NYU Denounces Student-Run Publication’s Endorsement of BDS

New York University (NYU) condemned the NYU Review of Law & Social Change’s (RLSC) endorsement of the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement in a November 23 statement.

On November 18, the RLSC, an NYU School of Law student-run quarterly publication, said in a statement that they are expressing their “firm commitment” to BDS. “RLSC will not purchase products made by or that utilize services rendered by Israeli and/or international companies implicated in the violation of Palestinian rights. These companies include, among others, Hewlett-Packard, Sodastream, Sabra, and Pillsbury.” They added that they would also boycott “events, activities, agreements, or projects involving Israeli academic institutions or that otherwise promote the normalization of Israel in the global academy, whitewash Israel’s violations of international law and Palestinian rights, or violate the BDS guidelines.”

The RLSC statement went on to accuse NYU of being complicit in “Israeli apartheid” and called on the university to divest from Israeli institutions and companies that conduct business with Israel and shut down it study abroad program in Tel Aviv. “RLSC is proud to support the BDS movement and to stand in solidarity with Palestinians resisting their oppression.”

The university rebuked the RLSC in its November 23 statement. “NYU and the NYU School of Law are troubled and disappointed by the student-led [RLSC’s] call for an academic boycott of Israeli universities and academics,” the statement read. “Academic boycotts, such as the one proclaimed by the RLSC, are antithetical to the precepts of academic freedom and the free exchange of ideas. For this reason, as a matter of policy, NYU rejects, as it has for many years, calls for academic boycotts of Israel, and the University likewise rejects calls to close its NYU Tel Aviv program, to which it remains fully committed.”

NYU Distinguished Alumnus Judea Pearl, who is also a Chancellor Professor of Computer Science at UCLA, National Academy of Sciences member and Daniel Pearl Foundation President, said in a statement to the Journal, “The academic standing of NYU now hinges on
how quickly the university can prevent a Zionophobic group of juvenile ‘editors’ from using the good name of NYU on their publication and promoting a morally repulsive ideology against the core values of other NYU students.”

Anti-Defamation League New York / New Jersey Regional Director Scott Richman tweeted, “While calls by an NYU journal to boycott Israel & divest NYU assets is disturbing, it allows for the NYU leadership to unequivocally state their opposition to BDS, finding it ‘antithetical to the precepts of academic freedom and the free exchange of ideas.’ Thank you NYU!”

While calls by an NYU journal to boycott Israel & divest NYU assets is disturbing, it allows for the NYU leadership to unequivocally state their opposition to BDS, finding it "antithetical to the precepts of academic freedom and the free exchange of ideas." Thank you NYU! https://t.co/FrHxsthT3U

— Scott Richman (@scottarichman) November 24, 2021

StandWithUs CEO and Co-Founder Roz Rothstein said in a statement, “It is disappointing that leaders of a student-run publication would use their positions to espouse hate and bias by endorsing the [BDS] movement against Israel. It is especially ironic considering they chose to publish their views in a journal ostensibly committed to promoting freedom and diversity of thought. Their endorsement of BDS marginalizes a sizable portion of NYU’s law school population, shuts down opposing viewpoints, and perpetuates antisemitic lies. We are grateful to the NYU leadership for categorically rejecting the BDS campaign.”

AMCHA Initiative Director Tammi Rossman-Benjamin lauded NYU’s “strong and unequivocal rejection” of BDS in a statement to the Journal. “Endorsing an academic boycott of Israel means the endorser will directly subvert the educational opportunities and academic freedom of students and faculty at their own American institutions,” she said. “While in this case the endorsers were a student-led law review publication, every time an academic boycott attempts to rear its ugly head, universities must immediately and unequivocally condemn them. NYU’s strong leadership should serve as a model for other universities, and NYU should also consider a review of existing policies to ensure faculty and graduate students are not able to misuse their classrooms for political advocacy, including the promotion of academic BDS.  No student should be impeded from studying about or in Israel or be subject to unfair discrimination or harassment because of the implementation of academic BDS.”

NYU alumnus Adela Cojab, whose 2019 complaint against the university’s handling of antisemitism resulted in a settlement the following year, said in a statement to the Journal, “It is disheartening to see this time and time again. It seems like nothing has changed since my time on campus––this is yet another effort to single out Israel while remaining silent on every other issue, including NYU Abu Dhabi and Shanghai, which unlike Tel Aviv are four-year, degree-granting schools as opposed to satellite campuses.” She added that it’s “somewhat comforting” that the university remains opposed to BDS and their statement against the RLSC is “a step in the right direction but there is much more that should be done.”

“According to NYU’s settlement agreement … NYU will take steps to prevent discrimination against the Jewish community,” Cojab said. “An academic boycott of NYU Tel Aviv stands starkly against the school’s commitment to ensure a safe learning environment where Jewish students can feel existing as their full selves on campus.”

The RLSC did not respond to the Journal’s request for comment.