Melissa Smyth
Overview
Melissa Smyth co-authored a Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) movement resolution for the University of Texas (UT Austin) in 2015, expressed support for terrorists and defended campus anti-Israel activists.In 2014 and 2015, Smyth was a member of the Palestine Solidarity Committee (PSC) at UT Austin (pscatx). PSC is an alternative name for Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP).
In 2017, Smyth indicated that she was affiliated with the National Lawyers Guild (NLG) chapter at the City University of New York School of Law (CUNY) (CUNY NLG).
NLG
The National Lawyers’ Guild (NLG) is an association of lawyers self-described as "dedicated to the need for basic and progressive change in the structure of our political and economic system."
The group is a “proud member” of the US Campaign to End the Israeli Occupation, which has been renamed the U.S. Campaign for Palestinian Rights (USCPR), and represented terrorist Rasmea Odeh in U.S. federal court.
As of October 2020, Smyth’s LinkedIn page said she was an “Immigration Staff Attorney” at Brooklyn Defender Services, since September 2019. She was also lecturer at Frantz Fanon University (FFU), Somaliland from “Oct 2015 - Mar 2016” and a teaching assistant at UT Austin from “Aug 2014- May 2015.”
Smyth’s LinkedIn page also stated that she received her J.D from CUNY in 2019 and a master’s degree in “Near and Middle Eastern Studies” from UT Austin in 2015. In 2013, Smyth graduated from Fordham University (Fordham) with a bachelor’s degree in Middle East Studies and Visual Arts.
Expressing Support for Terrorists
Smyth signed an April 28, 2017, letter in support for “Palestinian Hunger Strikers.” The letter referred to terrorist Marwan Barghouti as a: “prominent Palestinian political leader and spokesperson of hunger-striking prisoners affiliated with the Palestinian political faction, Fateh.”
PSC Austin spearheaded the #UTDivest campaign to introduce a divestment resolution to the Student Government Assembly (SGA). The campaign’s goal was to have [00:01:45] UT Austin join the BDS movement.
Terrorist Marwan Barghouti was sentenced to five consecutive life terms for some of his crimes, including his role in the Sbarro Cafe bombing. In 2017, he initiated the hunger strike by Palestinian prisoners known as the “Dignity Strike.” He headed the Palestinian Authority (PA) terrorist Tanzim force and founded the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades, which carried out many terror attacks against Israeli civilians.
BDS Activism
In April 2015, Smyth co-authored a BDS movement divestment resolution at UT Austin.PSC Austin spearheaded the #UTDivest campaign to introduce a divestment resolution to the Student Government Assembly (SGA). The campaign’s goal was to have [00:01:45] UT Austin join the BDS movement.
The divestment resolution called on the University of Texas Investment Management Company (UTIMCO) to divest itself of holdings in companies that “facilitate…the oppression of the Palestinian people by the State of Israel.”
On April 17, 2015, in an article published by UT Austin’s student newspaper, The Daily Texan and titled: “Divestment resolution heads to SG Assembly for vote,” Smyth was quotedsaying: “An institution we work for, pay tuition to and carry with us is implicitly justifying these acts of oppression.”
On April 21, 2015, the Student Government Assembly voted down the resolution by a vote of 11–23–1.
On April 6, 2015, Smyth promoted UTDivest on Facebook by updating her Facebook profile picture to the UT Divest logo and updating her Facebook cover photo to a graphic that promoted UT Austin’s divestment campaign, writing: “Sign the petition:...And keep up to date: https://utdivest.com/.”
On March 3, 2015, Smyth posted to Facebook: “Sign the UT Divestment petition to urge the university to divest from corporations that profit from the illegal occupation of Palestine and the systematic oppression of the Palestinian people.”
Defending Campus Anti-Israel Activists
Smyth signed a January 25, 2017 letter condemning a decision by Fordham University's dean to block the establishment of a SJP chapter on Fordham’s campus. The letter was authored by the anti-Israel Jewish Voice for Peace (JVP) organization.In 2016, Fordham reportedly blocked the formation of a Fordham SJP chapter “based on the reported behavior of other [SJP] chapters on other campuses,” indicating that “the establishment of a local branch could be ‘polarizing’ and pose a safety concern to students and faculty.”
Signatories demanded that Fordham “immediately rescind the rejection of SJP as a student group on campus, apologize to the students affected by this harmful decision, and reaffirm Fordham’s commitment to free speech and academic freedom.”
The petitioners also highlighted SJP’s BDS activity, characterizing SJP’s efforts to promote anti-Israel boycott as part of “a time-honored non-violent mode of political expression.” The petition accused Fordham’s administration of a “fundamental misunderstanding of what boycotts are, the purpose of a university, and the goals of SJP.”
