13.11.24
Editorial Note
The European Association of Social Anthropologists (EASA) has recently announced a vote on a motion concerning “collaborations with Israeli academic institutions in light of the ongoing systematic human rights violations in Palestine, Israeli war crimes, crimes against humanity and plausible genocide committed in the Gaza strip.” The ballot will take place during its next annual general meeting in July 2025.
EASA argues that “international intergovernmental organizations and non-governmental organizations, have documented and verified Israel’s systematic annexation and colonization of Palestinian lands, massive violations of Palestinians’ human rights, a 17-year blockade of the Gaza strip, segregationist and discriminating policies, the ongoing massacres of civilians in Gaza as well as continuing violations of International Law with the International Court of Justice considering plausible a genocide, and the International Criminal Court Prosecutor acknowledging Israel’s responsibility in war crimes and crimes against humanity.”
EASA accuses Israel of “systematic violations, which include the destruction of all Gazan universities and the intentional obliteration of schools, teachers and students, characterized as ‘scholasticide’ by international law experts” and that “these systematic violations also include restricting freedom of movement for Palestinians; isolating, undermining, or otherwise attacking Palestinian educational institutions; harassing Palestinian professors, teachers, and students; harassing Israeli professors and students criticizing Israeli policies; destroying, confiscating, or otherwise rendering Palestinian archival material inaccessible; and maintaining inequality in educational resources between Palestinians and Israelis; considering that Israeli universities are imbricated in these systematic violations through their provision of direct assistance to the Israeli military and intelligence establishments, that they (Technion, Hebrew University, Ben Gurion University, Tel Aviv University) hold joint programs with arms industries and that they actively contribute to the state’s military propaganda (a practice commonly known as hasbara).”
EASA also claims that “European governments have systematically shielded successive Israeli governments from being held accountable for such violations and facilitated them through unprecedented diplomatic, military, and economic support.”
EASA ended the motion by stating it “recognizes the right of scholars to academic freedom and is committed to the defense and promotion of human rights, and that the need for immediate action using peaceful means has never been greater.”
The motion asks to resolve that EASA “Does not collaborate with Israeli academic institutions until Israel complies with International Law and International Humanitarian Law and ends the occupation of the Occupied Palestinian Territory.” That EASA “Directs the EASA Executive Committee to work in consultation with the Working Group on Human Rights and Academic Freedom to give effect to the spirit and intent of this motion, in a manner consistent with EASA’s bylaws as well as the relevant national laws of its members.” And that EASA “Encourages EASA members not to enter into institutional arrangements, e.g. through common research projects and grants, with Israeli academic institutions.”
Signed by the EASA members who submitted the motion to the EASA’s General Assembly: Miriyam Aouragh, Roberto Beneduce, Yazid Ben Hounet, Marianna Betti, Véronique Bontemps, Heath Cabot, Ian Cook, Jane Cowan, Antonio De Lauri, Malay Firoz, Martin Fotta, Mattia Fumanti, Don Kalb, Nichola Khan, Shahram Khosravi, Heidi Mogstad, Alessandro Monsutti, Annelies Moors, Fiona Murphy, Yael Navaro, Carmeliza Rosario, Simona Taliani, Anna-Esther Younes.
The organization is a long-time agitator against Israel. To recall, in October 2018, EASA passed a motion on “Israeli academic institutions in the Occupied Palestinian Territories,” when EASA voted online in “overwhelming numbers to express their solidarity with colleagues in occupied Palestinian territories… The motion called for EASA to express its own opposition to the establishment of academic institutions exclusively serving Israeli citizens, situated within occupied Palestinian territories of the West Bank and to pledge its own non-cooperation with these institutions; and to express its solidarity with Palestinian academics and students suffering the brunt of these discriminatory policies as well as with the Israeli colleagues of the Israeli Sociological Association and Israeli Anthropological association who oppose the same policies.”
To recall, IAM reported that Dr. Matan Kaminer was behind the EASA motion in 2018 and that Dr. Nir Avieli the President of the Israeli Anthropological Association, thanked EASA for boycotting academic institutions such as Ariel University. Both he and Kaminer were not sanctioned, although it was illegal to support a boycott after the Knesset passed the Boycott Law in 2011.
However, on the “About Us” page, EASA states it is registered as a charity in the UK. It says, “EASA is a self-governing democratic body. It is both registered with Companies House and with the Charity Commission. As such it is bound by its constitution, relevant laws and EASA adheres to guidance on proper governance.”
