Hey everybody, it's me, W. Kamal Bell. Welcome back to the ACLU's podcast at Liberty, hosted by this guy.

On this show, we explore the big questions on the big issues affecting our big country, and especially our hardest hit and most vulnerable communities.

Now, a few months back, we recorded an episode about our right to protest,

and at its center was the case of Mahmoud Khalil, who had recently been arrested by ICE.

Khalil, as listeners likely know, is a lawful permanent resident in the United States and a

Columbia University graduate, and he was targeted for deportation by the Trump administration

because of his Palestinian rights advocacy.

For 104 days, he was illegally detained in Louisiana, thousands of miles away from his family.

He missed the birth of his first child, Dean. He was denied due process, and he and his wife,

Dr. Nour Abdallah, were subjected to harassment and threats to their safety.

Throughout, clear at CUNY, the Center for Constitutional Rights, the ACLU, and other organizations continue to advocate for him.

And hashtag Free Mahmood became a rallying cry heard around the world.

In late June, a federal court successfully ordered his release at last.

Thankfully, he is now back in New York City with his family, and today I am so honored to have him join us on the podcast.

Thank you for doing this with me.

No, thank you so much for having me.

You're sort of a celebrity now.

And then we start to put you in celebrity and it might disentangle you from dad, husband, activist.

Yeah, that's actually spot on.

It's so difficult now.

I want to go for walks, like with my newborn and Nour, my wife. I want to go to my like favorite brunch place. And for the most part, I can.

Like I wanted to come here in the subway. But then everyone was like, no, that's not a good idea.

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