(This statement is open for signatures from those who work in higher education — including salaried and hourly-paid staff, lecturers, professional services staff, researchers, teaching fellows and graduate teaching assistants. To add your name, click on “next” at the bottom of this page. This statement is collectively sponsored by the International State Crime Initiative, Protest is Not Terrorism, Defend Our Juries, and University and College Workers For Palestine. It is based on a slightly longer statement, published simultaneously on the UCW4Palestine and Protest is Not Terrorism websites, https://protestisnotterrorism.uk/2026/05/12/open-letter-opposing-criminalisation-of-the-slogan-globalise-the-intifada/ , which includes a few historical details and additional hyperlinks).
We the undersigned are profoundly alarmed by growing attempts by politicians and public authorities to mischaracterise the phrase “globalise the intifada” as a call for violence against Jewish people. Calls to criminalise the slogan on this basis are unfounded and dangerous.
As the British Society for Middle Eastern Studies (BRISMES) has recently explained, the Arabic word intifada simply means “shaking off” or “uprising.” Historically, it has been used to describe a wide range of popular struggles against injustice, especially mass movements opposing colonial domination, military occupation, and authoritarian rule. The word’s range of reference includes uprisings in Iraq, Bahrain, Lebanon, Western Sahara, and North Africa; Arabic-speaking scholars have also used the term to describe events such as the 1916 Easter Rising in Ireland, the 1943 Warsaw Ghetto Uprising, and the 1976 Soweto Uprising. Given its distinctive versatility and staying power it’s not surprising that intifada, as Edward Said observed in 1989, has proved to be “the only Arabic word to enter the vocabulary of twentieth-century world politics.”
Prime Minister Keir Starmer tells us that “if you stand alongside people who say ‘globalise the intifada’, you are calling for terrorism against Jews, and people who use that phrase should be prosecuted.” To portray the slogan “globalise the intifada” as inherently violent or terrorist, however, is a racist distortion of Arabic language and Palestinian political expression. Historically, intifada has referred to broad forms of popular refusal and collective mobilisation, not to any single tactic or to an endorsement of violence.
For these reasons, we emphatically reject attempts by Keir Starmer and others to conflate calls to “globalise the intifada”—or the Palestine solidarity movement more broadly—with antisemitism or violence against Jewish people. There is no demonstrable link between this slogan and attacks on Jewish communities, whether in London, Manchester, Sydney, or elsewhere. To claim otherwise is to instrumentalise concerns about antisemitism in order to suppress Palestinian solidarity.
This mischaracterisation clearly forms part of a broader effort to overcome opposition to Israel’s genocide in Gaza and its policies of demolition, forced eviction, and annexation across Palestine and Lebanon and to shield the UK government’s complicity from public scrutiny.
The targeting of emancipatory slogans and protest activity does not serve public safety but rather restricts democratic opposition to mass violence, obstructs academic critique, and silences anti-colonial scholarship. It denies Palestinians the “permission to narrate” that is essential to the history and future of any oppressed people.
The consequences of this rhetoric are very serious. Treating “globalise the intifada” as inherently criminal establishes a dangerous precedent for the policing of language, culture, and political identity, particularly for Palestinians and those who stand in solidarity with them. It undermines fundamental rights to freedom of expression and peaceful protest, while fostering a climate in which legitimate political speech is surveilled, stigmatised, and punished. It also reinforces longstanding forms of anti-Arab and anti-Muslim repression already embedded in programmes such as Prevent and in routine forms of police harassment.
As teachers and scholars concerned with the history and politics of Palestine and West Asia, and with broader questions of justice and ethics, we know what “globalise the intifada” actually means in practice and in context. We also recognise that, in the face of Israel’s ongoing oppression of Palestinians and the complicity of governments that enable it, their liberation will require popular resistance and mobilisation on a global scale. We therefore affirm the unequivocal right of those who support this slogan to foreground it in their research, discuss it in their classrooms, and chant it in the streets.
