CAMPUS

Group calls for US boycott of Israeli universities

From Inside Higher Ed:

The movement to boycott Israeli academic institutions has largely been centered in Britain (where in 2007 the University and College Union dropped the call). In response to the conflict in Gaza, calls for academic boycotts have crossed the Atlantic, surfacing first in Ontario, and now in the United States.

The group, U.S. Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel, just issued a press release urging, among other things, “[r]efraining from participation in any form of academic and cultural cooperation, collaboration or joint projects with Israeli institutions that do not vocally oppose Israeli state policies against Palestine.”

Luckily, the idea isn’t very popular at all in the United States, and for good reason: It explicitly goes against the fundamental principles of academia – open communication and collaboration, free from external politics and prejudice. Once again, from Inside Higher Ed:

In the United States, opposition to academic boycotts is strong. A 2007 statement signed by nearly 300 university presidents sums up why: “In seeking to quarantine Israeli universities and scholars, this vote threatens every university committed to fostering scholarly and cultural exchanges that lead to enlightenment, empathy, and a much-needed international marketplace of ideas.”

All in all, this is just another attempt by radical professors to politicize the university environment and turn it into a mouthpiece for their agenda (i.e. “social justice,” “equality” or whatever other buzzword makes you feel empowered and fuzzy inside).

But just how asinine is this idea? Well, even Lee Bollinger*, president of Columbia University, has come out against the boycott.

*Bollinger kicked ROTC out of Columbia and invited Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to speak.