IAM checked the charity governance code: “The board acts with Integrity. It adopts values, applies ethical principles to decisions and creates a welcoming and supportive culture which helps achieve the charity’s purposes. The board is aware of the significance of the public’s confidence and trust in charities. It reflects the charity’s ethics and values in everything it does. Trustees undertake their duties with this in mind… Delivering the charity’s purposes for public benefit should be at the heart of everything the board does…Everyone who comes into contact with a charity should be treated with dignity and respect and feel that they are in a safe and supportive environment. Charity leaders should show the highest levels of personal integrity and conduct. To achieve this, trustees should create a culture that supports the charity’s values, adopt behaviors and policies in line with the values and set aside any personal interests or loyalties. The board should understand and address any inappropriate power dynamics to avoid damaging the charity’s reputation, public support for its work and delivery of its aims… The board acts in the best interests of the charity’s purposes and its beneficiaries, creating a safe, respectful and welcoming environment for those who come into contact with it. The board makes objective decisions about delivering the charity’s purposes. It is not unduly influenced by those who may have special or personal interests… Collectively, the board is independent in its decision making. No one person or group has undue power or influence in the charity.”
Clearly, the proposed EASA motion violates the charity governance code.
It should come as no surprise that the pro-Palestinian camp doubles its efforts to boycott Israel by all means. As IAM noted before, the pro-Palestinian camp hijacks professional associations, in this case through EASAmembers4Palestine, and turns them into a tool for bashing Israel.
REFERENCES:
2. Motion concerning collaborations with Israeli academic institutions
The Motion has been added to the AGM agenda and will be discussed in Barcelona.
The EASA executive committee has received a Motion concerning collaborations with Israeli academic institutions in light of the ongoing systematic human rights violations in Palestine, Israeli war crimes, crimes against humanity and plausible genocide committed in the Gaza strip. The Motion has been added to the AGM agenda and will be discussed in Barcelona. The Motion submitted to EASA can also be found on a EASAmembers4Palestine with more detailed information, FAQs, and endorsements from various EASA members. In particular the FAQ section is useful in preparing the debate on this Motion at the next AGM.
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https://easamembers4palestine.wordpress.com/
Motion
Motion concerning collaborations with Israeli academic institutions in light of the ongoing systematic human rights violations in Palestine, Israeli war crimes, crimes against humanity and plausible genocide committed in the Gaza strip.
Considering that the European Association of Social Anthropology (EASA) has on numerous occasions manifested its commitment to academic freedom and human rights;
considering that in 2018 the Assembly voted a motion expressing its opposition to the establishment and regularization of Israeli academic institutions in the Occupied Palestinian Territories and supported calls to end collaborations with such institutions;
considering that international intergovernmental organizations and non-governmental organizations, have documented and verified Israel’s systematic annexation and colonization of Palestinian lands, massive violations of Palestinians’ human rights, a 17-year blockade of the Gaza strip, segregationist and discriminating policies, the ongoing massacres of civilians in Gaza as well as continuing violations of International Law with the International Court of Justice considering plausible a genocide, and the International Criminal Court Prosecutor acknowledging Israel’s responsibility in war crimes and crimes against humanity;
considering the systematic violations, which include the destruction of all Gazan universities and the intentional obliteration of schools, teachers and students, characterized as ‘scholasticide’ by international law experts;
considering that these systematic violations also include restricting freedom of movement for Palestinians; isolating, undermining, or otherwise attacking Palestinian educational institutions; harassing Palestinian professors, teachers, and students; harassing Israeli professors and students criticizing Israeli policies; destroying, confiscating, or otherwise rendering Palestinian archival material inaccessible; and maintaining inequality in educational resources between Palestinians and Israelis;
considering that Israeli universities are imbricated in these systematic violations through their provision of direct assistance to the Israeli military and intelligence establishments, that they (Technion, Hebrew University, Ben Gurion University, Tel Aviv University) hold joint programs with arms industries and that they actively contribute to the state’s military propaganda (a practice commonly known as hasbara);
considering that European governments have systematically shielded successive Israeli governments from being held accountable for such violations and facilitated them through unprecedented diplomatic, military, and economic support;
considering that EASA recognizes the right of scholars to academic freedom and is committed to the defense and promotion of human rights, and that the need for immediate action using peaceful means has never been greater; be it
Resolved, that the EASA:
- Does not collaborate with Israeli academic institutions until Israel complies with International Law and International Humanitarian Law and ends the occupation of the Occupied Palestinian Territory.
- Directs the EASA Executive Committee to work in consultation with the Working Group on Human Rights and Academic Freedom to give effect to the spirit and intent of this motion, in a manner consistent with EASA’s bylaws as well as the relevant national laws of its members.
- Encourages EASA members not to enter into institutional arrangements, e.g. through common research projects and grants, with Israeli academic institutions.