Signed (in alphabetical order, as of Saturday 16 May 2026)
Sara Ababneh, Lecturer in International Relations, University of Sheffield, UK
Giuseppe Acconcia, Professor of History of International Relations, Università degli studi di Milano, Italy
Alina Achenbach, PhD researcher International Relations, University of Groningen, The Netherlands
Jared Ahmad, Lecturer, University of Sheffield, UK
Ahmad Shah Ahmadi, English Teacher, MIC, Ireland
Umberto Albarella, Professor of Zooarchaeology, University of Sheffield, UK
Anne Alexander, researcher and UCU activist, London, UK
Ruba Ali Al-Hassani, SJD Candidate, Osgoode Hall Law School, York University, Canada
Jamie Allinson, Senior Lecturer, Politics and International Relations, University of Edinburgh, Scotland
Adey Almohsen, Senior Lecturer in History, Grinnell College, USA
Schirin Amir-Moazami, Professor of Islam in Europe, FU Berlin, Germany
Luis Andueza, Lecturer in International Development, King’s College London, UK
Walter Armbrust, Professor of Modern Middle Eastern Studies, University of Oxford, UK
Ellie Armon Azoulay, Leverhulme early career research fellow, Durham University, UK
Yusef Atta, Administrative Staff, University of Oxford, UK
Nic Avery, Research Fellow, Work and Organisational Studies, University of Sydney, Australia
Sandra Babcock, Clinical Professor, Cornell Law School, United States
Sébastien Bachelet, Senior Lecturer in Social Anthropology, University of Manchester, United Kingdom
Mona Baker, Retired academic
Murad Banaji, Senior Lecturer in Mathematics, Lancaster University, United Kingdom
Marianela Barrios Aquino, Postdoctoral Researcher, University of Portsmouth, UK
Mehdi Beyad, Lecturer in International Relations, University of Glasgow, UK
Andreas Bieler, Professor of Political Economy, University of Nottingham, UK
Christine Bosch, Independent researcher, University of Hohenheim, Germany
Myriam Bousbia, Subject Academic Support Officer, University of Edinburgh, UK
Sonja Brentjes, retired, formerly Max Plank Institute for the History of Science, Berlin, Germany
Benedetta Brevini, Professor of political economy of communication, University of Sydney, Australia
Sabine Broeck, Professor Emerita of American Studies, University of Bremen, Germany
Ian Bryceson, Professor Emeritus, Norwegian University of Life Sciences, Norway
Ray Bush, Professor Emeritus African Studies and Dev Politics, University of Leeds, UK
Judith Butler, Distinguished Professor in Graduate Division, UC Berkeley, USA
Sevil Cakir, Sociologist, Independent, Germany
Sara Camacho Felix, Senior Lecturer of Global Cultures, King’s College London, UK
Dylan Carver, Lecturer in English Literature, University of Oxford, UK
Robin Celikates, Professor of Philosophy, Freie Universität Berlin, Germany
John Chalcraft, Professor of Politics, London School of Economics, UK
Catherine Charrett, Senior Lecturer, International Relations, University of Westminster, UK
Chrissie Charvill, Retired special needs teacher/supporter, University of Oxford, United Kingdom
Peter Chonka, Senior Lecturer in Global Digital Cultures, King’s College London, UK
Artemis Christinaki, Honorary Senior Research Fellow, University of Manchester, UK
Catherine Cobham, lecturer in Arabic retired, University of St Andrews, UK
Elliott Colla, Professor of Arabic Literature, Georgetown University, USA
Niall Connolly, University Teacher in Philosophy, University of Sheffield, UK
Amy Cortvriend, Lecturer in criminology, Loughborough University, UK
Anne Crutzen, Admission officer, University of Groningen, Netherlands
Ayça Çubukçu, Associate Professor in Human Rights, London School of Economics and Political Science, UK
Mike Cushman, Research Fellow (rtd), London School of Economics, GB
May Darwich, Associate Professor of International Relations, University of Birmingham, UK
