The ADC has filed a lawsuit against two executive orders by President Trump, arguing they threaten free speech by allowing deportation and prosecution of pro-Palestinian activists in the US.
The American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC) has filed a “historic” lawsuit challenging two executive orders signed by President Donald Trump, Anadolu news agency reported.
Critics argue that the orders target free speech, especially among pro-Palestinian activists in the US. The lawsuit aims to prevent the enforcement of these orders, which allow for the deportation or prosecution of individuals based on their political views.
Chris Godshall-Bennett, ADC’s legal director, explained that the lawsuit seeks a temporary restraining order and a nationwide injunction to stop the enforcement of the executive orders. These orders, he says, threaten the First Amendment by allowing punishment for speech critical of the US government or its policies, particularly those related to Palestine, Anadolu reported.
Godshall-Bennett emphasized that these executive orders are a “categorically new threat” to activists and individuals who express dissent against US policy on Palestine.
Unprecedented Scope
“The lawsuit is historic because these executive orders include prohibitions on criticizing the government, criticizing American culture, and, of course, targeting dissent regarding US policy towards Palestine,” Godshall-Bennett told Anadolu in an interview. He argued that the orders represent an unprecedented attempt to silence speech that is protected under the Constitution.
The lawsuit centers on three plaintiffs from Cornell University—two graduate students and a professor—who claim their constitutionally protected speech is now under threat.
They include Momodou Taal, a PhD student from Gambia; Mukoma Wa Ngugi, a US citizen and professor; and Sriram Parasurama, an American citizen and PhD student. Godshall-Bennett explained that these plaintiffs represent the “chilling effect” these executive orders are having on individuals, creating fear of prosecution or deportation for criticizing US policies or expressing solidarity with Palestinians.
Godshall-Bennett further pointed to the recent case of Mahmoud Khalil, a green card holder and student leader at Columbia University, who was detained by ICE without being charged with a crime. Khalil’s arrest, which Trump hailed as the “first arrest of many to come,” has heightened fears that these executive orders will lead to widespread repression of free speech in the US.
“There’s no reason to expect this will be limited to Palestine solidarity activism. The language of the orders is extremely broad,” said Godshall-Bennett. He warned that these executive orders represent a direct assault on fundamental constitutional protections and could ultimately affect anyone in the US who criticizes the government or engages in activism.
Godshall-Bennett also stressed that the US administration’s focus on Palestine solidarity is evident in the second executive order, which uses the pretext of fighting anti-Semitism to target critics of Israel. He explained that the first executive order, on national security, is similarly being used to suppress dissent, especially around Palestinian rights.
“This is really an assault on fundamental constitutional principles,” he concluded, urging people to recognize that this is not just an attack on a particular group, but on everyone’s right to free speech and activism.
Broader Impact
An article in the Palestine Chronicle today reported on a letter by the detained Palestinian activist Mahmoud Khalil, who stated that his arrest was “a direct consequence” of exercising his right to free speech. Khalil, who has been advocating for a free Palestine and an end to the “genocide in Gaza,” shared the letter from the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detention facility in Louisiana, where he has been held since his arrest on March 8.
In the letter, Khalil, a green card holder married to a US citizen, described the moment of his detention by Department of Homeland Security (DHS) agents, who he said did not present a warrant and forcibly took him into an unmarked car. He recounted that the agents refused to tell him the cause of his arrest or whether he was facing immediate deportation.
Khalil, who was born in a Palestinian refugee camp in Syria, described himself as “a political prisoner” and explained that his Palestinian identity transcends borders, noting that his activism is tied to the ongoing struggle for Palestinian rights. He emphasized that his arrest was part of a broader pattern of criminalizing protest, where institutions like DHS and Congress work together to silence dissent, particularly regarding Palestine.
(Anadolu, PC)
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” Israel ” , therefore he put the interests of a foreign entity before his own country. That is high treason. We The People need to vote him and his entire administration out of office immediately.