Submitted to EASA’s General Assembly by:
Miriyam Aouragh, Roberto Beneduce, Yazid Ben Hounet, Marianna Betti, Véronique Bontemps, Heath Cabot, Ian Cook, Jane Cowan, Antonio De Lauri, Malay Firoz, Martin Fotta, Mattia Fumanti, Don Kalb, Nichola Khan, Shahram Khosravi, Heidi Mogstad, Alessandro Monsutti, Annelies Moors, Fiona Murphy, Yael Navaro, Carmeliza Rosario, Simona Taliani, Anna-Esther Younes.
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1. President’s Letter
President Ana Ivasiuc addresses the membership
Our mid-summer newsletter reaches you right before our most anticipated event: the EASA2024 conference. Many of you have already started tweeting and posting on upcoming events (remember to use the hashtag #EASA2024 on X!) and it is heartening to see so much enthusiasm building up to the conference.
Although understandably the highlight of this month is the EASA conference, I want to draw your attention to four topics of interest further detailed in this newsletter.
The first is the Motion that was submitted to EASA for debate at the next AGM on the topic of collaboration with Israeli academic institutions. The Motion builds on past debates and decisions taken by the EASA membership to curtail collaboration with Israeli academic institutions situated in the Occupied Palestinian Territories (Motion debated in 2018 in Stockholm) and recommends, in light of the current genocidal violence that the Israeli state is inflicting on Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank, that our association takes appropriate measures to exert non-violent pressure on Israeli academic institutions to end the violation of human rights and the violence against Palestinians. We take this subject seriously and I urge all our members to consult EASAmembers4Palestineset up by the signatories of the motion, and to prepare for our debate during the AGM by going carefully through the FAQ section of the website.
The second news of interest is the constitution of the Working Group on Human Rights and Academic Freedom, which started its activity on the 1st of June. The group (on whom you can read more below), composed of Julie Billaud, Chandana Mathur, Ruba Salih, Helena Zohdi, and our executive committee liaison, Hayal Akarsu, is already active and its first task, decided during the group’s first meeting, is to monitor the debate within EASA on the Motion concerning EASA’s ties with Israeli academic institutions.
Another important initiative of the current executive committee is the setup of a mentorship program. Recognising the need for mentoring in the early stages of the academic career and taking stock of similar initiatives elsewhere, we are launching a call for mentees that will receive guidance and mentoring from a group of dedicated EASA members with a wide array of skills and expertise. My immense gratitude goes to those of you who have accepted to be mentors and are generously offering your time to pilot this initiative for the next academic year, and to my wonderful colleagues, Hege Høyer Leivestad and Hayal Akarsu for setting up the program.
Finally, many of you suggested over the last few years that a renewal of our website is long overdue. I am happy to let you know that we have started working on the complete overhaul of EASA’s website. After the first meetings with Juhani Juurik, a graphic designer trained as an anthropologist, and with our NomadIT colleagues, I can attest to how complex and time-consuming this task is. Nevertheless, we are aiming at delivering a new website – or at least a first version of it – by the beginning of December. To help us centre the needs of our membership regarding our website, we need your support with the member survey further described below.
And now very briefly again on the upcoming conference. The timetable, so carefully curated by the Local and the Scientific Committees, is brimming with incredible panels, round tables, and events that touch upon crucial issues of our time. We will debate, among other things, the kinds of public anthropology that EASA should embrace (the round table “EASA Voices in a Troubled World”, Tuesday 11.00-12.30, Room 304), the state of academic freedom and censorship around Palestine (the round table “Academic Freedom, Censorship and Palestine: Anthropology in Crisis Again”, Thursday 18.30-20.00, Museu Marítim de Barcelona), anthropological engagements with the confluence between the far-right and capitalism, the impact of precarity on anthropologists, and many more topics that demonstrate more than ever anthropology’s relevance in our worlds and times.
Our conference begins on Thursday, 18 July, with a rich online offering starting early in the morning and featuring no less than 140 panels, labs, round tables and events in a single day. A highlight on the schedule is The Mantas Kvedaravičius Film Award 2024, which we are honoured to continue from its first edition in 2022. The winning film will be screened to EASA members on the online day of the conference and followed by the award ceremony and a Q&A with the directors.
One of the things that makes me incredibly proud of our association and grateful to the Barcelona Local Committee for its work is the organisation, within EASA 2024, of events in Spanish and in Catalan. This reminds us that EASA was conceived as a multilingual association, and that amidst calls for decolonising anthropology, we should return to the polyphony afforded by our different languages. On this note, I am looking forward to wishing you Benvinguts i Benvingudes a Barcelona for #EASA2024.
