Resources
Position Papers
For a concise statement outlining our position, see Lisa Rofel and Ilana Feldman on “Why Anthropologists Should Boycott Israeli Academic Institutions”
For information on the impact of boycott movements on Israeli policy, see “Is an Academic Boycott Effective? Ask Israeli Leaders”
Why have some anthropologists elected to support the boycott anonymously? Ajantha Subramanian and Lori Allen explain in “Debating the Academic Boycott of Israel in a Climate of Fear”
For information on implementing the boycott on your own, see our document “Boycotting Academic Institutions — Advice for Anthropologists”
For reflections on the boycott from the perspective of Archaeology, see Brian Boyd on “Archaeology and the Boycott”
For information on the relationship between the boycott and academic freedom, see Lori Allen's and Ajantha Subramanian's text, “The Threat to Academic Freedom: From Palestinian Exception to Global Norm”
For information on the unequal power dynamics that underwrite the discourse of dialogue, see Fida Adely and Amahl Bishara on “Dialogue as Diversion”
Palestinian Campaign for the Academic & Cultural Boycott of Israel, Guidelines for the International Academic Boycott of Israel (Revised July 2014)
Jewish Voice for Peace has endorsed our resolution to boycott Israeli academic institutions.
Rabbinical Council of Jewish Voice for Peace writes in support of the boycott
Read J. Kēhaulani Kauanui’s powerful essay on supporting both Palestinian and Native American struggles, and calling for a commitment “to eradicating occupation, apartheid, and settler colonization wherever those systems of oppression endure.”
Engaging the AAA on Boycott
Responding to the last boycott petition, and recognizing the deep concern of the membership, the AAA organized discussions on these questions and formed a Task Force on American Anthropological Association (AAA) Engagement on Israel/Palestine. After undertaking rigorous research, including 120 interviews, a trip to Israel/Palestine, significant background reading, in October 2015 the Task Force unanimously concluded that “there is a strong case for the Association to take action on this issue, and that the Association should do so.”
A summary of the Task Force report and a link to the full text can be found here
Our statement on the Task Force Report: “A Case for Action: The AAA Task Force Report on Engagement with Israel/Palestine”
For an analysis of the report, see Lori Allen & Ajantha Subramanian, “Engaged Anthropology: The AAA’s Task Force Report on Israel/Palestine”
Our submission to the AAA Task Force on Israel/Palestine: “The Relevance of Anthropology for the Boycott of Israeli Academic Institutions”
Check out this compilation of some of our writing for the last campaign: “Reflections on Anthropology, Politics, and the Grassroots Movement to Boycott Israeli Academic Institutions”
Check out this video of our webinar on the boycott vote from the previous campaign.
FAQs & Handouts
Check out the “FAQ” section of our site
For responses to the most common objections to the boycott, see the “But, what about...” section of our site
Also see our two-page handout on “Myths and Facts About the Boycott of Israeli Academic Institutions.”
Palestinian Voices
The academic boycott is in part an act of solidarity with our Palestinian colleagues whose human rights and academic freedom are routinely violated. Several Palestinian anthropologists have written about what the boycott means to them:
An anonymous Palestinian graduate student perspective on the boycott
Rami Salameh, “Support for BDS is a Message of Hope”
Rhoda Kanaaneh, “Nakba Walks”
Dina Omar, “We Are All Uncomfortable: On Academic Boycott & What is Productive”
Nadia Abu El-Haj, “We're Part of a Spreading Movement”
Nadia Abu El-Haj, “Disciplinary Peace Above All Else?”
Magid Shihade, “The Boycott Opens the Space for True Academic Freedom”
Magid Shihade, “Memory and Forgetfulness in a Settler Colony”
Thea Abu El-Haj and Fida Adely, “Violating the Right to Education for Palestinians”
Read statements from our Palestinian colleagues written in the context of the last boycott campaign here.
Israeli Voices
There is a contingent of Israeli academics, including anthropologists, who have come out in support of the academic boycott. We include some of these voices below:
A statement from Israeli scholars endorsing the current boycott resolution
A letter from 22 Israeli anthropologists supporting the boycott in 2015
An essay by an Israeli graduate student who chose to remain anonymous: “It’s not the end of the world, it’s a necessary challenge to our cosmology”
Israeli political sociologist Hilla Dayan’s statement in support of the boycott
A statement by the Israeli philosopher Anat Matar in support of the current resolution.
Middle East Specialists on the Boycott
Here is the boycott resolution adopted by the Middle East Studies Association
The British Society for Middle East Studies (BRISMES), has passed a boycott resolution
The membership of the Middle East Section of the AAA has voted in favor of the boycott.
Audio & Video
Watch this webinar with Palestinian scholars discussing the importance of the boycott.
Listen to "Anthropologists Must Answer the Call from Palestinian Civil Society: a Conversation with Nadia Abu El-Haj and Sami Hermez," an episode of Speaking Out of Place Podcast
“Why We Need an Academic Boycott: The Struggle for Education at Birzeit University,” a short video featuring interviews with Palestinian scholars and students
Check out this video of our webinar on the boycott vote from the previous campaign
Video of our panel on “Ethical Academic Advocacy for Palestinian Rights and the Boycott of Israeli Academic Institutions” from AAA 2015 in Denver
Audio and a partial transcript is available for one of our 2014 panels, “What is the Role of Academia in Political Change?: The Case of BDS and Israeli Violations of International Law.”