The endorsements are in, proofreading finished, and it's time to thank the many kind individuals who engaged with and commented on my book, which can be ordered here: . My deepest thanks to:
My last email exchanged with Refaat al-Araeer on 12 October 2023. I had hoped to collaborate with him on a project on free speech and academic freedom.
BREAKING: Israel’s military assassinated academic Rafaat al-Araeer in Gaza.
Rafaat, an academic and author of Gaza writes back, was assassinated as part of a large Israeli campaign against Gaza’s educated figures.
@itranslate123
US ambassador to France on apartheid in Israel: "the status quo is extremely comfortable for Israel. They won’t make [Palestinians] citizens of Israel. So they will make it official....There will be officially an apartheid state. They are in fact already."
It was an honor to work on this story with the amazing Lujayn & her family, who are sheltering in Rafah now. When I told Lujayn her story would be published in
@thenation
she said: "Tell your audience that I don't speak about myself only. I speak of my entire generation in Gaza"
Today in
@thenation
we have a piece by Lujayn, a 14-year-old girl in Gaza, that has floored me every time I've read it. It's about what happened when an Israeli bulldozer came to destroy the house she was staying in, and you must, must, must read it.
Today is the day! Erasing Palestine is published by
@VersoBooks
. In an increasingly censorious climate, where Palestinian activism in suppressed in ever new ways and Palestine itself faces intensifying violence, I hope it will serve as a wake up call. .
Thread on
#IHRA
definition of
#antisemitism
and
#freespeech
(16 parts)
=======>>>>>>>
1/16 Not everyone is interested in the IHRA issue so I won't return to this topic constantly. But there has been a lot of activity around my new article, so a few remarks (& words of thanks).
For
@thenation
, I wrote about why those of us who can speak out for Palestine must do so.
It is unquestionably risky to show support for Palestinians. But the bigger risk is saying nothing at all.
The cover for Erasing Palestine! Out with
@VersoBooks
next year. Many thanks to Palestinian artist Sliman Mansour
@suleimanmanso13
for permitting the use of his amazing and tragically relevant "Shriking Object" (1997)
Turnout at Bristol’s protest for Palestine way bigger than expected by city council (as I guess by the fact that they didn’t close roads to traffic). Many thousands , at least 5k-10k
This interview by
@marclamonthill
with Maurice Carney of Friends of the Congo is an incredible masterclass on the current violence in the Congo. A timely reminder that US/UK/Europe’s global alliances (not just with Israel) cause suffering around the world
philosopher Akeel Bilgrami, whom I've never met but long admired: "This fine & courageous book takes seriously both the brutal 'erasure' of Palestine by the policies of a Zionist state & antisemitism...It is a complex & ambitious argument and a deeply thoughtful work"
Stunning piece from
@kenanmalik
: “Rushdie’s critics lost the battle, but won the war... the argument that it is morally wrong to offend other peoples & cultures has become widely accepted...The fatwa has…become internalised.”
My review of Maya Wind's excellent new book Towers of Ivory and Steel: How Israeli universities undermine Palestinian freedom published by
@VersoBooks
is out in
@The_NewArab
.
The book couldn't be more relevant to our times!
I wrote for the London Review of Books blog
@LRB
on the history of Bristol’s Colston Statue, earlier efforts to remove it, and art as resistance
#Colston
#statues
#BlackLivesMatter
The Palestinian family Rachel Corrie gave her life to defend is in grave danger in Gaza. Please consider donating to help the family evacuate to Egypt. One of the women in the family is due to give birth in 3 weeks
the brilliant Amos Goldberg, one of the first to support me when I was under pressure for my writings about Palestine: "this is undoubtedly the most comprehensive & in-depth critical analysis of the IHRA's definition...This materialist analysis is needed today more than ever"
@TariqModood
, one of the most wonderful colleagues at Bristol: "What if an anti-racism is oppressive & threatens to wipe out a nation? Gould's fine analysis patiently & lucidly shows how a currently prevalent understanding of antisemitism is threatening to do just this"
legal philosopher Raef Zreik, one of the most original writers on Palestine/Israel: "While speaking out of her personal experience Gould brings a new perspective to the debate around defining antisemitism by focusing on its implications for the free speech of Palestinians"
@SkyNews
@LucyMPowell
This reminds me of this evidence-free argument for
#censorship
. Heavy reliance on hypotheticals, and on moral arguments in lieu of demonstrated harm. Actual crimes described in the piece can already be prosecuted w/o additional legislation:
13/16 My deepest hope is that left will learn to lead the way in defending free speech, rather than allowing it to be weaponized by the right (as is happening now, increasingly, in the US and the UK).
Antony Lerman
@tonylerman
, author of Whatever Happened to Antisemitism? "Gould makes a challenging, provocative and radical case for promoting uncompromising free speech, an essential prerequisite in the quest for Palestinian freedom."
