The following open letter was originally issued on August 12 to oral historians and scholars planning to participate in the June 2014 International Conference on Oral History at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. The letter is signed by over 375  scholars and community oral historians and counting; and is endorsed by Academic and Cultural Boycott Campaigns: Academics for Palestine (Ireland); AURDIP (France); BAB (Germany); BOYCOTT! (Israel); BRICUP (UK); InCACBI (India); PACBI (Palestine); PBAI (Spain); USACBI (USA) – and by the Alternative Information Centre (Israel); Groundwell: Oral Historians for Social Change, core working group; Independent Jewish Voices Canada; University of Toronto SJP (Canada); SJP of UCLA  – and by Ronnie Kasrils, former South African government minister, anti-apartheid activist and writer.

Articles on the Campaign:

http://www.aurdip.org/The-Hebrew-University-and-Hasbara.html (by Rosemary Sayigh)
http://www.counterpunch.org/2013/09/20/on-the-fallacy-of-engaging-with-the-israeli-academy/ (by Haim Bresheeth and Sherna Berger Gluck)

To add your name to this list of signatories please email: hebrewuconferenceboycott@gmail.com.

UPDATED CALL

CAMPAIGN TO BOYCOTT THE ORAL HISTORY CONFERENCE AT HEBREW UNIVERSITY OF JERUSALEM

hebrewUconferenceboycott@gmail.com

December 1, 2013

Note: In light of the recent withdrawal of the two international keynote speakers, as noted below, the text of the original letter/boycott call of 8/12/2013 has been revised and re- formatted. The signatures are current. 

Dear Colleagues:

We are Palestinian, Israeli and other oral historians and academics from Europe, South Africa, Oceana, Asia, and the Americas calling on you to boycott the June 2014 “International” Oral History Conference being organized by The Oral History Division of the Avraham Harman Institute of Contemporary Jewry, at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.

Those of you who have signed the appeal already will be pleased to know that the two main international scholars who had agreed to deliver keynote addresses at conference, Alessandro Portelli and Mary Clark, have withdrawn.

However, the reasons for the boycott remain unchanged. And while all Israeli universities are deeply complicit in the occupation, settler-colonialism, and apartheid, the Hebrew University of Jerusalem is particularly noteworthy.

• The land on which some of its Mount Scopus campus buildings and facilities were expanded was acquired as a result of Israel”s 1968 illegal confiscation of 3345 dunums of Palestinian land, land which is deemed occupied territory under international law. Israel’s unilateral annexation of occupied East Jerusalem and the application of Israeli domestic law to it, are violations of the Fourth Geneva Convention, and have been repeatedly denounced by the UN Security Council (Resolution 252, 21 May 1968).[1]
• It maintains close ties to the Israeli military industry, which is accused of war crimes against Palestinian civilians; provides special privileges to Israeli soldiers and security personnel; and collaborates with the Israeli army in training officers and recruits. [1A]
• It discriminates against Palestinians, including those who are citizens of Israel by, among other things, not providing  teaching services to the residents of Jerusalem and the surrounding areas in contrast to those provided to Jewish groups; and not offering any courses in Arabic.[2][3]
• It denies freedom of speech and protest to its few Palestinian students as evidenced by the prohibition of a commemoration event during the 2008-2009 invasion of the Gaza Strip during which approximately 1,400 Palestinians were killed; at the same time, offering special consideration and benefits to students who participated in that invasion. [4]
• The staff from the Hebrew University takes part in the supervision and promotion committees of students and staff at Ariel University, which was established on confiscated Palestinian land in West Bank. [5]
• It does not recognize degrees awarded by the Palestinian Al-Quds University in Jerusalem while those awarded by the Ariel University in an illegal colony are recognized.

At a time when the international movement to boycott Israeli academic and cultural institutions is gaining ground in response to Israel”s flagrant and persistent infringement of Palestinian human and political rights, we urge scholars and professionals to reflect upon the implications of taking part in a conference at a complicit institution, and to refrain from such participation. The conference is an attempt to improve the image and reputation of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem in the West and to cover up for the fact that the university is closely associated with Israeli annexation and “Separation/Apartheid Wall” policies–policies that were strongly condemned on 9 July 2004 by the International Court of Justice in The Hague.[6]

We believe that the only avenue open to achieving justice and upholding international law is sustained work on the part of Palestinian and international civil society to put pressure on Israel and its complicit institutions to end this oppression.  Accordingly, we call on the international community to honor the 2004 Call of the Palestinian Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel (PACBI) to boycott academic and cultural institutions involved in Israel”s system of occupation, colonialism and apartheid and its appeal to “refrain from participation in any form of academic and cultural cooperation, collaboration or joint projects with Israeli institutions“ [7].

Until Israel fully complies with international laws and conventions, we urge international academics not to participate in endorsing Israel”s violations and the basic human rights of Palestinians – even if inadvertently. We call on our colleagues to treat Israel exactly the same way that most of the world treated racist South Africa – as a pariah state. Only then can Palestinians hope for a just peace based on international law, respect for human rights, and, more crucially, on the fundamental principle of equality for all, irrespective of ethnicity, religion or other identity considerations.

We, therefore, call on you to boycott the Hebrew University of Jerusalem oral history conference and to call on your colleagues to refuse to participate in it; to refuse to cross what is, in effect, a Palestinian picket line.