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Frequently Asked Questions
FAQs on the Motion to End Collaborations with Israeli Academic Institutions
Who is behind the motion?
A group of EASA members proposed the motion in response to Israel’s ongoing human rights violations in Palestine, including crimes against humanity and plausible genocide committed in Gaza. We can be reached at this email address: easamembers4palestine@gmail.com
You can follow us on X: @EASA4Palestine
What is the motion’s purpose?
The motion specifically targets Israeli academic institutions rather than individual scholars. It holds these institutions accountable for their complicity or involvement in Israel’s systematic violations of human rights and international law. Suspending collaborations with Israeli academic institutions is a non-violent means to pressure Israel into complying with international law and ending its unlawful assaults and occupation whilst showing solidarity with the Palestinian people, including fellow scholars and students.
Why should members of EASA support the motion?
As scholars and members of the European Association of Social Anthropologists (EASA), we are at a critical juncture that demands immediate action and a principled stance. This motion responds to several urgent issues, from academic complicity in human rights violations to the systematic destruction of Palestinian education. Below, we lay out the core reasons why members should support this motion and debunk some common myths.
Addressing academic complicity
As members of a professional association, we have a particular responsibility to address academic complicity. Israeli universities are complicit in Israel’s violations of international law and human rights in Palestine through their provision of direct assistance to the Israeli military and intelligence establishments. Israeli universities have been involved in developing military technologies and strategies used in the occupation of Palestinian territories, conducting archaeological digs that displace Palestinian communities, and engaging in research that supports state policies of segregation and discrimination. Several research centres and universities hold joint programs with arms industries and actively contribute to the state’s military propaganda. Others are built on top of depopulated Palestinian villages or partially based in illegal settlements. The ideological and material contributions of these institutions, across numerous academic disciplines, have long been part of the expansion of the Zionist settler-colonial project and the expulsion of Palestinians from their land.
This motion urges Israeli academic and research institutions to consider their roles and responsibilities and make efforts to align their actions with universal principles of justice and human dignity. It also demonstrates the commitment of anthropologists associated with EASA to hold academic institutions ethically accountable.
Addressing ‘scholasticide’
Israel’s violations include the destruction of all Gazan universities as well as the targeted assaults on schools, teachers and students. This has been characterised as ‘scholasticide’: the deliberate and systematic destruction of education and the annihilation of cultural heritage sites. As professionals who decry programme closures, constraints on academic freedom and funding cuts in other contexts, we have a responsibility to respond to this willful destruction of Palestinian education and knowledge systems.
Solidarity with Palestinian Colleagues
Palestinian scholars and civil society have long been advocating for a halt in collaboration with Israeli academic institutions as a means to pressure Israel to stop violating Palestinian rights. This motion supports this effort and signals a commitment to solidarity with our Palestinian colleagues.
Historical Responsibility
Anthropology as a discipline has an obligation to address racism, colonialism and oppression in all their forms. Supporting the motion aligns with the field’s commitment to decolonization, anti-colonialism, anti-racism, human rights, conflict resolution, anti-militarism and peace-making.
Commitment to Human Rights
EASA has a strong tradition of advocating human rights. This motion aligns with this long-held tradition and is aimed at Israeli academic institutions to enact internal reforms that ensure adherence to international human rights standards and principles.
Research Ethics
Israeli academic research has been used to justify land seizures, the expulsion of Palestinians and violation of international law and research ethics. For example, the discourse and excavation practices of archaeology departments contribute to the erasure of Muslim/Arabic history. Law and criminology scholars have recast definitions of war crimes and labels such as ‘human shields’ to incite and justify destructive force on civilian infrastructures. This unethical misuse of research violates the basic ethical principle of ensuring that our research ‘does no harm’ and warrants ethical refusal and resistance from the anthropological community. The motion sends a clear message that EASA does not condone such unethical research misuse.
European Complicity
The European Union and several European countries provide substantial support to Israel–diplomatically, militarily, and economically. Israeli universities are engaged in many partnerships with European universities and research institutions, even though many have recently moved to suspend their collaboration with Israeli institutions (for example here, here, here, here and here). Israel continues to receive substantial European research funding, such as through Horizon 2020. Many of these research projects involve the Israeli arms industry. EASA’s stance can help raise awareness about this and foster public discussion about European policies and funding schemes.