For
@AJEnglish
's
#Unmute
series I spoke about the core themes of Erasing Palestine (published by
@VersoBooks
): free speech, Palestine, and the threat to scholarly inquiry posed by the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) definition of antisemitism.
“When I was accused of anti-Semitism I will say that I was completely shocked.”
Middle East scholar Rebecca Ruth Gould discusses the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) definition of anti-Semitism and how it threatens academic inquiry and university culture.
6/16 I am not in denial of antisemitism as a problem, am just saying that we should think more carefully about the terms of the debate. Those who support the IHRA adoption should clarify why they think that censorship will solve the problem of racism. When has that ever worked?
And feminist activist and writer Lynne Segal: "In this meticulously researched, moving and persuasive book, Rebecca Ruth Gould surveys the ever-mounting silencing of any support for justice for Palestinians."
The eloquent Palestinan writer Ghada Karmi
@ghadakarmi
: "A bold and expert expose of the real reasons behind the West's current antisemitism industry: the silencing of Palestinians and their erasure from history."
7/16 If you are new to the IHRA issue, please make sure to read: Stephen Sedley & Neve Gordon in
@LRB
; Tomlinson ;
@tonylerman
& Brian Klug in
@openDemocracy
; Kenneth Stern
14/16 There is no dichotomy between tolerance & free speech. We do not need to “balance” these values against each other. Instead, we need to begin by respecting difference and by distinguishing between words that offend & acts that harm.
Giovanni Fassina of European Legal Support Center
@elsclegal
, doing crucial work to support Palestinians and their free speech rights: "This book brilliantly discusses how the physical erasure of Palestine passes through the suppression of the Palestinian narrative."
Loved this gripping & informative essay by
@fahadansari
in
@AsimCP
ed. book on double standards in the legal profession for Muslim lawyers who defend those charged with terrorism. Buy it here: . Looking forward to reviewing the book soon!
For
@The_NewArab
I wrote about the repression of Palestine solidarity in the university and how resisting censorship is crucial for collective liberation
She added: "Please request your audience to help stop this genocide so we live and continue our education. We don't deserve to be in these deadly circumstances. We wish peace and happiness to all humanity."
One of many thousands of Daghestani manuscripts awaiting readers within the wider world of Islamic studies. This one, from 17th cent, tells of the encounter between a Muslim scholar & Sabean/Christian djinns. It is dramatic, funny & revealing of Christian/Muslim relations
news of the discovery of a 17th cent. Daghestani Arabic treatise on jinns (Risala al-Jinn). Describes itself as "a story of an amazing incident that happened to the jinn in the village of Irib in 1076/1665”
media write
full article
The cowardly and racist Executive Committee of
@CamUniLabour
has expelled Talal Hangari, an Arab student at Cambridge, for writing a legalistic and scholarly article on the abuse of the IHRA Working Definition.
In doing so, they have spectacularly proved his point.
Lori Allen
@LoriAllen72
, author of A History of False Hope: Investigative Commissions in Palestine: "Part political-philosophy & part eloquent polemic, Gould's book is a wide-ranging exploration of how today's social-justice battles-for Palestinian liberation"
Looking forward to the publication of Michael Pifer’s Kindred Voices: A Literary History of Medieval Anatolia (by
@yalepress
/
@YaleBooks
this summer). On how Persian, Armenian, & Turkish poets "produced fresh poetic styles and sensibilities, native to no single people or language"
Pleased to be speaking with Kayvan Tahmasebian on "Translation as Activism" for
@hayfestival
this June! On The Routledge Handbook of Translation and Activism (2020) & our future projects. Stay tuned for sign up details!
16/16 This is happening everywhere (on both left & right) and it is a danger to democracy. That is not a direct answer to the IHRA issue, but it provides the context within which the debate (about the IHRA and any definition of racism) should take place.
I interviewed Samah Selim
@RutgersAMESALL
on the visibility of the translator in the literatures of the Global South, how she became a translator, and translation collectives (like
@tlaxcalanetwork
) for my
@fullstopmag
translation & activism series
This is an important amendment that could block further US military aid to Israel. US voters, please pressure your senators to sign on. Even if it doesn't pass, the more senators sign, the more momentum it will build to stop behind the scenes arms sales
15/16 The moment we start creating false dichotomies, censoring others because we don’t like their views or are offended by them, is the moment that we have given up on democracy.