[Note: All footnotes are at the end of the document following a note on academic freedom.]

Sincerely,

1. Professor Ahmed Abbes, Directeur de Recherche au CNRS, Bures-sur-Yvette, France
2. Professor  Saleh Abdel Jawad (Hamayel), Birzeit University, Palestine
3. Dr. Stéphanie Latte Abdallah, ; Researcher, French Institute for the Near East ( IFPO) Jerusalem, Palestine
4. Dr. Adnan Abdelrazek – The Arab Studies Society – Jerusalem, Palestine
5. Professor Nahla Abdo Carleton University, Ottawa Canada
6. Dr. Faiha Abdulhadi, Independent researcher, writer, poet, Palestine
7. Professor Rabab Ibrahim Abdulhadi, Arab and Muslim Ethnicities and Diasporas Initiative – College of Ethnic Studies, San Francisco State University, USA
8. Hala Caroline Abou-Zaki, Phd Student, Ecole des Hautes Etudes en Sciences Sociales (EHESS), Paris, France
9. Line Abou Zaki, Clinical psychologist, Lebanon
10. Professor Nadia Abu el Haj, Barnard/Columbia University, USA
11. Professor Saed Abu-Hijleh, An-Najah National University Nablus, Palestine
12. Professor Lila Abu-Lughod, Columbia University, New York, USA
13. Dr. Salman Abu Sitta, Researcher, UK
14. Professor Nadia Abu- Zahra, University of Ottawa, Canada
15. Professor Cristina Accornero, Universití  di Torino, Italy
16. Professor Ghada Ageel, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada
17. Professor Mumtaz Ahmad, Vice President (Academic Affairs), International Islamic University, Islamabad, Pakistan
18. Mazen Mustafa AlAbadlah, Al-Aqsa University, Palestine
19. Akkas Al-Ali, PhD candidate, University of Exeter, UK
20. Dr. Anaheed Al-Hardan, ICI Berlin Institute for Cultural Inquiry, Germany
21. Professor Bayan Nuwayhed al-Hout, Lebanese University, Beirut, Lebanon
22. Majeda Al-Saqqa, Culture and Free Thought Association, Khan Younis, Gaza, Palestine
23. Professor (emeritus) Mateo Alaluf, Université Libre de Bruxelles, Belgium
24. Professor Ammiel Alcalay, Queens College, City of New York, USA
25. Dr. Diana Allan, Society for the Humanities, Cornell University, Ithaca, USA
26. Professor Lori Allen, University of Cambridge, England
27. Professor Nina Allen, Suffolk University, Boston, USA
28. Dr. Valentina Anastasi, Independent researcher, Catania, Italy
29. Professor Marcos Ancelovici, Université du Québec í  Montréal (UQí€M), Canada
30. Professor Rachad Antonius, University of Quebec Montreal (UQAM), Canada
31. Dr.  Miriyam Aouragh, CAMRI, University of Westminster, UK
32. Professor (emeritus) Nasser Aruri, University of Massachusetts, Dartmouth, USA
33. Professor (retired) William Ayers, University of Illinois-Chicago; Cyprus Oral History Project, USA
34. Professor Alice Bach (retired), Archbishop Hallinan Professor of Religious Studies,
    Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland OH, USA
35. Professor Angelo Baracca, University of Florence, Italy
36. Gustavo Barbosa, PhD candidate, London School of Economics, UK
37. Professor Amjad Barham, Hebron University, President of the Palestinian Federation of Unions of University Professors and Employees, Palestine
38. Ryvka Barnard, Doctoral student, New York University, USA
39. Professor Javier Barreda, University of Alicante, Alicante, Spain
40. Professor Isaí­as Barreñada, Universidad Complutense de Madrid (UCM), Spain
41. Professor Enrico Bartolomei, University of Macerata, Italy
42. Professor Munir Bashour, American University of Beirut, Lebanon
43. Professor Oren Ben-Dor, Southampton University, England
44. Julie Benedetto, student, Institut d”Etudes Politiques, Lyon, France
45. Specialist Israel Morales Benito, University of Alicante, Spain
46. Bonita Bennett, Director, District Six Museum, Capetown, South Africa
47. David Beorlegui, PhD candidate,  Basque Country University, Spain
48. Professor Dan Berger, University of Washington Bothell, USA
49. Dr. Rima Berns-McGown, Independent Researcher/Adjunct Professor, University of Toronto, Canada
50. Professor Doris Bittar,  California State University San Marcos, USA
51. Professor Dusan I. Bjelic, Department of Criminology, University of Southern Maine, USA
52. Professor Maylei Blackwell, Departments of Chicana/o Studies, and Gender Studies, UCLA, USA
53. Dr. Susan Blackwell, Independant language consultant, Birmingham UK
54. Professor Hagit Borer, Queen Mary, University of London, England
55. Professor (emerita) Joanna Bornat , Open University, UK
56. Dr. Samia Botmeh, Birzeit University, Palestine
57. Professor Glenn Bowman, University of Kent, Canterbury, UK
58. Dr. Robert Boyce, London School of Economics and Political Science, London University, UK
59. Professor Haim Bresheeth, SOAS, University of London, England
60. Dr. Khaldun Bshara, scholar, Riwaq Centre, Ramallah, Palestine
61. Professor (emeritus) Jacques Bude, Université libre de Bruxelles, Belgium
62. Professor Judith Butler, University of California, Berkeley, USA
