Faculty for Justice in Palestine (FJP) members set up signs and gathered outside of the Coussoulis Arena on Aug. 21 / Photo By Aldon Stiles, Inland Valley News

San Bernardino, CA — Faculty and students at California State University, San Bernardino (CSUSB) staged a demonstration at the start of the fall semester, accusing the administration of silencing Palestinian voices by canceling a lecture series and enforcing restrictive protest policies.

The protest, organized by Faculty for Justice in Palestine (FJP), drew attention to what organizers described as the university’s “double standard” in selecting speakers for campus events.

The Edward Said Endowed Lecture, named after the late Palestinian scholar who coined the term “Orientalism,” was scheduled to feature UC Berkeley professor Hatem Bazian.

Organizers say Bazian planned to speak on Islamophobia, Iran and Palestinian rights.

According to Anton and fellow FJP organizer Dany Doueiri, the university initially claimed financial and security issues as reasons for the cancellation.

But after reviewing records and resolving those concerns, faculty were told the lecture would proceed only for the administration to reverse course two weeks later.

“They reserved a room for the lecture and two weeks later they canceled the lecture without giving us a reason,” Doueiri said. “They betrayed not only our institution and our students, but also our community”.

FJP’s press release argued the cancellation reflected a broader “silencing of crucial Palestinian scholarly voices” at CSUSB, while the administration has welcomed speakers sympathetic to Israel’s military actions.

In March 2024, the university hosted Rabbi Elliot J. Cosgrove for the Rabbi Hillel Cohn Endowed Lecture, who once claimed that the phrase “Free Palestine” “must be understood as an antisemitic slur and a call to violence against Jews.”

Protesters also took aim at the California State University system’s 2024 Time, Place and Manner (TPM) policy, which was introduced after nationwide student encampments against the war in Gaza.

The policy requires campus demonstrations to be pre-approved and restricts use of sound amplification, among other limitations.

“Today the rule is if you want to go on a demonstration, you may need to get permission from the university one month in advance. It’s like, since when did this happen?” Doueiri said.

“That’s not a demonstration, it’s a parade,” Anton added.

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) has said the policy “very likely violates the First Amendment and Liberty of Speech Clause of the California Constitution.”

FJP’s statement demanded that CSUSB “end its silencing of students, faculty and staff” and reinstate the Edward Said Endowed Lecture this year.

The group also called for budget transparency and divestment from companies linked to Israel, pointing to universities such as Evergreen State College, Sacramento State and the University of San Francisco that have recently adopted divestment measures.

Halla Kudssi, a third-year political science student and intern at the Center for the Study of Muslim and Arab Worlds, said her participation was motivated by academic and personal ties to faculty mentors.

“My boss, Dr. Danny, he’s always been so passionate about the cause of what’s happening in Palestine,” Kudssi said. “Through my work with him, and my research that I do within the genocide in Gaza, we decided to do a demonstration in support.”

Kudssi recalled participating in a pro-Palestinian protest last year that drew more than 200 students and included a video call with a journalist in Gaza.

Organizers reported mixed responses from students and staff as they distributed materials outside the convocation.

“I would say we have two different camps. We have those who walk by and thank us for being out here and then we also have those who kind of walk by, heads down, ignore it,” Anton said. “So, no antagonism so far, so that’s been good. But yeah, either joy and admiration or quiet indifference”.

Still, Doueiri emphasized that silence reflects fear, not opposition.

“We have a lot of faculty and students who chose not to come here today, not because they do not agree with us, but they are worried about their position, they are worried about how other people view them,” he said.

FJP leaders said their movement is part of a growing nationwide pushback against university policies seen as limiting free speech on Palestine.

“We know that the tide is changing. It will change,” Doueiri said. “One day, the injustice that has happened, whether it’s in Palestine or that’s happening in our own country, will be exposed and then our country will turn to better times. But now it is our duty to stand up.”