To people around the world, please read and sign this petition in support of academic freedoms. I urge you not because it deals with a close friend of mine (Joseph Massad) but because he is being subjected to a very nasty and sinister campaign by Zionist hoodlums. A sleazy member of Congress from New York has even called on the president of Columbia University to "fire" him. Joseph has written against anti-Semitism and anti-Semites in Arabic and English, and those hoodlums are trying to creat a caricature of Joseph that has no relation to reality. I particularly appeal to my friends and colleagues (students and faculty) at colleges and universities around the world to help circulate this petition widely and to gather as many signatures as we can to help defeat the forces of intimidation and harassment. For academics who wish to add their signatures to a letter that will be sent to president of Columbia University, please email Neville Hoad at nhoad@mail.utexas.edu .