(NEW YORK CITY) - Leaders of the Professional Staff Congress (PSC), the American Federation of Teachers (AFT) and the American Association of University Professors (AAUP) are speaking out to defend free expression and academic freedom on college campuses and oppose the partisan assault on American Universities.

Last week’s Hands Off Higher Ed! Hands Off CUNY! Speak Out event took place a day before administrators from City University of New York (CUNY), University of California at Berkeley and Georgetown were called to testify before the House Education and Workforce Committee.

The hearing was the latest in a series that have purported to be about combating antisemitism, but in reality, they are part of a broad, systematic attack on Higher Education that seeks to undermine freedom of speech, discipline and defund universities, reverse years of social progress, and suppress research and teaching that doesn’t comport with the MAGA agenda.

“This hearing is another cynical attempt to use real anxiety about rising antisemitism to ambush university leaders, smear faculty, slash funding, and delegitimize institutions that are essential for a working Democracy," PSC President James Davis said.

At the event, Davis was flanked by Faculty and Staff from his Union and a host of New York City Elected Officials, including New York City Comptroller Brad Lander, New York State Senator Jabari Brisport, State Assembly Members Harvey Epstein and Jessica González-Rojas, and New York City Council Member Lincoln Restler, who gathered to defend CUNY’s diverse academic community. 

Read More From PSC/CUNY Here And Here.

Photo Courtesy Of The New York City AFL-CIO Central Labor Council.