The Center for Constitutional Rights (CCR) in cooperation with Palestine Legal (PL), and civil rights attorney Alan Levine sued Fordham on behalf of four students in April 2017. A New York court annulled Fordham’s decision in August 2019, mandating that the university recognize SJP as an official club.
Fordham appealed the ruling to the NY State Supreme Court Appellate Division in January 2020. On July 24, 2020, Fordham SJP students filed a brief asking the appellate court to deny Fordham’s appeal of the lower court’s decision.
As of October 2020, a variety of groups, not directly involved in the case, filed amicus briefs with the Appellate Division for the court's consideration including JVP.
PSC Activism
On April 9, 2015, Smyth was tagged in a pscatx Facebook post that read: “Here is the flier for the event!...Remember, invite everyone you know!!! Hope your Thursday is great. (Thanks to Mel for making these).”
The flier designed by Smyth promoted a pscatx event titled: “Public Forum: UT Divest, Palestine, and the Global BDS Movement.”
The text on the flier Smyth designed read: “Come learn more...at our public meeting. We will discuss.. the Palestinian call for boycott, divestment, and sanctions (BDS) and how this relates to the resolution in student government for divestment...Bring any questions you may have about the BDS movement and learn why we believe it is the correct strategy for standing in solidarity with the Palestinian people.”
On September 17, 2014, pscatx updated their Facebook profile photo to one of their logos and commented on the photo: “Shout out to Melissa Smyth on the design!”
Anti-Israel Activism
On March 14, 2015, Smyth appeared in several photos on Facebook from a post that read: “No Hipster Apartheid at SXSW! Boycott the Israeli Government Sponsored panel ...End the Occupation.The Interfaith Community for Palestinian Rights, Austin, TX Palestine Solidarity Committee- UT Austin Jewish Voice for Peace #SXSW #jvp2015 #NoHipsterApartheid.”
On the same date, Smyth featured in a Facebook album titled: “Hipster Apartheid Protest at SXSW - March 2015.” Activists held up signs that read: “No Hipster APARTHEID! DON’T HIDE YOUR CRIMES BEHIND YOUR TECH!! JOIN the BDS Movement” and “BRAND ISRAEL CAN’T WHITEWASH GENOCIDE.”
The Facebook photos were taken from an event called: “PROTEST BRAND ISRAEL AT SXSW” hosted by an anti-Israel group calling itself “The Interfaith Community for Palestinian Rights, Austin, TX (ICPRA).”
PSC Austin - Disrupting Campus Events 2015
PSC Austin created a Facebook event titled: “McRaven Address Walkout.” The event was to initiate a walkout during a November 20, 2015 address by U.S. Navy veteran Admiral William McRaven at UT Austin.McRaven is a UT Austin graduate and led the raid to kill Osama bin Laden. In its Facebook event description, PSC accused UT Austin of hosting “a swarm of US intelligence and military officials on campus,” who would “recruit students to a life of crime.”
On November 13, 2015, twelve PSC members disrupted an event organized by Professor Ami Pedahzur of UT Austin’s Institute for Israeli Studies. The event was titled: “The Origin of a Species: The Birth of the Israeli Defense Forces’ Military Culture.”
Soon after the event began, PSC leader Mohammed Nabulsi interrupted the speaker to deliver a prepared speech, after which the other PSC members began chanting [00:05:08]: “Long live the intifada!” and “We want ‘48, we don’t want two states!”
The disruption resulted in a near-physical confrontation between Nabulsi and Professor Pedhazur. Campus police later arrived and detained the PSC members.
Following the incident, PSC released an edited video of the protest and accused Professor Pedahzur of assault. PSC also filed a complaint with the university that accused Pedahzur of “illegally releasing Nabulsi’s name and unfairly linking the group’s actions to the terrorist attacks in Paris.”
Additionally, PSC launched a campaign on Facebook calling on students to “contact our Dean of Students, the Dean of College of Liberal Arts, and the UT Administration generally letting them know that physical assault of peaceful student protesters will not stand.”
PSC finance committee chair, Ahmed Khawaja, also initiated a GoFundMe fundraising campaign to sue Pedahzur.
Professor Pedahzur later reportedly received death threats and vacated his offices at the Israeli Studies Institute, due to concern for his personal safety and that of his students. A UT investigation found that Pedahzur “did not violate the university’s Nondiscrimination Policy and did not engage in harassment of the student organization.”