Repression in European Academia
Over the past year, the repression and silencing of Palestinian rights activism has intensified across European cities and universities. European academia is currently characterized by a “spiral of silence” where scholars, particularly those in precarious positions, fear speaking out about Palestine due to potential repercussions. In different European contexts, executive boards of universities have sent in riot police in response to the poems, chants and speeches of their peaceful students and staff members. Silence and active repression stifle academic debate and hinder the pursuit of justice for everyone. This motion signifies a refusal to stay silent and may empower individual EASA members to speak out as part of a larger collective.
Urgency
The rapid destruction of life and habitable spaces in Gaza demands immediate action. Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territories, including East Jerusalem, and its differential treatment of Palestinians with Israeli citizenship have long been happening with impunity, despite recognized as crimes of apartheid. In response to the current scale of devastation and racialized dehumanisation, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) deemed genocide by Israel ‘plausible’.
As scholars and members of EASA, we are morally and politically obligated to speak out against the systematic eradication of an entire population, to support our colleagues and students, and to uphold the principles of academic freedom and human rights. Peaceful forms of protest, such as suspending further collaborations with implicated universities and research centres, are crucial to addressing our complicity, breaking silences, and advocating for meaningful, sustainable change.
Correcting Common Misconceptions
It is important to address and counter common myths about petitions to suspend collaborations with Israeli institutions to ensure that the debate is informed by accurate information and ethical considerations. Misconceptions can undermine legitimate political actions and distract from the real issues at hand, such as institutional complicity in human rights violations. By debunking these myths, we uphold the principles of academic freedom, human rights, and justice, ensuring that our actions are grounded in truth and moral responsibility.
Tale #1: Refusing to collaborate with Israeli academic institutions is antisemitic
- In actuality: The suspension of collaboration with Israeli academic institutions is a form of principled non-violent protest aimed at the state of Israel and the universities and research institutions complicit in its policies. This action targets their decisions and actions, not Jewish people, distinguishing it from antisemitism. Collaboration in academia involves partnerships underpinned by shared ethical standards and mutual respect for human rights. When institutions are found to be complicit—meaning that they actively support or are directly involved in actions that violate international law and human rights—suspending collaboration is a legitimate form of non-violent protest. Equating such acts of protest and criticism with antisemitism undermines academic freedom and distracts from the real issue of institutional complicity in oppression.
Tale #2: The motion undermines academic freedom.
- In actuality: Academic freedom includes the right to engage in political activities and express views, including support for motions like this. The motion targets institutions, not individual scholars. Israeli scholars can continue attending conferences, publishing work, and collaborating with peers. The motion’s aim is to influence the policies of Israeli institutions complicit in human rights violations without restricting the academic freedom of individual scholars. Furthermore, Israeli policies violate the academic freedom of Palestinians by restricting access to education and international academic collaboration and through the destruction of Palestinian universities. Academic freedom for critical Israeli scholars is equally restrained. Research on sensitive themes such as the Nakba of 1948 is structurally undermined, whereas projects that further Israel’s military campaign and/or settlement practices are actively supported. This motion is a motion for academic freedom for all.
Tale #3: The motion prevents Israeli and European academics from working together.
- In actuality: The motion targets institutions, not individual scholars. It does not prevent Israeli and European scholars from collaborating together. In fact, several Israeli organizations, such as Boycott from within and Academia for Equality, are also urging to address institutional complicity for similar reasons.
Tale #4: Motions like this are purely symbolic and ineffective.
- In actuality: Discontinuing academic partnerships or suspending institutional agreements and research projects help to expose institutional complicity in mass violence and raise international awareness of Palestinian struggles, thereby building pressure for change. Israel’s extensive efforts to counter such initiatives indicate their potential material and symbolic effectiveness. As a major European professional association of anthropologists, EASA can leverage its influence to advocate with others for Israel to end its abuses against Palestinians.
Tale #5: Academic pressure stifles debate and isolates Israeli anthropologists.
- In actuality: Academic freedom is a complex issue in Israeli institutions.Academics and students who critique state policies and speak out against the Israeli system of oppression are often forced into exile or subject to silencing, censorship, detention and persecution. Moreover, not a single university in Israel has spoken up against the grave human rights abuses in Gaza or has called for a cease-fire, since Israel’s incursion into Gaza. The motion advocates for dismantling these punitive restrictions and encouraging free and open discussion for all scholars.
Tale #6: Dialogue is a better way to support Palestinian rights
- In actuality: Dialogue without substantive change entrenches the status quo. Moreover, academic pressure can have a material and immediate impact on complicit Israeli institutions, as evidenced in the historical case of South Africa.
Tale #7: The end of all institutional collaboration unfairly singles out Israel.
- In actuality: EASA has taken positions on various human rights issues worldwide. Publishing open letters or voting on resolutions on political issues has long been a practice of the EASA. This is in line with calls for public engagement of anthropologists on a wide range of issues such as threats to academic freedom or departmental closures. The motion is part of the discipline’s broader commitment to advocating against human rights violations.
