Frederick Charles Moten, a professor and associate chair of Performance Studies and Comparative Literature at NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts, has a long record of demonizing Israel, endorsing boycotts, and aligning with groups that excuse or glorify terrorism. He is also listed as a Distinguished Professor Emeritus in English at the University of California, Riverside.
Demonizing Israel
Moten has repeatedly accused Israel of racism and colonial domination:
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In supporting USACBI, he likened Israel to apartheid South Africa and claimed its foundations rest on “settler colonialism and racist brutality.”
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In a September 7, 2016 statement endorsing academic boycotts, he alleged that Israel is sustained only by “general conditions of terror.”
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At the ASA Annual Meeting (Nov 7, 2009), Moten accused Israel of “racial-military domination” and described the U.S. as “Israel’s outsized and enabling evil twin.”
These statements position Israel not as a sovereign state but as an illegitimate colonial entity—rhetoric that fuels antisemitic hostility.
Endorsement of Boycotts
Moten has been a visible supporter of the U.S. Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel (USACBI). As of March 2023, he was listed as an endorser and had signed multiple open letters promoting boycotts and defending USACBI. He reportedly supported the American Studies Association’s 2013 resolution endorsing academic boycotts and served as a member of Members for Justice in Palestine within the Modern Language Association.
Producing “The Coming Intifada”
In 2015–2016, Moten traveled with the MTL Collective to work on a film originally titled On the Horizon of Palestine, later released as The Coming Intifada. The collective described BDS actions as “militant love” and referred to Israel and Jerusalem as “occupied.”
The film included a visit to Khader Adnan, spokesman for Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ)—a terror group with no political or social wing, backed by Iran, and responsible for suicide bombings and attacks on Israeli civilians. Adnan himself was filmed praising suicide bombings, urging: “Who among you will carry the next explosive belt? Who among you will fire the next bullets?” By including such figures, the project offered legitimacy to violent actors rather than exposing their terrorism.
Supporting a PFLP Leader
On August 21, 2014, Moten signed a solidarity statement defending Khalida Jarrar, a senior member of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), a U.S.-designated terrorist organization. Jarrar was later arrested for inciting violence and calling for the abduction of Israeli soldiers; she pled guilty and was sentenced to 15 months in prison. Despite this record, Moten publicly endorsed her cause, signaling support for an operative of a terror group responsible for hijackings, suicide bombings, and assassinations.
Speaking at Anti-Israel Events
Moten has appeared as a guest at Israeli Apartheid Week programs organized by Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) chapters and at events hosted by Jewish Voice for Peace (JVP), lending faculty credibility to movements that demonize Israel and blur the line between activism and antisemitism.
Conclusion
Fred Moten’s record extends far beyond academic criticism. By endorsing boycotts, accusing Israel of being a colonial “terror state,” producing a film that platforms a PIJ terrorist, and signing in support of a PFLP leader, he has consistently aligned with extremist rhetoric. His activism provides intellectual cover for groups and individuals that glorify violence against Jews and fuels a campus climate where antisemitic hostility is normalized.
