CNN on Thursday fired contributor Marc Lamont Hill for denouncing the oppression of Palestinians and endorse “a single secular democratic state for everyone” over the failed two-state solution to the Israel-Palestine conflict.The move was made just 24 hours after he delivered a speech at a meeting of the U.N.’s Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People in New York, in which he expressed support for Palestinians’ resistance against brutal Israeli occupation, denounced Israel for actively depriving Palestinians of basic human rights, and called for a “free Palestine from the river to the sea.”

Jewish Voice for Peace echoed the demand that CNN reverses course and praised Hill for speaking “powerfully” in defense of Palestinian rights.

In a series of tweets after the termination, Hill wrote “I support Palestinian freedom. I support Palestinian self-determination. I am deeply critical of Israeli policy and practice,” Hill wrote. “I do not support anti-Semitism, killing Jewish people, or any of the other things attributed to my speech. I have spent my life fighting these things.”

CNN said Thursday that it had severed ties with Marc Lamont Hill following controversial comments made about Israel. The network did not give a reason but came amid condemnation by critics who said Hill was calling for the end of the Israeli state and accusing him of anti-Semitism.

The ACRL advocates believe this decision to be a targeted effort to silence advocacy against racism and demand for civil and human rights of the Palestinians. Not only do CNN’s actions have a major chilling effect on constitutionally guaranteed freedom of speech, but questions the legitimacy of the network as an unbiased mainstream journalism source, and deprives the American people perspective about the reality of Israel’s abuses.

ACRL Chairman Nasser Beydoun condemns the firing and calls for CNN viewers to switch to networks and media sources that don’t pick and choose the news they deliver. “The fight for Palestinian rights cannot be silenced. As Americans discover the truth about Isreal’s ongoing apartheid, public opinion will shift and justice will prevail.”

The ACRL asks viewers to speak out against CNN’s actions by signing a petition or giving feedback on cnn.com/feedback, calling the network at 404-827-1700, or sending your comments to cnntip@cnn.com