Academic boycott of Israel

The current campaign for an academic boycott of Israel was launched in April 2004 by the Palestinian Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel (PACBI) as part of the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) campaign. PACBI argues that Israeli academic institutions are complicit in perpetuating the Israeli occupation and therefore should be subject to boycott in order to advance BDS goals. Since then, proposals for academic boycotts of particular Israeli universities and academics have been made by academics and organizations in Palestine, the United States, the United Kingdom, and other countries. Supporters say the boycotts is intended to pressure Israel to change policies they describe are discriminatory towards the Palestinians.

The campaigns for academic boycott of Israel have led to fierce debate. Opponents argue that boycott advocates apply different standards to Israel than other countries, that the boycott is counterproductive, a collective punishment of Israeli academia, a tactic to threaten the existence of the State of Israel, and also that the campaign is antisemitic. Support for academic boycotts of Israel has been more prevalent among faculty in the humanities and social sciences than in the sciences. Despite this debate, academic boycott measures have been undertaken around the world, with some support among academic associations and unions, but with little institutional success.

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