Update

Palestinians welcome Near-Consensus Vote by Middle East Studies Association to Advance BDS Resolution to Membership

The 2800-member strong association voted to advance a motion to the full MESA membership supporting the Palestinian-led BDS movement and the institutional boycott of complicit Israeli universities following a thorough process of engagement over many years.

The Palestinian Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel (PACBI) warmly welcomes the unprecedented, near-consensus vote (93%) at the annual business meeting of the Middle East Studies Association (MESA) to advance a motion to the full MESA membership supporting the Palestinian-led BDS movement and the institutional boycott of complicit Israeli universities.

Voting in support of the MESA BDS resolution is a vote for effective solidarity in support of Palestinian rights, including the right to academic freedom. It follows a thorough process of engagement over many years within the 2,800-member strong association and reflects a strong principled commitment to action to defend academic freedom for all.

The MESA vote comes on the heels of precedent-setting solidarity following Israel’s escalation of violence against Palestinians last May, in which more than 350 academic departments, programs, centers, unions, and societies and nearly 24,000 scholars and students worldwide endorsed statements in support of Palestinian rights, with many endorsing BDS.

The MESA vote gives hope to Palestinian scholars and students who have seen Israel bomb their universities, deny their travel, arrest their colleagues, raid their campuses, and block shipments of lab equipment and textbooks.

We urge MESA members to vote yes when this resolution is put forward to the full membership in the Spring. Doing no harm, ending complicity in apartheid is a moral duty.


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