63. Professor Angeles Castaño Madroñal, Universidad de Sevilla, Spain
64. Ines Castellano Picón, Phd Student, Universidad de Sevilla, Spain
65. Professor Jesús M. Castillo, Universidad de Sevilla, Spain
66. Professor John Chalcraft, London School of Economics, UK 
67. Professor Iain Chambers, Universití  degli Studi di Napoli, “L’Orientale,” Italy
68. Professor  Michael Chanan, University of Roehampton, England
69. Professor Elise Chenier, Simon Fraser University, British Columbia, Canada
70. Dr Indira Chowdhury, IOHA Council member; Centre for Public History – Bangalore, India
71. Nikoletta Christodoulou, Frederick University, Nicosia; Cyprus Oral History Project, Cyprus
72. Professor (retired) Raymonde Cloutier, University of Quebec (UQAM), Montreal,  Canada
73. Professor Elliott Colla, Georgetown University, USA
74. Dr. Jane Collings, University of California, Los Angeles, USA
75. Dr Peter Collins, St Mary”s University College, Belfast, Ireland
76. Prof. Dr. David Mario Comedi, Universidad Nacional de Tucumán, Argentina
77. Professor Miriam Cooke, Braxton Craven Professor of Arab Cultures, Duke University, USA
78. Susan Currie, PhD student, Central Queensland University, Australia
79. Mike Cushman, Independent researcher, London, England
80. Professor Hamid Dabashi, Columbia University, New York, USA
81. Professor Nabil Dajani,  American University of Beirut, Lebanon
82. Professor Edwin Daniel (emeritus) University of Alberta Canada
83. Professor (emeritus) Eric David, Université libre de Bruxelles, Belgium
84. Professor Lawrence Davidson, West Chester University, USA
85. Mary Ellen Davis, Instructor, School of Cinema, Concordia University, Montreal, Canada
86. Dr. Rochelle Davis, Georgetown University, USA
87. Dr. Uri Davis, AL-QUDS University, Jerusalem, Palestine
88. Professor (emerita) Sonia  Dayan-Herzbrun,  Université Paris, France
89. Professor Lara Deeb, Scripps College, USA
90. Professor Herman De Ley, Ghent University, Belgium
91. Prof Philippe Denis, Sinomlando Centre for Oral History and Memory Work in Africa, University of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa
92. Rafel Gustavo de Oliveira,  MSc student, Universidade Federal do Paraná, Brazil
93. Professor Angeles Diez Rodriguez, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Spain
94. Professor Anne-Marie Dillens, University Saint-Louis, Brussels, Belgium
95. Professor John Docker, University of Sydney, Australia
96. Professor Chris Dole, Amherst College, USA
97. Professor Angelo d”Orsi, University of Turin, Italy
98. Professor Ann Douglas, Columbia University, New York, USA
99. Professor Laurence Dreyfus, University of Oxford, UK
100. Professor (emeritus) John Dugard, University of Leiden; Honorary Professor of Law, Uof Pretoria, South Africa
101. Professor Louise Edwards-Simpson, Project Director, Voices of Homelessness, St. Catherine University St Paul, Minnesota, USA
102. Professor Haidar Eid, Al-Aqsa University, Gaza, Palestine
103. Professor Paul Eid, Université du Québec í  Montréal, Canada (UQAM)
104. Yasmine Eid-Sabbagh, PhD-candidate, Academy of Fine Arts Vienna, Austria.
105. Oroub El-Abed, Senior Teaching Fellow SOAS, London University, UK
106. Professor Nada Elia, Antioch University-Seattle, Washington, USA
107. Professor Mary Fakher-Eldin, University College, Dublin, Ireland
108. Professor Hoda Elsadda, Cairo University, Egypt
109. Professor Samera Esmeir, University of California, Berkeley, USA
110. Professor Ghazi-Walid Falah, University of Akron, Ohio, USA
111. Professor Laila Farah, DePaul University, USA
112. Professor Randa Farah, University of Western Ontario, Canada
113. Professor (emeritus), Emmanuel Farjoun, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem,  Israel
114. Dr. Adel Farrag, (retired) Institute of Technology Tallaght, Dublin, Ireland
115. Professor Mona Fawaz, American University of Beirut, Lebanon
116. Professor (emeritus) Sasan Fayazmanesh, California State University, Fresno, USA
117. Professor Ilana Feldman, George Washington University, USA
118. Dr. Sean Field, Historical Studies Department, University of Cape Town, South Africa
119. Arie Finkelstein, student, Université  Paris Est, France
120. Professor Ellen Fleischmann, University of Dayton, Ohio, USA
121. Senior Scholar Bill Fletcher, Jr., Institute for Policy Studies; former President, TransAfrica Forum, USA
122. Professor Manzar Foroohar, California Polytechnic University, San Luis Obispo, USA
123. Professor (emeritus) Giorgio Forti, Universití  degli Studi di Milano, Italy
124. Dr. Naomi Foyle, Coordinator of British Writers In Support of Palestine, UK
125. Professor Cynthia Franklin, University of Hawaiʻi, USA
126. Daniela Fuentealba Rubio, Investigator/archivist, Museum of Memory and Human Rights, Chile
127. Professor Candace Fujikane, University of Hawai”i at Mānoa, Honolulu, USA
