Decolonisation is Not Discrimination: The Danger of NYU’s Zionism Policy for Indigenous Movements

New York University’s (NYU) updated guidelines warn students that using terms like “Zionist” in protest settings may violate its anti-discrimination policy, which includes excluding Zionists from events or expressing views that may target them with stereotypes or tropes.

As an Indigenous journalist and advocate, I see a deeply concerning trend: the framing of anti-colonial speech as hate speech… and the risk is that legitimate expressions of resistance – especially by First Nations people and their allies – are increasingly recast as discriminatory, not political.

Decolonisation Is a Right

Zionism is a political ideology associated with the establishment and defence of the Israeli state, which has resulted in the ongoing displacement of Palestinian people… From an Indigenous lens, there are striking parallels between the colonisation of Palestine and the ongoing occupation of Indigenous lands in Australia.

Therefore, calling for decolonisation is not an act of hate – it is a response to occupation, dispossession and violence… However, NYU’s policy blurs this distinction because it suggests that if someone excludes Zionists from an event or criticises Zionist policies, it may constitute a breach of university policy – even when such criticism is tied to a call for human rights, justice or land back.

The Chilling Effect on Global Indigenous Solidarity

This redefinition of “discrimination” has consequences far beyond NYU because in Australia, Indigenous activists and Palestinian solidarity groups face increasing pressure to stay silent – and the adoption of the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) definition of antisemitism (criticised for conflating criticism of Israel with antisemitism) has already chilled political expression across multiple Australian universities.

NYU’s policy may set a precedent for similar definitions worldwide – dangerously restricting the ability of Indigenous students to speak out on issues of occupation, genocide and land theft.

In summary, criticism of Zionism is not inherently antisemitic… just as criticism of Australian colonisation is not anti-white… and we must safeguard the right of all oppressed peoples to speak truth to power.

If universities begin treating anti-colonial resistance as discrimination, we risk erasing the very voices most in need of protection.