Abby Martin Won’t Sign Israel Loyalty Oath & Sues Georgia For Trying To Make Her

Journalist, filmmaker () and Empire Files () host Abby Martin () refused to sign a pro-Israel pledge which promised to not participate or advocate the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement. She was asked to sign the oath in January, 2020 when she was set to deliver a keynote speech at Georgia Southern University. When she refused, her talk was canceled. In February, 2020 Martin, together with the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) and the Partnership for Civil Justice Fund (PCJF), filed a federal free-speech lawsuit against the University System of Georgia, for the “unconstitutionality” of its decision. The law suit reads that, “The Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia... conditioned an invitation to speak at an academic conference on the Plaintiff agreeing in writing to abandon her First Amendment-protected journalism about and political advocacy for the rights of Palestinians.