128. Professor Nell Gabiam Iowa State University, USA
129. Professor (retired) Rosemary Galli, Observatorio das Nacionalidades, Brazil
130. Professor Jose Maria Gago Gonzalez, Member, Seminario de Fuentes Orales, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Spain
131. Professor (emerita) Irene L. Gendzier, Boston University, USA
132. Professeur des Ecoles (en retraite) Marie Gérí´me,  Ecole de Viuz,  Faverges, France
133. Professor Julie Gervais, Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne, France
134. Khalil Mohammad Gharra – student, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Occupied Palestine
135. Ana Ghoreishian, PhD student, University of Arizona, USA
136. Professor Rita Giacaman, Birzeit University, Palestine
137. Dr. Terri Ginsberg, ICMES, New York, USA
138. Professor (emerita) Sherna Berger Gluck, California State University, Long Beach, USA
139. Professor Paula Godinho, Universidade Nova de Lisboa, Portugal
140. Professor Heather Goodall, University of Technology Sydney, Australia
141. Professor (emeritus)  Yerach Gover, City University of New York, USA
142. Professor Michel Gros,  CNRS (National Centre for Scientific Research,  Rennes, France
143. Professor Regina Beatriz Guimarí£es Neto. Universidade Federal de Pernambuco; 2006-2008 President Brazilian Oral History Association, 2008-2010/Brazil
144. Professor Yvonne Haddad, Georgetown University, USA
145. Professor Ghassan Joseph Hage, University of Melbourne, Australia
146. Professor (emerita) Elaine Hagopian, Simmons College, Boston, USA
147. Dr. Andrea Hajek, University of Glasgow, UK
148. Professor (emerita) Sondra Hale, University of California, Los Angeles, USA
149. Emad Hamdeh, PhD student, Exeter University, UK
150. Lecturer Rola Hamed, University College,  Cork, Ireland
151. Professor Carrie Hamilton, University of Roehampton, UK
152. Dr. Rema Hammami, Birzeit University, Palestine
153. Professor Sari Hanafi, American University of Beirut, Lebanon
154. Karen S. Harper, community oral historian, Historical Society of Long Beach, California, USA
155. Professor Michael Harris, Université  Paris-Diderot, France
156. Dr. Jason Hart, Senior lecturer, University of Bath UK
157. Professor Rumy Hassan, University of Sussex, UK
158. Professor Salah D. Hassan, Michigan State University, Lansing, USA
159. Professor Frances Hasso, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina, USA
160. Milton Hatoum,  writer, translator and professor, Brazil
161. Professor Laia Haurie, Universitat Polití¨cnica de Catalunya, Barcelona, Spain
162. Karim Hauser Askalani, Journalist, Casa írabe Consortium, Madrid, Spain
163. Dr Mahmoud Hawari, Khalili Research Centre, University of Oxford, UK
164. Professor Desiree E. Hellegers,  Washington State University Vancouver, Washington, USA
165. Professor Sami Hermez, University of Pittsburgh, USA
166. Professor Elena Hernández Sandoica, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Spain
167. Shir Hever, Independent Economist/Researcher, Palestine-Israel
168. Professor (emeritus) Nicholas Hopkins, American University-Cairo, Egypt
169. Professor Nubar Hovsepian, Chapman University, Orange, California, USA
170. Professor (emeritus ) Heinz Hurwitz, Université Libre de Bruxelles, Belgium
171. Professor  Takeji Ino, Wayo Women”s University, Japan
172. Perla Issa, PhD candidate, Exeter University, UK
173. Kumiko Isumisawa, Chief Librarian, Institute of Developing Economies, Japan
174. Professor Ferran Izquierdo Brichs, Universitat Autí²noma de Barcelona, Spain
175. Dr Hana Jaber,  Histoire du Monde arabe contemporain, Collí¨ge de France, Paris, France
176. Professor Richard Jackson, National Centre for Peace and Conflict Studies, University of Otago, NZ
177. Hazem Jamjoum, PhD student, New York University, USA/Palestine
178. Dr. Colleen Jankovic, US Film Scholar, Al-qaws organization, AlQuds/Jerusalem, Palestine
179. Tineke E. Jansen, Independent researcher, former IOHA Council member, England
180. Professor Maher Jarrar, American University of Beirut, Lebanon
181. Dr.Lena Jayyusi, Researcher, author, Palestine
182. Chrischene Julius, Collections, Research and Documentation Dept District Six Museum, South Africa
183. Professor Ray Jureidini, Lebanese American University, Beirut, Lebanon
184. Professor Sharif Kanaana (retired), Birzeit University, Palestine
185. Professor Rhoda Kanaaneh, Columbia University, New York, USA
186. Samar Kanafani, PhD Candidate, University of Manchester, UK
187. Professor, J. Kehaulani Kauanui, Wesleyan University, Middletown, Connecticut, USA
188. Dr. Fatma Kassem, Independent researcher, Israel
189. Professor Robin D. Kelley, University of California, Los Angeles, USA
190. Emma Jean Kelly, PhD Candidate, Auckland University of Technology, Aotearoa New Zealand
191. Dr. Bryan Kelly, Queens University, Belfast, N. Ireland