UT’s then-President Gregory L. Fenves was quoted in a local Austin paper as saying that Pedahzur “fostered open, responsible dialogue, often on contentious political issues, including those involving Israel. He is known for working in a constructive and proactive manner with people from across the political spectrum.”
On March 25, 2015, PSC held a protest against an event held by Texas Hillel and Texans for Israel to celebrate Israeli culture, titled: “Israel Block Party.”
PSC members protesting across the street from the block party constructed a mock “apartheid wall” meant to simulate Israel’s security barrier and promoted [00:01:47] a PSC divestment campaign to have UT Austin join the BDS movement.
Israel’s security barrier, built as a deterrent to Palestinian terror attacks, is 97% low chain-link barrier. The concrete portions of the fence were built in response to Palestinian sniper attacks.
Ali Khan, who helped organize the PSC protest, called the Israel Block Party event “a propaganda event which hides a very heinous reality of cultural appropriation and genocide.”
PSC Austin - Disrupting A Campus Event 2014
On October 14, 2014, members of several student organizations, including PSC, disrupted [00:00:18] a talk about ISIS given by Israeli Major General Meir Dagan, former head of Israel’s Mossad intelligence service.The Daily Texan, a UT Austin student newspaper, reported that students protested outside the event and “At one point during Dagan’s talk, some protesters inside the auditorium interrupted the event by yelling pro-Palestinian phrases.”
PSC Austin - Glorifying Intifada 2015
In November 2015, PSC Austin, together with Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) at Houston, scheduled an event titled: “Solidarity with the Palestinian Uprising: Call to Action!”The event’s Facebook description claimed: “The Zionist state occupation forces” were “killing dozens of unarmed Palestinians…with the participation of racist Zionist settlers.”
The event took place during a wave of stabbing attacks carried out by Palestinians against Israeli civilians, termed the “Knife Intifada.” Palestinians shared graphics and video tutorials across social media explaining how to most effectively stab Jews. One widely shared video showed a young girl from Gaza brandishing a knife while calling on West Bank Palestinians to stab Israelis.
The event’s Facebook description also said: “Palestinians across historic Palestine—including 1948 Palestine—have taken it upon themselves to launch a popular resistance…to fight the genocidal Zionist project. The Palestinian youth…have in particular taken the lead in this uprising. They are sacrificing themselves so that Palestine may have a future. The least we can do is show our support for them.”
The event’s Facebook description concluded: “Long Live the Resistance! Long Live the Intifada!”
Since the early 2000s, the term “intifada,” which translates from Arabic as “uprising” or “insurrection,” has carried the connotation of violence.
BDS
The Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) movement was founded by Omar Barghouti in 2005 to challenge “international support for Israeli apartheid and settler-colonialism.” BDS is an allegedly “Palestinian-led movement,” although leading BDS activists have admitted [00:01:01] this is not true.
One of the demands of BDS includes [point 3] what is generally known as the “right of return,” a demand discredited as a way to eliminate Israel. Barghouti said the “right of return” is a means to “end Israel’s existence as a Jewish state.”
Barghouti has said that BDS “aims to turn Israel into a pariah state, as South Africa once was.”
In his activism, Barghouti has also said [00:05:55] regarding Israel: “Definitely, most definitely, we oppose a Jewish state in any part of Palestine. No…rational Palestinian, not a sellout Palestinian, will ever accept a Jewish state in Palestine.”
The movement has been linked to numerous terrorist organizations and received a public endorsement from Hamas in 2017.
BDS initiatives include calling on institutions and individuals to divest from Israeli-affiliated companies, promoting academic and cultural boycotts of Israel, and organizing anti-Israel rallies, protests and campaigns.
The movement’s most notable achievement has been the infiltration of university campuses through lobbying for “BDS resolutions.” In these cases, student governments and student groups, backed by their own anti-Israel members and affiliates, have proposed resolutions on some form of boycott of, or divestment from, Israel and Israeli-affiliated entities.
Boycott resolutions, although non-binding, have been passed by student governments on numerous North American campuses.
BDS activity is often aggressive and disruptive. It has been noted that universities that pass BDS resolutions see a marked increase in anti-Semitic incidents on campus. On one campus, when the student government debated a BDS resolution, reports emerged of violent threats against those opposing it.
Social Media and Weblinks
Facebook:https://www.facebook.com/628302370Twitter: https://twitter.com/perrykeetsmyth [Deleted]
- Status:
- Professional
- University:
- Texas-Austin
- Organizations:
- BDS,
- PSC (SJP)
- Related Profiles:
- Seth Uzman,
- Last Modified:
- 05/04/2026
Photos & Screenshots
42 images