Pakistani Feminist's Memoir Dropped by Syracuse University Press

Last March, Fawzia Afzal-Khan’s memoir Lahore with Love: Growing up with Girlfriends Pakistani Style was released by Syracuse University Press (SUP). Although the book received numerous positive reviews and critical praise from scholars and lay readers alike, its publisher decided to drop it just months after its release over concerns about being sued for libel and defamation of character. (A well-known theater personality in Pakistan sent a letter to SUP threatening legal action over the contents of a chapter in the book.) Instead of standing behind its author and using the strength of the Speech Act, recently enacted by President Obama, which protects authors and journalists from libel lawsuits filed abroad, SUP immediately caved and nullified Afzal-Khan's contract.

Having received support from public intellectuals worldwide -- from Nawal El Saadawi to Henry Louis Gates, Jr. -- Afzal-Khan decided to take on the legal risk herself and her now-self-published memoir is available this month. I spoke with Afzal-Khan about the controversy and the importance of protecting freedom of speech.

Why is it important for people to know that SUP decided to drop Lahore with Love?

It's important because this happened as a result of a frivolous libel threat from a person in Pakistan and the cowardice SUP has shown by caving in right away without bothering to investigate the ridiculous and unproveable claims of libel may reveal the fear of so-called free-speech bastions, such as a university presses, who won't put their neck out when even mildly problematic things happen involving Pakistan. It may also be a form of refusal to mention anything that may be perceived as an expose of Pakistani hypocrisy, whether from people who are doctrinaire in their religious beliefs or the so-called liberal elite. After what happened with the Danish newspaper Politiken, SUP may be afraid the threatening letter is a precursor to a bomb or something! It's all dreadful really.

What support have you received from your colleagues?

Several of them have posted public statements of support and sent letters to SUP on my behalf. Westfield State University has started a petition to SUP to bring the book back into print and stand behind my First Amendment rights. The National Writers Union has also sent letters to various media outlets. And The Drama Review is publishing a dossier on the case in their forthcoming spring 2011 issue. So, there is definitely a story here worth telling.

How can Change.org readers support your efforts?

I think the best advice was given by University of North Texas professor Masood Ashraf Raja: Assign the book in classes on topics such as South Asia, literature, postcolonial studies, and the Islamic world. Purchase a copy of the self-published edition. And pass along the information about this debacle to your friends."

Photo credit: Fawzia Afzal-Khan