192. Professor Emeritus Douglas Kerr, Case Western Reserve University, USA
193. Professor Amy Kesselman (emerita), State University of New York at New Paltz, USA
194. Dr. Abdulhadi Khalaf (retired) Center of Middle East Studies, Lund University, Sweden
195. Professor Muhammad Ali Khalidi, York University, Canada
196. Professor Tarif Khalidi, Center for Arab & ME Studies, American University, Beirut Lebanon
197. Professor Asem Khalil, Birzeit University, Palestine
198. Dr. Laleh Khalili, Reader in Politics, SOAS, University of London, England
199. Dr. Agnes Khoo, Visiting Research Fellow, University of Leeds, UK
200. Dr. Miyuki Kinjo, Post-doctoral researcher (Palestine/Israel), Ritsumeikan University, Japan
201. Professor Gary Kinsman, Laurentian University, Sudbury, Canada
202. Professor David Klein, California State University, Northridge, USA
203. Dr. Felipe Gustavo Koch Buttelli, Lecturer in the Religions Science Faculty, Regional University of Blumenau (FURB), Brazil
204. Dr. Dennis Kortheuer, California State University, Long Beach, USA
205. Professor Rubén Kotler, Universidad Nacional de Tucumán, Argentina
206. Professor Eileen Kuttab, Birzeit University, Palestine
207. Professor Hidemitsu Kuroki, Tokyo University of Foreign Studies, Japan
208. Dr. C S Lakshmi,  SPARROW Sound & Picture Archives for Research on Women, Mumbai India
209. Dr David Landy, Trinity College Dublin, Ireland
210. Professor Nadia Latif, Georgia State University, Atlanta, USA
211. Professor Bonita Lawrence (Mi’kmaw), Indigenous Studies, York University, Canada
212. Zoe Lawlor, University of Limerick Language Centre, Ireland
213. Dr. Clint LeBruyns, Theology and Development Program, University of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa
214. Professor Ronit Lentin, Trinity College, Dublin, Ireland
215. Dr. Les Levidow, Open University, UK
216. Professor Miren Llona, Universidad del Paí­s Vasco/Euskal Herriko Unibertsitatea; former Council member, IOHA, Spain
217. Professor David Colles Lloyd, University of California, Riverside
218. Dr. Elisabeth Longuenesse, (CNRS) Université de Versailles Saint-Quentin en Yvelines, France
219. Professor Maria Losé Lera, Seville University, Spain
220. Arab Lotfi, film maker, university lecturer, journalist, writer, Lebanon
221. Professor (emeritus) Moshé Machover, Kings College, University of London, England
222. Dr. Alex Lubin, Director, Center for American Studies and Research, American University of Beirut; University of New Mexico (on leave) – USA/Lebanon
223. Dr. Kenneth Macnab (retired), University of Sydney, Australia
224. John Marquez, PhD Student,  University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, USA
225. Hala Marshood, Student, Humanities Faculty, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Occupied Palestine
226. Dr. Michael Marten, Lecturer in Postcolonial Studies and Religion, University of Stirling, Scotland
227. Professor Rocio Medina Martin, Universidad Pablo de Olavide Sevilla, España
228. Professor Nur Masalha, SOAS, University of London, England
229. Dr. Norma Masriyyeh, Bethlehem University, Palestine
230. Professor Joseph Massad, Columbia University, New York, USA
231. Marie-eve Mathieu,  teacher,  í‰douard-Montpetit College, Canada
232. Professor Dina Mattar, SOAS, University of London, England
233. Dr. Rachel Mattson, public historian, archivist, educator, New York, USA
234. Professor (lecturer) Mary McDonald-Rissanen University of Tampere,  Finland
235. Des McGuinness, School of Communications, Dublin City University, Ireland
236. Dr. Bill McSweeney, Trinity College, Dublin, Ireland
237. Dr. Daniel Meier, University of Oxford, UK
238. Dr. Willem Meijs, independent language consultant, Birmingham, UK
239. Mar Gijon Mendigutia, PhD candidate, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid (UAM), Spain,
240. Professor Anne Meneley, Trent University, Canada
241. Meena R. Menon, author and oral historian, Delhi, India
242. Professor Laurie K. Mercier, Washington State University Vancouver, USA
243. Professor William Messing, University of Minnesota, USA
244. Jennifer Mogannam, Ph. D. candidate, University of California, San Diego
245. Professor  Chandra Talpade Mohanty, Syracuse University, New York, USA
246. Professor Shahrzad Mojab, University of Toronto, Canada
247. Professor Antonio Montenegro, Universidade Federal de Pernambuco, Brazil
248. Professor Annalies Moors, Amsterdam Institute of Social Science Research, University of Amsterdam, the Netherlands
249. Professor Amir Mufti, University of California, Los Angeles, USA
250. Professor Ahlam Muhtaseb, California State University, San Bernardino, USA
251. Professor Suroopa Mukherjee,  University of Delhi,  India-
252. Dr. Corinna Mullin, University of Tunis, Tunisia
253. Professor (emerita) Martha Mundy, London School of Economics, UK