Tale #8: Supporting the motion will divide and harm EASA.
- In actuality: It is important for EASA to maintain its commitment to human rights and ethical academic practices. The motion will be debated within EASA, reflecting a democratic process that underscores the urgency of action. We believe that for most members of EASA, healthy debate and disagreements are normal and desirable. As exemplified by other scholarly associations that have adopted similar resolutions, such discussions will not be harmful for a professional association that encourages and embraces diversity of opinion.
Further, this motion is not unprecedented. In 2018, the Assembly voted on a motion expressing its opposition to the establishment and regularization of Israeli academic institutions in the Occupied Palestinian Territories and supported calls to end collaborations with such institutions. Four years prior, in 2014, another motion to end the culture of silence and condemn the ongoing war and blockade against the inhabitants of Gaza was proposed but not approved.
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Endorsements
If you would like to write an endorsement for us, send an email to: easamembers4palestine@gmail.com
“I come from a formerly colonized country whose independence was undermined by South Africa’s apartheid regime backing a murderous destabilizing war. The Palestinian plight, for me, is not just about humanism; it is a deeply felt pain born out of continuously reliving a trauma.”
Carmeliza Rosario, Postdoctoral Researcher, Chr Michelsen Institute
“As a scholar based in Switzerland, I have been profoundly disturbed by how contrasted were the statements by swissuniversities, the umbrella organisation of the national universities, on Ukraine and Gaza. In the first case, swissuniversities “call on European governments to take immediate action to protect the lives and careers of Ukrainian university staff, students, researchers, and civil society actors.” The statement proceeds noting that “the warlike developments will have serious consequences for Ukrainian universities. Swiss universities will do everything in their power to host teachers, researchers and students from Ukrainian universities.” In the second case, the tone is quite different: “In view of the evolution of the situation within certain Swiss higher education institutions, we would like to position ourselves … First, the attempt to exploit an institution for political purposes does not offer the basic conditions for constructive dialogue. Second, maintaining academic dialogue is essential. Higher education institutions cannot accept to exclude people or institutions who are part of the academic community. Third, universities are not political actors. Higher education institutions are mandated to fulfil academic missions of research and teaching.”
How is it possible that the umbrella organisation of academic institutions in Switzerland, a country that enshrines neutrality as the core principle of its foreign policy, adopts so unapologetically such a double standard? How can we make sense that the legitimate concern for Ukrainian teachers, researchers and students was not extended to Gazan teachers, researchers and students? Decades of public and academic debates on the legacy of colonialism seem suddenly wiped out. I could not help but recall the colonial matrix of power, originally formulated by Anibal Quijano and brought forward by Walter Mignolo to describe the darker side of Western modernity.”
Alessandro Monsutti, Professor, Department of Anthropology and Sociology, Geneva Graduate Institute
“What is our responsibility as anthropologists in the face of the risk of genocide, according to some, or proven genocide, according to serious reports (here and here), of the Palestinian people? What is our role in the face of scholasticide in Gaza? How can we continue to teach about colonialism, apartheid, human rights, democracy and the anthropologist’s position on these issues if we remain mute and inactive in the face of the annihilation of Palestine and its indigenous people? It’s up to European social anthropologists to show the way and take concrete action to alert our European governments, which are, for most of them, inactive and even complicit in the ongoing genocide. That’s what it means to be on the right side of history! I know this as a citizen and I know this as an anthropologist working on Algeria. To quote Frantz Fanon in a letter written to his friend Roger Taïeb short before his death (1961): “We are nothing on this earth if we are not first and foremost slaves to a cause: the cause of the peoples, the cause of justice and freedom” “.
Yazid Ben Hounet, Researcher at CNRS (Laboratoire d’Anthropologie Sociale, EHESS)
“Cutting ties with Israeli universities is a blunt instrument to some anthropologists. It inevitably conjures up images of erasures, severs, and the impossibility of carrying on dialogues and collaborations, some of which may allow for redressing past and present injustices and inequities. Some consider severing ties and collaborations as a futile or even counterproductive action driven by ideology; for others, this will go against what many see as the central tenet of our discipline, anthropology’s emphasis on complexity and nuance.
While I am all in favor of anthropology’s emphasis on finely engrained ethnographies, nuanced scholarship, and complex multivocal narratives, the events of the past eight months make it particularly compelling for anthropologists to heed the Palestinian civil society call for cutting ties with Israeli universities to pressure Israel into ending its occupation and apartheid policies and its current military campaign in Gaza, which the ICJ ruling considers at plausible risk of genocide against the Palestinian people.
