A prominent Chinese professor at the Beijing Film Academy, has been barred from leaving China to travel to America. Cui Weiping was due to give a lecture at Harvard, and attend a conference in Philadelphia. Although authorities at her university have not provided her with a reason for her travel restrictions, Cui has speculated that the refusal is due to posts she made on her blog, and Tweets she made in support of imprisoned writer and activist Liu Xiaobo. To help petition her banning, contact NEAR for more information.