Today (Valentine's Day) is a good day to upload Kayvan Tahmasebian's & my new article on 13th/14th century Indo-Persian poet Hasan Dehlevi's Ishqnama (Book of Love), the temporality of desire & different kinds of love, just published by
@JMedievalWorlds
„What is deeply disappointing to us at The New School is that your cancellation of her appointment disrupts our decades-long ties to Germany.“ Brief der Präsidentin der New School New York an den Rektor der Uni Köln
Free summer school
@HHU_de
open for applications until 1 August: "Translation, Transnation: European Cultures of Translation" with
Marion Aptroot
Paul Bandia
Rebecca Ruth Gould
Kayvan Tahmasebian
Arvi Sepp
Rainer Guldin
A step forward for
@Transmodern1
’s & my translation-in-progress of Hormoz Shahdadi’s modernist classic, Night of Terror (1978) depicting an Iran on the brink of revolution. Thank you
@LEspritLit
and
@SublunaryReview
for supporting this translation!
We're thrilled to announce the shortlist for PEN Presents: 13 titles, 16 translators, representing 10 languages & 13 territories.
#PENPresents
funds the creation of samples & works to diversify the literary landscape. w/
@translatewomen
.
Thanks
@barricade_jrnl
for this interview on translation & activism with Anneke Rautenbach: “The Time of Now: An Interview with the Editors of the Routledge Handbook of Translation and Activism.” And thanks to all our wonderful contributors!
Pleased to get the 1st blurb for
#RHTA
from Samia Mehrez
@auccts
: "The inclusiveness & accessibility of the contributions make of this work a most welcome & inspiring resource for instructors, translators, activists & general readers alike."
Full quote:
I have posted a "Letter from Gaza," assembled from letters from a friend in Gaza (thank you
@Medium
for boosting it!) He was an eyewitness of Nasser Hospital atrocity on 16 Feb, and is involved in rescue missions now. Please read his words & share widely!
My thoughts on the firing of Professor David Miller
@Tracking_Power
@Spinwatch
by
@BristolUni
and its implications for academic freedom and democracy. Thanks
@LRB
for publishing it & so much else on these topics by Sedley, Butler, etc over the years.
The first English translation (by
@HulsterKristof
) of an Azeri poem by Daghestani
#Caucasus
writer Hasan al-Alqadari, from his magnificent Athar-i Daghestan (genre-bending historical chronicle of Daghestan)+a preview of my article about this work, in next issue of Alif
@AzStudies
I was honored to work with Kayvan Tahmasebian on “Translation as Alienation: Sufi Hermeneutics & Literary Modernism in Bijan Elahi’s Translations,” just published in Modernism/Modernity. It is one of the outputs of his
@MSCActions
project
@Transmodern1
Translated and introduced by Rebecca Ruth Gould
@rrgould
and Kayvan Tahmasebian, Hasan Alizadeh’s House Arrest leaves a poetic signature on modern Persian poetry, distinguished by lyricism and colloquialism.
.
.
.
#HasanAlizadeh
#HouseArrest
Further on the
#IHRA
definition’s untenable & unaccountable legality. This argument is addressed to everyone who cares about
#ruleoflaw
&
#democracy
. Please speak out against antisemitism AND against censorship. Both must be opposed.
via
@prospect_uk
Proud to see this beautiful poem by Saeb Tabrizi translated by
@Transmodern1
and myself in the Best Literary Translations 2024 published by
@DeepVellum
, selected by guest editor Jane Hirshfield & nominated by Dana Isokawa
@disokawa
The Margins
@aaww
a bit premature, but my article “The Limits of Liberal Inclusivity: How Defining Islamophobia Normalises Anti-Muslim Racism” was accepted for publication in the Journal of Law & Religion the day before
@UKLabour
adopted the
@APPGBritMuslims
definition on Islamophobia. Draft is
If you work on classical Arabic & dream of a comparative poetics not held hostage to Eurocentric methodologies, consider applying to join the
#GlobalLIT_ERC
project
as a postdoctoral research fellow & translator
@MideastMedieval
@OfficialBrismes
Map of Circassian villages destroyed by Israel (in red). Unlike the Druze, the Circassians were not allowed to remain in their villages in the Golan Heights. The Circassians were treated as Palestinians were: Israeli soldiers plundered their property & demolished their houses.
exciting new work from Georgi Derluguian: "The Caucasus: A Rock in the Grinding Wheels of World History" in Beyond the Pale: The Holocaust in the North Caucasus (out in November 2020)
In "Does Defining Racism Help Overcome It?" (in this book) I address a simple but difficult issue: the relationship between defining racism (including antisemitism) & overcoming it. Given what we have seen of the
#IHRAdefintion
, I am skeptical regarding the utility of definitions
Out now! Historians, social scientists and philosophers reflect on past and present definitions of antisemitism and Islamophobia and consider how and why they have become a site of fierce political contestation in recent years. New book available here
The first draft of “The Persian Genre of Incarceration: Prisons and the Political Imagination” complete. It’s only taken around 8 years!