Many reports and publications by civil society organizations, journalists, and scholars have stressed how Israeli universities are major, willing, and persistent accomplices in Israel’s regime of occupation, settler-colonialism, and apartheid. Both Nick Riemer’s Boycott Theory and the Struggle for Palestine: Universities, Intellectualism and Liberation and Maya Wind’s Towers of Ivory and Steel: How Israeli Universities Deny Palestinian Freedom illuminate how Israeli universities are central to Israel’s colonial project. Israeli universities, Riemer and Wind argue, are involved in developing weapon systems; they advise and support Israeli ethno-nationalist policies, justifying the ongoing colonization of Palestinian land; provide moral justification for extra-judicial killings and other human rights violations; and systematically discriminate against Palestinian students and staff. Moreover, as both Riemer and Wind show, Israeli universities support Israeli policies that undermine Palestinian education by intentionally crippling or dismantling all forms of Palestinian education. Indeed, since October, Israel’s targeted destruction of education in Gaza has intensified to new levels. With over 80% of schools destroyed, the damage and destruction of all universities in Gaza, and the killing of university lecturers, schoolteachers, and students, UN experts, scholars, and journalists have now called this unprecedented destruction of all aspects of education a ‘scholasticide‘ and ‘educide‘.
As a scholar of Namibia and Southern Africa, I am particularly sensitive to the themes of settler colonialism, oppression, and apartheid. The long history of the anti-colonial struggle and the contribution of transnational solidarity networks to it moves me deeply. In building on alliances between civil society and religious organizations, students, workers’ movements, and academics, these transnational networks supported and amplified the voices of colonial subjects fighting for their liberation. Organizations, like the Anti-Apartheid movement in Britain, were at the center of the international movement opposing the South African apartheid system. It is this rich history of solidarities across borders, to which many anthropologists contributed, that today has inspired many academic associations, student governments, and unions, as well as thousands of international academics across the world, to support cutting ties with Israeli universities and refuse to normalize oppression.
The proposal to cut ties with Israel’s academic institutions is not simply a moral position but the response to an organized movement within Palestine and the Palestinian diaspora that sees it as one of the many strategies to end Israel’s regime of military occupation, settler-colonialism, forced displacement, dispossession, and apartheid. Palestinians themselves are directly asking the world for solidarity; as anthropologists, we should respond to this call and support the Palestinian people in their struggle.”
Mattia Fumanti, Senior Lecturer, The University of St Andrews
“The call for a full academic boycott of Israeli institutions was first made by PACBI in 2004. At the time, the need for international solidarity with the Palestinian people, those living under the scourge of a brutal colonial occupation, struggling against an internationally inoculated and western armed Israeli state, was deeply pressing. The academic boycott call asks us, the global scholastic community, to boycott Israel and its institutions that make up the apparatus of control that allows for Israel’s occupation to remain unchecked. It does so because it recognises the critical role that the Israeli academy plays in terms of providing the intellectual apparatus, and key research strategies that are required to continue the illegal occupation of Palestine, including; research into hydrology, arms and ammunitions, and architectures of oppression, to name but a few.
Since the beginning of the genocide against the Palestinian population, with the focus being on Gaza, Israel has undertaken a systematic campaign to destroy the entire Palestinian education system. Thousands of students, school teachers and university professors have been martyred, and every university in Gaza has been partially or wholly destroyed. The Gaza Municipal Archive and hundreds of libraries, bookstores, and publishing houses are no more, in the blatant act of attempted settler colonial erasure.
It is often argued that those who choose to boycott Israeli academic institutions are, in fact, limiting the opportunities to foster peaceful dialogue between adversaries. But we must be clear, and to borrow the words of Ghassan Kanafani, we cannot allow for a flawed conversation between the sword and the neck, all in the purported pursuit of ‘academic freedom’.
Moreover, arguments against the call for boycott fail to take into consideration the fact that Palestinian academics are routinely denied even the most basic access to the wider international academic community, with many scholars and students routinely denied the opportunity to travel by the Israeli occupation. Yet, far from an international outcry, the silence of the international community in this regard is deafening, and certainly stands in stark contrast to the clamour of those who scream ‘academic freedom’ when it comes to chastising the BDS demands.
In the face of ongoing genocide against the Palestinian people, as western leaders continue to display almost complete inertia and unwillingness to reign in their genocidal ally, ignoring this call for boycott, as one of many forms of Palestinian resistance, would be a supreme act of negligence and a dereliction of our duty as scholars committed to social justice.
If not now, when?”