Kate Davison, Lecturer in the History of Sexuality, University of Edinburgh, United Kingdom
James Dickins, Professor of Arabic (Emeritus), University of Leeds, UK
James Downs, Archivist of the Middle East Collections, University of Exeter, UK
Koshka Duff, Assistant Professor in Philosophy, University of Nottingham, UK
James Eastwood, Senior Lecturer in Politics and International Relations, Queen Mary University of London, UK
Nadia Edmond, Principal lecturer (retired), University of Brighton, UK
Johanna Ennser-Kananen, Associate Professor of English, University of Jyväskylä, Finland
David Ewing, Career Development Fellow, Queen’s College, Oxford, UK
Alice Finden, Assistant Professor of International Politics, Durham University, UK
Lorna Finlayson, Lecturer in Philosophy, University of Essex, UK
Des Freedman, Professor, Goldsmiths, University of London, UK
Clive Gabay, Reader in International Politics, Queen Mary University of London, UK
Tricia Gallagher-Geurtsen, Lecturer, University of California, San Diego, United States
Samir Gandesha, Professor of Global Humanities, Simon Fraser University, Canada
Raymond Geuss FBA, Professor Emeritus of Philosophy, University of Cambridge, UK
Alysa Ghose, Lecturer in Religion and Decolonisation, University of Edinburgh, UK
Emanuela Girei, Reader in Management, Liverpool John Moores University, Uk
Neve Gordon FAcSS, Professor of International Law, Queen Mary University of London, UK
Anthony Gorman, Senior Lecturer, Islamic and Middle Eastern Studies, University of Edinburgh, UK
Penny Green FAcSS, Professor of Law and Globalisation, Queen Mary University of London, UK
Sarah H. Iversen, Associate Professor of English Language & Literature, Western Norway University of Applied Sciences, Norway
Amy Hagopian, Professor emeritus, University of Washington, USA
Loreley Hahn-Herrera, Lecturer in Global Media and Digital Cultures, SOAS, University of London, United Kingdom
Lina Hakim, Senior Lecturer, Kingston University, UK
Peter Hallward, Professor of Philosophy, Centre for Research in Modern European Philosophy London, UK
Taylor Hill, Lecturer in Psychology, DundeeU, UK
Sarah Hopkyns, Lecturer in Sociolinguistics and Intercultural Communication, University of St Andrews, UK
James Hughes, Professor of Comparative Politics, London School of Economics, UK
Kristina Hultgren, Professor of Sociolinguistics/UKRI Future Leaders Fellow, The Open University, UK
Ioanna Ioannou, Researcher, University of Liverpool, Uk
Feyzi Ismail, Lecturer in Global Policy and Activism, Goldsmiths, University of London, UK
Sharon Jagger, Associate Professor of religion, York St John, Uk
Ken Jones, Emeritus Professor of Education, Goldsmiths, University of London, UK
John Kelly, Retired FE Lecturer in Business, West College Scotland, UK
Adam Keogh, Education Evaluation Manager, Imperial College London, UK
Paul Kerswill, Emeritus Professor of Sociolinguistics, University of York, UK
Laleh Khalili, Professor of Gulf Studies, University of Exeter, UK
Rabea Khan, Senior lecturer in International Relations, Liverpool John Moores University, United Kingdom
Maria Kheirkhah, Artist and lecturer, Middlesex University, UK
Gholam Khiabany, Reader in Media and communications, Goldsmiths, University of London, UK
Hilary Kilpatrick, Independent researcher, Retired, Switzerland
Anja Komatar, Maths Support Advisor, University of Leeds, UK
Apostle Kourbeles, PhD Candidate, University of New South Wales, Australia
Vidya Kumar, Deputy Dean RKE & Senior Lecturer, College of Law, SOAS, University of London, UK
Heidi Layne Layne, Senior Lecturer, Global and Sustainable Education, University of Jyväskylä, Finland
Bruno Leipold, Assistant Professor of Political Theory, LSE, UK
Les Levidow, Visiting Fellow, Open University, UK
Malcolm Levitt FRS, Professor, University of Southampton, UK