#prisons
#poetry
#Iran
Palestinian writer and student Abdallah Jazzar
@abdaljazzar
(now in Gaza) has asked me to share this important initiative organized with his neighbors and friends to desalinate water inside Gaza. Please share!
“The verb to starve is transitive. Starvation is something people do to one another. It’s not an act of nature.” Alex de Waal of the
@WorldPeaceFdtn
on the
@FMEP
podcast Occupied Thoughts: "Famine is a Massacre in Slow Motion:" Essential listening
I speak at 6pm. There is also a rally for Palestine nearby at 6:30 pm. You're welcome to attend both even if you have to leave early. Love live the SOAS students' encampment!
Tonight, at the
@SOAS
Centre for Palestine Studies Annual Lecture, and on the occasion of the 76th anniversary of the
#nakba
,
@rrgould
asks 'What does free speech have to do with Palestinian liberation?' Registration below 👇🏼
12/15 Humans—as political beings—will never agree on the most basic issues, so we must organize ourselves politically in the expectation—and hope—of constant disagreement.
While saying goodbye to my NY apt, I donated my collection of books from the Caucasus to
@columbialib
. A bittersweet goodbye to all the books I collected while in Daghestan, Chechnya, &Georgia, but I'm happy they've found a good home & are catalogued here:
Excellent decision & with justified criticism of other universities: "there had been recent high-profile cases which had resulted in academics losing their jobs, leading the group to discuss whether the definition had become ‘weaponised’ in the sector."
Thank you
@calvertjournal
! “With her new translation, Rebecca Ruth Gould follows in the footsteps of Russian literature luminaries like Osip Mandelshtam and Marina Tsvetaeva, who translated Pshavela’s classic works.”
For
@LRB
I wrote about the city of Bristol’s long history of popular protest, most recently against Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill. Huge thanks to
@K8Gould
for brilliant edits!
#KillTheBill
Honored to be including a chapter from Turkish writer, translator & activist
@ayseduzkan
in the Routledge Handbook of Translation & Activism. Disturbed to learn that she will soon be starting her prison sentence for supporting a Kurdish newspaper.
#RHTA
Big news from ECtHR, Baldassi and Others v. France: "Criminal conviction of activists involved in the BDS campaign boycotting products imported from Israel had no relevant and sufficient grounds and violated their freedom of expression"
I cannot bring myself to share images of the carnage in Rafah, so instead here are pictures of Gaza's beautiful sea during the last days of April 2024 & a message from yesterday from a friend and first responder in Rafah who shared them with me: "We have divided my team into 3.
Be my metaphor in this inscription,
my scent that doesn’t pass,
my gaze at the grass, that makes a metaphor.
--Bijan Elahi (d. 2010), trans. Rebecca Gould & Kavyan Tahmasebian #الهی
در این گنجنامه استعاره من باش ؛
، بوی من که نمیآید
. نظاره من به علف ، که استعاره میشود
For the author, the 30,000+ Palestinians killed in Gaza are "civilians and combatants" yet the 1200 killed in the 7 October attack (32% of whom were soldiers) are more neutrally "people." Not a good starting point for an essay about empathy.
“Peace is not made between angels and demons but between human beings, and the real hell of life, as Jean Renoir once noted, is that everybody has their
reasons.”
I wrote about the recent controversy at
@GuernicaMag
for
@TheAtlantic
Really enjoying Threa Almontaser’s
@ThreaWrites
new collection, The Wild Fox of Yemen, out w/
@GraywolfPress
next month. Her “love letter to Yemen” finds a meeting place between Arabic & English. Also includes translations of al-Baradouni
Pre-order it!
11/16 Of course, everyone’s conclusions will differ according to their political agenda, but that’s the point of free speech—that respect for difference and diversity is a condition for any legitimate democracy.
I was asked by
@Shepherd_books
to name five books that everyone should read about Palestine. Impossible to narrow it down to just five but here are my selections!
Pleased to see this letter opposing the
#IHRA
definition from
@OfficialBrismes
as incompatible with "academic freedom, and likely to stifle freedom of speech in the university system". I hope universities will pay attention to scholarly expertise.
Just returned from visiting Bara Gumbad mosque in Lodhi Gardens (Delhi, built 1494) to the news of
#Christchurch
massacre. This mosque is a reminder of the major contributions of Islamic culture to non-Muslim majority societies, a legacy now being forgotten & suppressed
This is an excellent critique of the term "antisemitism" which was coined with racist intent towards Jews and on the basis of racist science (Semites vs Aryans). We would do better to use a term that actually means what it says: anti-Jewish racism.
Jewish author here, and for years I've used my social media to teach folks about the history of "antisemitism," but I will not be using that term anymore. And to fully explain why, we need to get clear on the history of the word. 1/🧵