The Committee on Academic Freedom received a response to the 13 April letter expressing concern over the decision by San Francisco State University to open an investigation into Professor Mahiar Berooz's showing of an image of the Prophet Muhammad in his class.
Our letter expressing concern over the decision by San Francisco State University to open an investigation into Professor Mahiar Berooz's showing of an image of the Prophet Muhammad in his class.
Our letter to Iranian authorities to condemn the persistent and widespread attacks by poisoning at girls' schools and women's college dormitories and call for an impartial and transparent investigation into their origins and bring the perpetrators to justice. From the initial attacks in November 2022 until today, more than 7000 students from across the country have been impacted and a climate of fear and insecurity prevails.
Our letter to Saudi authorities protesting the ongoing incarceration of Prof. Awad al-Qarni, the well-known reformist cleric and legal scholar, as well as Dr. Salman al-Audah, Ali al-Omari and Hassan al-Maliki, and calling for their immediate release. We oppose, as well, the prosecutor's request that Prof. al-Qarni be sentenced to death.
Our letter to President Erdogan concerning his decision to close all universities to in-person instruction for the remainder of the year in order to house earthquake victims on the country’s campuses.
Our letter regarding the case of documentary filmmaker and Communication Professor Sibel Tekin whose filming activities focus on social injustice, social movements, and political violence, and who is prosecuted on vague terms of incrimination for her documentary filmmaking activities.
MESA mourns the passing of Jane C. Gaffney
MESA mourns the passing of John Alden Williams
Our letter to the President of NYU expressing our concern about the university’s recent investigation of graduate student Naye Idriss.
The Committee on Academic Freedom received a response to the 10 January letter expressing concern about the July 2022 decision by Douglas Elmendorf, dean of faculty of the Harvard Kennedy School, to reject the appointment of Kenneth Roth as a senior fellow of the school’s Carr Center for Human Rights Policy.
Our letter to the president of GWU protesting the unwarranted investigation of Professor Lara Sheehi
Our letter of protest to the Turkish government regarding its numerous, multifaceted interventions throughout 2022 in the internal operations, governance and staffing of Bogazici University.
Open letter from professors who teach subjects related to Islam, Muslim culture, and the Islamic world in support of Professor Erika López Prater
MESA 2022 Awards Ceremony, organized by Sara Palmer and Jeff Reger of MESA.
Our letter protesting the unjust imprisonment of Iranian scholar and researcher, Professor Saeed Madani
Our letter to the president of Hamline University protesting the termination of a faculty member on grounds of alleged Islamophobia.
Our letter to the president of Harvard University protesting the denial of a fellowship to Kenneth Roth
Our letter urging Cornell University to protect the academic freedom and personal safety of Professor Samia Henni.
An FAQ with answers to some frequently asked questions about the format of MESA's future annual meetings.
The 2022 MESA Academic Freedom Award has been given to 6 Palestinian NGOs — Addameer, Al-Haq, Bisan Center for Research and Development, Defense for Children International - Palestine, Union of Palestinian Women’s Committees, and the Union of Agricultural Work Committees — for their decades-long pursuit of academic freedom, courageous resilience, and contributions to the field of Middle East Studies.
On December 2, 2022, MESA awarded 17 individuals for excellence in scholarship, mentoring, and service, and to 6 Palestinian NGO's for their decades-long pursuit of academic freedom, courageous resilience, and contributions to the field of Middle East Studies.
Weeping is a way to express commitment to a community and what it holds to be sacred, but not all weeping is the same, even in a single religious tradition.
Our letter urging the President of Case Western Reserve University to reconsider its recent statement which equates criticism of the State of Israel with anti-Semitism.
How might we pursue comparative, critical study of premodern processes of racialization? This talk will cover main methods, meanings, and sources that the author engages in examining racialization in the Islamic Middle Ages, as well as some past and present problematics of doing so within the Euro-American academy.