Jayanthi Lingham, Research Associate, School of Sociological Studies, Politics and International Relations, University of Sheffield, UK
Agata Lisiak, Associate Professor of Migration Studies, Bard College Berlin, Germany
Samantha Louden-Cooke, Senior Lecturer in International Relations and Political Geography, University of Gloucestershire, UK
Thembi Luckett, Research Fellow in Human Geography, Durham University, United Kingdom
Simon Mabon, Professor of International Politics, Lancaster University, UK
Nivi Manchanda, Professor of global politics, Queen Mary university of London, UK
Frank Maracchione, Postdoc, SOAS University of London, UK
Nicholas Matheou, Lecturer in Global Medieval History, University of Edinburgh, UK
Jack McGinn, Communications Manager, LSE Middle East Centre, UK
Esther McIntosh, Professor of Feminist Theology and Ethics, York St John University, UK
Cian McMahon, Lecturer in Cooperative/Democratic Management and Organisation, University of Dundee, Scotland
Tracy McNulty, Professor of Comparative Literature, Cornell University, US
Lyla Mehta, Professor, Institute of Development Studies and Norwegian University of Life Sciences, UK
M. Pilar Milagros, Serra Húnter Assistant Professor, Educational Sciences, Universitat de Lleida, Spain
Tariq Modood, Professor of Sociology, Politics and Public Policy, University of Bristol, UK
Julia Molinari, Lecturer, The Open University, United Kingdom
David Mond, Emeritus Professor of Mathematics, University of Warwick, UK
Lindsey Moore, Reader in Postcolonial Literatures, Lancaster University, UK
Carlo Morelli, Senior Lecturer in Economics, Dundee University, UK
Dalia Mostafa, Teaching Fellow In Arabic and Middle Eastern Studies, University of Edinburgh, UK
Leila Mouhib, Lecturer in political sciences and international relations, Université libre de Bruxelles & Université de Mons, Belgium
Oscar Nalesini, Librarian, Istituto per l’ Oriente “C.A. Nallino”, Roma, Italy
Kaz Naseem, Implementation Team Officer & BAME staff network co-chair, University of Manchester, UK
Goldie Osuri, Professor of Sociology, University of Warwick, UK
Hannah Owens, Assistant Professor, University of Warwick, UK
Sam Passeport, Instructional designer, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Netherlands
Nicola Perugini, Senior Lecturer in International Relations, University of Edinburgh, UK
Sharri Plonski, Reader in International Politics, Queen Mary University of London, UK
Cosmin Popan, Research Associate, Grenoble Alpes University, France
Jonathon Porritt, Writer and campaigner, Green Futures, United Kingdom
Megan James Povey, Professor of Food Physics, University of Leeds, United Kingdom
Nicola Pratt, Professor of the International Politics of the Middle East, University of Warwick, UK
Philip Proudfoot, Research Fellow, Institute of Development Studies, Sussex University and treasurer-elect of BRISMES, UK
Naseef Qaimkhani, IT Asset Management Analyst, University of Sheffield, UK
Anandi Ramamurthy, Emeritus Professor of Media and Culture, Sheffield Hallam University, UK
Anupama Ranawana, Research Associate, Durham University, UK
Andreea Raslescu, Postdoctoral researcher in Psychiatry, University of Oxford, UK
Roxane Ray, Manager, Imperial College London, UK
Nick Riemer, Senior Lecturer, University of Sydney, Australia
Adrian Rifkin, Retired Professor of Art, N/a, Uk
William Clare Roberts, Associate Professor of Political Science, McGill University, Canada
Ron Roberts, Honorary Lecturer, Kingston University, UK
William Robinson, Distinguished Professor of Sociology, University of California at Santa Barbara, USA
Regina Römhild, Professor em., Humboldt University, Germany
Betty Rosen, Postdoctoral Researcher, King’s College London, UK
Jonathan Rosenhead, Emeritus Professor of Operational Research, London School of Economics, UK
