Major US Scholarly Association Votes for Academic Boycott of Israel

The largest and oldest academic organization dedicated to the study of the United States announced on Monday that its membership had voted overwhelmingly to endorse the boycott of Israeli academic institutions.

In a landmark decision, more than 66 percent of voting members of the American Studies Association opted in favor of a resolution that supported the boycott. The resolution also expressed the association's support for US-based academics to speak critically of Israeli policies.

"The ASA's endorsement of the academic boycott emerges from the context of US military and other support for Israel; Israel's violation of international law and UN resolutions; the documented impact of the Israeli occupation on Palestinian scholars and students; the extent to which Israeli institutions of higher education are a party to state policies that violate human rights; and finally, the support of such a resolution by a majority of ASA members," a statement released by the association on Monday read.

The results of the vote follow the decision of the association's national council to endorse the resolution in early December.

Although the council expressed its support for the resolution, it also referred the final decision to its members. Of the association's 5,000 members, 1,252 cast their votes. 66.05% said yes, while 30.5% said no and 3.43% abstained.

According to the ASA's website, the resolution entails a ban on "formal collaborations with Israeli academic institutions, or with scholars who are expressly serving as representatives or ambassadors of those institutions."

Source: Ma’an News Agency