On Friday, March 28th, Dr. Helier Dautaghi, a prominent Iranian scholar and deputy director of the Deputy Directorate of Law and Politics and Economics (LPE) at Yale Law School (YLS), was rejected from her position. Yale’s decision followed a Smear campaign led by a media outlet deployed by Zionists, and used AI-generated manufacturing and employment of Yale’s pro-Israel legal counsel and military contractors.
In an official statement, Dr. Doutaghi refused to file charges and argued that involvement in such a process would legalize the Zionist child-killing power and undermine the principles of legitimate processes. She argues that her termination came directly from our sanctions on Iran, the unwavering condemnation of Gaza’s genocide, and the academic work criticizing her advocacy for Palestinian rights.
The removal of Dr. Doutaghi comes amid unprecedented US government crackdowns targeting scholars, students and activists defending genocide and peace, both on campus and public spaces. Her Iranian identity exacerbated this repression as the US and its allies escalated warmth policies and economic sanctions against Iran while silenced objections.
Dismissals by scholars merely to express political views reveals the hypocrisy of Western claims, democracy, freedom of speech, and the right to protest. The systematic elimination of academic oppression and opposing voices are tools to establish hegemonic narratives and support imperialist educational structures.
As Dr. Doutaghi stresses, we are witnessing the revival of Zionist-influenced McCarthyism in the United States, aimed at suppressing criticism of Israel. This new ideological purge, career blacklisting and performance denunciation reflects tactics from the Cold War era of the 1950s.
In this climate, resistance to the oppression of free thinking and opposing imperialist Zionists is not an option. It is a moral obligation for all justice seekers in the world. As Iranian leaders stressed in his Eid al-Fitr speech, the Zionist regime in West Asia acts as proxy for Western colonies, maintaining a machine of violence and oppression.
As signatories, we condemn Yale’s decision to end Dr. Helier Doataghi as part of a coordinated effort to silence voices against genocide and US imperialist policies. We request an immediate withdrawal of all unfounded accusations against Dr. Doutaghi in the United States, as well as a formal apology from Yale University and compensation for damages granted to Dr. Doutaghi. Furthermore, we call for an end to the intimidation of scholars and activists in Western institutions in the US, Europe and Canada.
These attacks aim to terrorize and silence countless supporters who bravely amplify Palestinian calls for resistance and freedom. We urge academics, students and political movements around the world who have been stuck with imperialist and Zionist coercion to speak up about genocide and defend the right to resist Palestinian rights.
MNA