Catherine Rottenberg, Professor of Media Communications and Cultural Studies Goldsmiths University of London
Antonia Rubino, Associate Professor, University of Sydney, Australia
Sanna Ryynänen, PhD researcher of racism, University of Jyväskylä, Finland
Rim Saab, Assistant Professor in Social Psychology, University of Sussex, UK
Taina Saarinen, Research Professor, University of Jyväskylä, Finland
Hanan Sabea, Associate Professor of Anthropology, American University in Cairo, Egypt
Yara Salahiddeen, Research Associate, King’s College London, UK
Caroline Sandes, Lecturer, Kingston University, UK
Caterina Sartori, Research Associate, University of Manchester, UK
Donald Sassoon, Emeritus Professor of Comparative European History, Queen Mary University of London, GB
Cathy Schneider, Professor Emerita, Politics, Economics and Governance, American University, United States
Tatjana Seizova-Cajic, Senior lecturer, The University of Sydney, Australia
Hedwig Sekeres, PhD candidate, University of Groningen, Netherlands
Tanya Serisier, Professor of Criminology, Birkbeck, University of London, UK
Nissaf Sghaïer, Lecturer, UCLouvain – Saint-Louis Bruxelles, Belgium
Katayoun Shafiee, Associate Professor of History, University of Warwick, UK
Elena Simon, Alumni, University of Sheffield, Uk
Jaspal Singh, Lecturer in Sociolinguistics and Applied Linguistics, The Open University / University of the West of England, United Kingdom
Roddy Slorach, UCU rep, Imperial College London, UK
Oscar Soto, Professor sociology and criminology, CSU San Marcos, UnitedStates
Paul Starkey, Emeritus Professor, Durham University, UK
Elettra Stimilli, Professor oh Philosophy, Sapienza Università di Roma, Italy
Mayssoun Sukarieh, Reader of Anthropology of Development, KCL, UK
Ryan Swan, PhD Candidate, University of St Andrews, Scotland
Richard Tapper, Emeritus Professor of Anthropology, SOAS, University of London, GB
Simon Taylor, Teaching Fellow, Durham University, United Kingdom
Nick Thoburn, Professor of Sociology, University of Manchester, UK
Lisa Tilley, Senior Lecturer, SOAS, UK
Hebatallah Tolba, Lecturer, University of East London, UK
Alberto Toscano, Emeritus Professor of Critical Theory, Goldsmiths, University of London, UK
Hanan Toukan, Professor of Middle Eastern Studies, Bard College Berlin
Charles Tripp, Emeritus Professor of Politics, SOAS, University of London, UK
Lewis Turner, Senior Lecturer in International Politics, Newcastle University, UK
Rashmi Varma, Professor of English and Comparative Literary Studies, University of Warwick, United Kingdom
Paloma Viejo Otero, YUFE Fellow, Universtiy of Bremen, Germany
Sean Wallis, Branch Secretary, UCL UCU; Principal Research Fellow, University College London, UK
Janet CE Watson FBA, Emerita Professor of Modern South Arabian, University of Leeds, UK
Cecilia Wee, Tutor (Research), MFA Communication, School of Communication, Royal College of Art, UK
Lynn Welchman, Professor of Law, SOAS University of London, UK
David Whyte, Professor of Law, Queen Mary University of London, UK
Jessica Whyte, Associate Professor of Philosophy, University of New South Wales, Australia
Ben Wiedel-Kaufmann, Lecturer in Art History, The Open University, UK
Richard Wild, Principal Lecturer in Criminology, University of Greenwich, UK
Ralph Wilde, Professor of International Law, Faculty of Laws, University College London, University of London, UK
Hans Wilke, Assistant Professor, University of Groningen, The Netherlands
Ümit Yildiz, Lecturer in Education and VP UM UCU, University of Manchester, UK
Heba Youssef, Senior Lecturer in Politics, University of Brighton, UK
Dogan Yuksel, Research Fellow, The Open University, UK
Yazid Zahda, Researcher, Independent, Palestine/North Macedonia
Slavoj Žižek, Senior Researcher, University of Ljubljana, Slovenia
(The list of signatures will be updated roughly every 48 hours, through to late May).
