JVP applauds AAA for endorsing academic boycott

Jewish Voice for Peace congratulates the American Anthropological Association for a historic vote on Friday, Nov 20, where over 1,000 members voted to endorse a resolution to boycott Israeli academic institutions.  Representatives of the largest anthropological association in the world voted to move forward a boycott resolution by a landslide, 1040-136.

The vote was a result of over three years of organizing within the Association that promoted careful deliberation, discussion, and education about the call for solidarity through an academic boycott from Palestinian civil society. The resolution will be put before the AAA’s 10,000 members in the spring via an online vote. A resolution against boycott was defeated in the same meeting, 1173-196.

Along with endorsing the Palestinian civil society call for a boycott of Israeli academic institutions, the resolution clearly states that the boycott pertains to Israeli academic institutions only, and not to individual scholars.

Jewish Voice for Peace applauds the resolution’s call on the AAA to “support the rights of students and scholars everywhere to engage in research and public speaking about Israel/Palestine and in support of the boycott, divestment and sanctions (BDS) movement.” JVP’s recent report, Stifling Dissent, documents the censorship and intimidation many scholars and students face when speaking out for justice for Palestinians.

The AAA’s Business Meeting’s endorsement of this resolution joins other academic associations in the United States, including the Asian American Studies Association, the American Studies Association, and the Native American and Indigenous Studies Association. As of this writing, the National Women’s Studies Association is voting on a similar resolution.

Jewish Voice for Peace is proud to have endorsed this historic resolution and supports the AAA in their action towards justice.

See JVP’s endorsement of the AAA resolution here: https://www.jewishvoiceforpeace.org/aaa-academic-boycott/.

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