The Los Angeles Public Library was scheduled to hold an event for Read Palestine Week on December 6, 2025, where Palestinian-American author Jenan Matari and Jewish-American author Nora Lester Murad were set to have a discussion with young readers regarding their literary works and Palestinian livelihood.<\/p>\n
According to a social media post from Matari, the event was abruptly cancelled three days prior to the date. Both authors received emails from the LAPL saying the event would not take place without offering an explanation.<\/p>\n
Almost a year later, the city of Los Angeles is now facing a lawsuit alleging violations of the First Amendment due to the cancellation of the event. Matari and Murad are co-plaintiffs suing the city and the LAPL.<\/p>\n
Matari, a Palestinian-American author, and Murad, a Jewish-American author, had a public discussion<\/a> published today by the Literary Hub addressing the reasoning behind this lawsuit.<\/p>\n Murad spoke to Los Angeles about the lawsuit and the implications of the LAPL\u2019s actions.<\/p>\n \u201cThey definitely violated our First Amendment rights, for sure, because they restricted our ability to speak,\u201d Murad said. \u201cThe case is not only about that. It\u2019s about anti-Palestinian racism, because when a Palestinian child goes to a public library, like Los Angeles Public Library, they have to be able to find books about themselves.\u201d<\/p>\n The cancellation of the event immediately caused controversy, with both authors calling out the LAPL over their decision.<\/p>\n Scroll to continue reading<\/p>\n According to an investigation<\/a> published by the Los Angeles Public Press in February of this year, a staff member at the LAPL told the library through an email that both authors had \u201cstrong terrorist ties\u201d and \u201cvirulently antisemitic views.\u201d<\/p>\n Both Matari and Murad have been public about their opposition to Israel\u2019s war efforts in Palestine, which the United Nations<\/a> categorizes as a genocide and have taken the lives of 70,000 Palestinians according to official numbers, with independent experts saying the number could be much higher.<\/p>\n \u201cAs an author, hearing from Palestinians right now, while they are being genocided, not only by Israel, but by the U.S. and with our political support and our taxpayer money, to allow a public institution, whose mandate is to resist censorship, to participate in the erasure of Palestinians, feels like, it just feels incredibly urgent and important to not allow this to stand,\u201d said Murad, who lived in Palestine for 15 years while raising her three daughters.<\/p>\n Staff at the LAPL signed a solidarity letter<\/a> asking their employer to apologize and reschedule the event. \u201cWe, the undersigned Los Angeles Public Library staff, stand in solidarity with Palestinians and other marginalized communities facing intimidation and cultural suppression,\u201d the statement read.<\/p>\n Multiple advocacy groups such as the Middle East Studies Association made statements<\/a> regarding their concerns with the decision and what it represented. The National Coalition Against Censorship wrote an extensive letter<\/a> to the LAPL citing concerns over censorship<\/p>\n