254. Dr. M.J. Muskens, University of Nijmegen, the Netherlands
255. Professor Cynthia Myntti, American University of Beirut, Lebanon
256. Dr. Karma Nabulsi, University of Oxford, UK
257. Professor Premilla Nadasen, Queens College, City of New York, USA
258. Professor Eiji Nagasawa, Vice Director, Institute for Advanced Study on Asia, The University of Tokyo, Japan
259. Dr. Khalil Nakhleh, researcher and writer, Palestine
260. Dr. Dorothy Naor, Independent researcher, Israel
261. Professor Salem H. Nasser, Sí£o Paulo School of Law of Fundaí§í£o Getúlio Vargas), Brazil
262. Dr. Marcy Newman, Independent Scholar, India
263. Dr. Sonia Nimr, Birzeit University, Palestine
264. Professor Isis Nusair, Denison University, Ohio, USA
265. Dr Barra O”Donnabhain, University College Cork, Ireland
266. Dr. Féilim í“”Hadhmaill,  University College Cork, Ireland
267. Professor Mari Oka, Kyoto University, Japan
268. Professor Gary Y. Okihiro, Columbia University, New York, USA
269. Hussein Omar, PhD student, University of Oxford, UK
270. Imranali Panjwani, PhD student, Kings College, University of London, UK
271. Professor Ilan Pappe, Exeter University, England
272. Professor Paul Parker, Baltzer Distinguished Professor of Religion,  Elmhurst College, USA
273. Dr Nigel Parsons, School of People, Environment & Planning, Massey University, NZ
274. Dr. Professor Jaime Pastor, Universidad Nacional de Educacion a Distancia,  Spain
275. Professor Willie Van Peer, Ludwig Maximilian University, Munich, Germany
276. Dr. Ana Pego, Business and Economic Studies Department, Open University, Lisbon, Portugal
277. Professor Sylvain Perdigon, American University of Beirut, Lebanon
278. Professor Julie Peteet, University of Louisville, Kentucky, USA
279. Dr. Elizabeth Picard, Directeur de Recherche (emerita), National Centre for Scientific Research (CNRS), France
280. Professor Gabriel Piterberg, University of California, Los Angeles, USA
281. David Polden, independent researcher, Committee for Nuclear Disarmament, London, UK
282. Dr. Nicola Pratt, University of Warwick, UK
283. Dr. Nicolas Puig, Researcher, L’Institut de recherche pour le développement (IRD) France
284. Dr. Neshat Quaiser, Jamia Millia Islamia, Central University, New Delhi, India
285. Professor Mazin Qumsiyeh, Bethlehem and Birzeit Universities, Palestine
286. Dua”a Qurie, Executive Director, The Palestinian NGO Network, Ramallah, Palestine
287. Jorge Ramos Tolosa, researcher and professor, Universitat de Valí¨ncia, Spain
288.  Professor Marwan Rashed, Université de Paris-IV Sorbonne, Paris
289. Morteza Rasoulipour, Head of Oral History, Institute for Iranian Contemporary Historical Studies, Tehran, Iran
290. Professor Stuart Rees, University of Sydney, NSW, Australia
291. Dr. Sophie Richter-Devroe, Exeter University, UK
292. Professor (emerita) Rosalie Riegle,  Saginaw Valley State University, Michigan, USA
293. Professor Martina Rieker, American University of Cairo, Egypt
294. Dr. Rebecca Roberts, Independent scholar, UK
295. Professor Lisa Rofel, University of California, Santa Cruz, USA
296. Professor Ben Rogaly, University of Sussex, UK
297. Professor Vincent Romani, Université du Québec í  Montréal (UQAM), Canada
298. Professor (emerita) Hilary Rose, University of Bradford & Gresham College, London, UK
299. Professor (emeritus) Steven Rose, Open University & Gresham College, London, UK
300. Professor Jonathan Rosenhead, London School of Economics, University of London, UK
301. Dr. Alice Rothchild, MD, Assistant Professor, Harvard Medical School, USA
302. Dr. Bashir Saade, American University of Beirut, Lebanon
303. Professor Hanan Sabea, American University-Cairo, Egypt
304. Professor Fatima Sadiqi, Senior Professor of Linguistics and Gender Studies; Co-founder, International Institute for Languages and Cultures (INLAC), Fez, Morocco
305. Ann Sado, Independent lecturer, former Board member, Japan Oral History Association, Tokyo
306. Professor (emeritus) Sadao Sakai, Ryukoku University, Kyoto, Japan
307. Professor Masaki Sakiyama, Ritsumeikan University, Kyoto, Japan
308. Anaí¯s Salamon,  Bibliothécaire en chef, Bibliothí¨que d”études islamiques de l”Université McGill, Québec, Canada
309. Professor Ruba Salih, SOAS, University of London, UK
310. Professor Nisreen Salti, American University of Beirut, Lebanon
311. Dr. Adel Samara, author, editor Kanaan Review, Occupied Palestine
312. Mandy Sanger, Education Manager, District Six Museum, Cape Town, South Africa
313. Dr. Leena Saraste, Aalto University, Helsinki, Finland
314. Professor Cecilia Sardenberg, Universidade Federal da Bahia, Brazil
315. Professor Surajit Sarkar – Ambedkar University, Delhi. India
316. Dr. Rosemary Sayigh, Center for Arab and ME Studies,American University of Beirut, Lebanon
317. Professor (emeritus) Robert M. Schaible, University of Southern Maine, USA
