"category_info":[{"term_id":129,"name":"Campaigns","slug":"campaigns","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":129,"taxonomy":"category","description":"Fundraising campaigns.","parent":0,"count":11,"filter":"raw","cat_ID":129,"category_count":11,"category_description":"Fundraising campaigns.","cat_name":"Campaigns","category_nicename":"campaigns","category_parent":0}],"tag_info":[{"term_id":112,"name":"Anti-Palestinian Racism","slug":"anti-palestinian-racism","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":112,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"Discrimination against Palestinians","parent":0,"count":62,"filter":"raw"},{"term_id":48,"name":"Free Speech","slug":"freedom-of-expression","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":48,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"Relates to censorship and academic freedom","parent":0,"count":90,"filter":"raw"}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/elsc.support\/ar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8601","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/elsc.support\/ar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/elsc.support\/ar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/elsc.support\/ar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/11"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/elsc.support\/ar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8601"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/elsc.support\/ar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8601\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8607,"href":"https:\/\/elsc.support\/ar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8601\/revisions\/8607"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/elsc.support\/ar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/8604"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/elsc.support\/ar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8601"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/elsc.support\/ar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8601"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/elsc.support\/ar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8601"},{"taxonomy":"test-2","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/elsc.support\/ar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/test-2?post=8601"},{"taxonomy":"country","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/elsc.support\/ar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/country?post=8601"},{"taxonomy":"blog_categories","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/elsc.support\/ar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/blog_categories?post=8601"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}