The anti-boycott, divestment and sanctions (BDS) group Academic Engagement Network (AEN) praised the University of Massachusetts (UMass) Amherst Chancellor Kumble Subbaswamy for his Oct. 21 statement condemning the BDS movement.
Subbaswamy’s statement was addressing a panel of pro-BDS speakers that will be held on UMass Amherst’s campus on Nov. 12, including former Women’s March, Inc. leader Linda Sarsour and Harvard University Professor Dr. Cornel West. UMass Communications Professor Sut Jhally is organizing the event.
“A panel discussion where only one perspective is shared does little to increase the understanding of such a complex topic like the Israeli-Palestinian conflict,” Subbaswamy said. “Because the BDS position, in general, fails to acknowledge the humanity on the Israeli side of the conflict and is considered by many as anti-Semitic, the upcoming event could very well alienate many of our Jewish students and other members of our campus community.”
AEN Advisory Board Chair Mark G. Yudof, Executive Director Miriam F. Elman and Deputy Executive Director Michael B. Atkins encouraged Subbaswamy to stand firm in the face of pressure to retract his statement.
“In light of this ongoing pushback to your strong statement and its message of tolerance and inclusivity, we wish to provide you with our organization’s full and unequivocal support,” they wrote. “We applaud you for reaffirming your commitment to academic freedom and reminding the campus community that UMass Amherst ‘remains firmly opposed to BDS and to academic boycotts of any kind.’ Academic boycotts are inimical to the fundamental principles and core values that define the academy, namely open and unfettered communication of ideas and the academic freedom to conduct intellectual exchange without fear of retaliation.”
Yudof, Elman and Atkins proceeded to praise Subbaswamy for stating that “BDS promotes prejudice and hate” toward “Jews, Zionists, and Israelis on your campus” and expressed their concern that BDS is “undermining the mission of the academy. In recent years, we have witnessed BDS-promoted efforts to exclude Jewish and Zionist students from participation in campus life, particularly in progressive coalitions and causes, as well as campus campaigns designed to discredit major Jewish organizations and initiatives (including Hillel, the Anti-Defamation League, and Birthright). Pro-BDS activists routinely use tactics of disruption and intimidation rather than engage in debate or dialogue with Israelis or with Jewish students who are pro-Israel.”
They later added: “In demonizing and delegitimizing Israel and any Jew who supports the right of the Jewish people to self-determination, BDS is widely regarded as denigrating the identity of Jews, the vast majority of whom self-define as Zionists. Recently released reports and analyses also reveal a disturbing link between BDS and anti-Semitic hate speech, by highlighting BDS activists trafficking in anti-Jewish conspiracies and tropes and canards about Jewish power and money. Nor is it the case that BDS promotes peace – indeed, it offers no peace proposals and recommends no constructive political actions or transformative projects.”
Yudof, Elman and Atkins urged Subbaswamy to bring more pro-Israel speakers to campus, hire more pro-Israel faculty members and implement a program to educate students and faculty on anti-Semitism.
According to the Daily Hampshire Gazette, Jhally had called for Subbaswamy to retract his statement; an unspecified number of UMass faculty members started an open letter to Subbaswamy on Oct. 25 that criticized his statement for providing “credence and legitimacy to the claims of those who have been fighting to silence criticism of Israeli violations of human rights, and to vilify those who publicly press these criticisms, including students, faculty, and staff on this campus.”
Yudof, Elman and Atkins described AEN in their letter as an “organization comprised of over 700 faculty members on more than 235 campuses across the United States” that fights anti-Semitism and “the delegitimization of Israel on campus.” Members of their advisory board include Holocaust scholar Deborah Lipstadt.
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