318. Professor (emeritus) Pierre Schapira, University Pierre et Marie Curie, Paris, France
319. Dr. Leonardo Schiocchet, Guest Researcher, Institute for Social Anthropology at the Austrian Academy of Sciences,  Post-doctoral grantee CAPES, Brazil
320. Professor Sarah Schulman, ACT UP Oral History Project, New York, USA
321. Professor Richard Seaford, University of Exeter, UK
322. Professor (emerita) Evalyn F. Segal, PhD, San Diego State University, USA
323. Professor May Seikaly, Wayne State University, Detroit, USA
324. Professor Sherene Seikaly, American University in Cairo, Egypt
325. Professor Jihane Sfeir, Universite Libre de Bruxelles, Belgium
326. Dr. Anthony F. Shaker, Visiting Scholar McGill University, Montreal, Canada
327. Professor Anton Shammas, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, USA
328. Dorothy Sheridan, Honorary Professor of History (retired), University of Sussex , UK.
329. Dr. Magid Shihade, Birzeit University, Palestine
330. Professor Alan Louis Shihaden, American University of Beirut, Lebanon
331. Professor (emeritus) Kazuko Shiojiri, University of Tsukuba;  Tokyo International University; Director, Institute of International Exchange (IIET), Japan
332. Professor Andor Skotnes, Chair, Dept. of History and Society, The Sage Colleges, Troy, NY, USA
333. Professor Souad Slim, University of Balamand, Lebanon
334. Richard Saumarez Smith, Professor, American University of Beirut, Lebanon
335. Dr. Graham Smith, Oral History Department of History, Royal Holloway, University of London
336. Dr. Kobi Snitz, Weizmann Institute, Israel
337. Professor Dean Spade, Seattle University School of Law, Washington, USA
338. Dr. Jane Starfield, University of Johannesburg, South Africa
339. Professor Ted Steinberg, Case Western Reserve University, USA
340. Suzy Subways, SLAM! Herstory Project, New York, NY
341. Professor Akiko Sugase, National Museum of Ethnology, Japan
342. Dr. Ziad Suidan, Independent scholar, USA
343. Dr Mayssun Sukarieh , Fellow, Cogut Center for the Humanities, Brown University. USA.
344. Sady Sullivan, Independent Oral Historian Brooklyn, New York, USA
345. Dr. Hitoshi Suzuki, Area Study Center, Institute of Developing Economies, Japan
346. Professor Paul Tabar, Director, Institute for Migration Studies, Lebanese American Univ., Lebanon
347. Professor Neferti Tadiar, Barnard College, New York, USA
348. Rabah Tahraoui ,Professeur ,Université de Rouen, France
349. Professor Carlo Taibo, Autonomous University of Madrid, Spain
350. Professor Ghada Talhami, Lake Forest College, Illinois, USA
351. Professor Vera Tamari, Birzeit University, Palestine
352. Professor Lisa Taraki, Birzeit University, Palestine
353. Sibel Taylor, PhD candidate, Oxford Brookes University, Oxford, England
354. Professor Sunera Thobani, University of British Columbia, Canada
355. Professor Simona Tobia, University of Reading, UK
356. Professor (retired) Chizuko Tominaga,  Miyagi Gakuin Women”s University, Japan
357. Professor Barry Trachtenberg, University of Albany, New York, USA
358. Professor Judith Tucker, Georgetown University, USA
359. Professor Linda Tuhiwai Smith, Pro Vice Chancellor Māori, Dean of Te Pua Wānanga ki te Ao The School of Māori and Pacific Development, The University of Waikato, New Zealand
360. Professor Masaki Uno, Hiroshima City University, Japan
361. Professor Sharon Utakis, Bronx Community College, City University of New York, USA
362. Professor C. Utathya, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, USA
363. Professor Salim Vally, University of Johannesburg, South Africa
364. Dr. Toine Van Teeffelen, Arab Educational Institute, Bethlehem, Palestine
365. Professor Agustin Velloso, Universidad Nacional de Educacion a Distancia (UNED) Madrid, Spain
366. Professor Kamala Visweswaran, University of Texas, USA
367. Naomi Wallace, Independent scholar, award-winning playwright, UK/USA
368. Professor Devra Weber, University of California, Riverside, USA
369. Dr. Livia Celine Wick, American University of Beirut, Lebanon
370. Professor Mark R. Westmoreland, American University Cairo, Egypt
371. Professor Johnny Eric Williams, Trinity College, USA
372. Professor Ulrike Woehr, Hiroshima City University, Hiroshima, Japan
373. Dr. Patrick Wolfe, Trobe University, Australia
374. Adel Yahya, Director, Palestinian Association for Cultural Exchange (PACE), Ramallah,  Palestine
375. Yoshihiro Yakushige, PhD student, Kyoto University, Japan
376. Dr. Hala Yameni, Bethlehem University, Bethlehem, Palestine
377. Professor Nadia Yaqub, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, USA
378. Professor Masae Yuasa, Hiroshima City University, Hiroshima, Japan
379. Professor (emeritus)Takehi Yukawa, Keio University,  Japan
380. Omar Zahzah, PhD student, University of California, Los Angeles, USA
381. Professor (emeritus) Elia Zureik, Queen”s University, Canada

To add your name or organization please email: hebrewuconferenceboycott@gmail.com 

See below for organizational endorsements

Endorsed by the following Academic and Cultural Boycott Campaigns: Academics for Palestine (Ireland); AURDIP (France); BAB (Germany); BOYCOTT! (Israel); BRICUP (UK); InCACBI (India); PACBI (Palestine); PBAI (Spain); USACBI (USA) – and by the Alternative Information Centre (Israel); Groundwell: Oral Historians for Social Change, core working group; Independent Jewish Voices Canada; University of Toronto SJP (Canada); SJP of UCLA  – and by Ronnie Kasrils, former South African government minister, anti-apartheid activist and writer.

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THE NECESSARY AND IMPORTANT CONSIDERATION OF ACADEMIC FREEDOM

The UN Committee on Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights defines academic freedom to include:

the liberty of individuals to express freely opinions about the institution or system in which they work, to fulfill their functions without discrimination or fear of repression by the state or any other actor, to participate in professional or representative academic bodies, and to enjoy all the internationally recognized human rights applicable to other individuals in the same jurisdiction. The enjoyment of academic freedom carries with it obligations, such as the duty to respect the academic freedom of others, to ensure the fair discussion of contrary views, and to treat all without discrimination on any of the prohibited grounds. [10], emphasis added]

Keeping this definition in mind, we are keenly aware of the importance of the academic freedom of the individual, but also believe that such freedoms should not extend automatically to institutions. Judith Butler reminds us that: “our struggles for academic freedom must work in concert with the opposition to state violence, ideological surveillance, and the systematic devastation of everyday life.” [11]

It is incumbent on academics to develop such a nuanced understanding of academic freedom if we are to call for social justice and work alongside the oppressed in advancing their freedom, equality and self-determination.

The Israeli academy is not the bastion of dissent and liberalism it is purported to be by those who defend Israel and attempt to delegitimize the call for academic boycott.  The vast majority of the Israeli academic community is oblivious to the oppression of the Palestinian people–both inside Israel and in the occupied territory–and has never opposed the practices and policies of their state. In fact, they duly serve in the reserve forces of the occupation army and, accordingly are likely to be either perpetrators of or silent witnesses to the daily brutality of the occupation.  They also do not hesitate to partner in their academic research with the security-military establishment that is the chief architect and executor of the occupation.  A petition Drafted by four Israeli academics merely calling on the Israeli government “to allow [Palestinian] students and lecturers free access to all the campuses in the [occupied] Territories, and to allow lecturers and students who hold foreign passports to teach and study without being threatened with withdrawal of residence visas,” was endorsed by only 407 out of 9,000 Israeli academics – less than 5% of those who were invited to sign it. [12]

Notes:

[1] The decision was published in the official Israeli Gazette (the Hebrew edition), number 1425. It was therefore “legalized” by Israel. This land, for the most part, was (still is) privately owned by Palestinians living in that area. A large part of the confiscated land was then given to the Hebrew University to expand its campus (mainly its dormitories). The Palestinian landowners refused to leave their lands and homes arguing that the confiscation order of 1968 was illegal. When the case was taken to the Jerusalem District Court in 1972 (file no. 1531/72), the court ruled in favor of the University and the state, deciding that the Palestinian families must evacuate their homes and be offered alternative housing. See also http://news.nationalpost.com/2012/02/12/un-report-accuses-israel-of-pushing-palestinians-from-jerusalem-west-bank/

[1A] http://www.bdsmovement.net/files/2011/02/EOO23-24-Web.pdf; http://www.idf.il/1283-13885-en/Dover.aspx ; http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Talpiot_program

[2] Keller, U. (2009) the Academic Boycott of Israel and the Complicity of Israeli Academic Institutions in Occupation of Palestinian Territories. The Economy of the Occupation: A Socioeconomic Bulletin: Alternative Information Centre.

http://www.alternativenews.org/images/stories/downloads/Economy_of_the_occupation_23-24.pdf

[3] http://www.jpost.com/Local-Israel/In-Jerusalem/Hebrew-University-in-Arabic

[4] http://www.ynet.co.il/articles/0,7340,L-3827102,00.html

[5] http://www.jewishlinkbc.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=944:lapid-threatens-to-bring-down-the-govt-on-haredi-army-issue&catid=150:news&Itemid=562

[6] http://www.icj-cij.org/docket/index.php?pr=71&code=mwp&p1=3&p2=4&p3=6&ca

[7] http://pacbi.org/etemplate.php?id=869

[8] http://bdsmovement.net/?q=node/52

[9] http://www.pacbi.org/etemplate.php?id=2102

[10] UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, “The Right to Education (Art.13),” December 8, 1999

http://www.unhchr.ch/tbs/doc.nsf/(Symbol)/ae1a0b126d068e868025683c003c8b3b?Opendocument

[11] Judith Butler. “Israel/Palestine and the Paradoxes of Academic Freedom.” in: Radical Philosophy, Vol. 135. pp. 8-17, January/February 2006. http://www.egs.edu/faculty/judith-butler/articles/israel-palestine-paradoxes-of-academic-freedom/ (Accessed on December 10, 2011)

[12] http://pacbi.org/etemplate.php?id=792