Dr Brendan Ciarán Browne, Trinity College Dublin
“My 8-year-old daughter recently asked me, “What is the world going to do for Palestinian children?” I struggled to answer this. She has seen me leave the house on many Saturdays since last October to march in solidarity with friends seeking a ceasefire in Palestine. As careful as we are with media in our home, she has heard and seen snippets about the ongoing genocide in Palestine. Wise beyond her years, she worries about the world in ways that never bothered me as an 8-year-old. As a parent, I want to promise my daughter a world full of hope, fairness, and equality, but we are living in bleak times, so answers do not settle easily on the tip of the tongue.
In my work as an anthropologist, I engage with many different kinds of people with lived experience of conflict and forced displacement. I teach and chair an MA in Refugee Integration in Dublin City University. For many of us in the university community that I work in (on the island of Ireland), the ongoing genocide of Palestinian people is not a distant issue; it is a mirror reflecting and connecting across historical trajectories and continuities of settler colonialism, conflict, and forced displacement. It is thus incumbent on us, because of the very nature of the work we do, to speak, to act, and to remain steadfast in our daily solidarity with those enduring conflict, violence, and forced displacement. This is not the time for weariness or despair but for advocacy, activism, and action.
Our students, from all corners of the globe, have reminded us of this with fierce bravery. In many universities, they have redefined their relationship with protest and solidarity (and indeed the neoliberal university) to recognise the interconnectedness of conflicts, violence, forced displacement, and the climate crisis on a global scale. Hannah Arendt, writing about the student protests of the 1960s, once asked, “Who are they, this new generation? Those who hear the ticking. And who are they who utterly deny them? Those who do not know, or who refuse to face, things as they really are.” Our present moment is a testament to this generational dynamic. The ticking is no longer a distant sound; it is a deafening alarm, demanding our attention and action, and so we must all act and not leave it only to our brave students.
The motion before us, addressing the suspension of collaborations with Israeli academic institutions, is more than a political stance; it is, for me at least, a moral imperative. The European Association of Social Anthropology (EASA) has always championed academic freedom and human rights. In my own time on the executive committee, I saw many letters and statements of solidarity written addressing different conflicts and crises in the world that we live in. In so doing, EASA has always attempted to weave a fabric of support and thick solidarity both between its members and many of the people and communities that we work with. This issue should be no different.
International organisations have thoroughly documented Israel’s systematic annexation and colonisation of Palestinian lands, the severe human rights violations, the blockade of the Gaza Strip, and the segregationist/apartheid structures and policies that perpetuate violence and inequality. The International Court of Justice has returned a judgment of plausible genocide. The destruction of Gazan universities and the targeted attacks on schools, teachers, and students—termed ‘scholasticide’—are part of a broader assault on education and enlightenment. Palestinian institutions are not just under siege; they have been systematically annihilated. Meanwhile, Israeli universities, deeply intertwined with military and state propaganda efforts, continue to support these violations. Despite these grim realities, many European governments continue to provide diplomatic, military, and economic support to Israel, shielding them from accountability.
When my daughter next asks about the world’s actions for Palestinian children, I will tell her about our small attempts to shift the dial on what is happening in the world today. Supporting this motion is a vital step towards that. As Hannah Arendt once poignantly noted, “The sad truth is that most evil is done by people who never make up their minds to be good or evil.” By endorsing this motion, we make a conscious collective choice as a community of anthropologists to reject complicity and embrace our role as scholar-advocates for accountability and justice.”
Fiona Murphy, Assistant Professor in Refugee Studies, Dublin City University
I fully support the motion put forth by EASAmembers4Palestine to the European Association of Social Anthropology (EASA) to: cut ties with Israeli academic institutions; work with the Working Group on Human Rights and Academic Freedom to implement this motion; and encourage EASA members not to enter into institutional arrangements with Israeli academic institutions.
If not now, when? After all, we are witness to Israel’s annihilation of the Palestinian people, its failure to comply with International Law and International Humanitarian Law, its operation of occupation, apartheid, and now, genocide.
I write as a long-time EASA member, as past president of the American Anthropological Association (AAA), as an anthropologist, as a Jew, and as a concerned citizen of the world. In all those affiliations and identities, I understand my special obligation to consider the suffering of others. I also understand that safety and security can only come when all people are safe and secure; militarism, occupation, apartheid, and genocidal violence are obviously counter-productive to that goal. I am aware of the power structures that reproduce inequities and the social suffering that results, leading to a sense of responsibility to take action on behalf of those who are dehumanized, dispossessed, displaced, and murdered by state violence.
Endorsing this motion is the least I can do. Passing this motion is the least we can do. To do otherwise is to be complicit with the silencing of the plight of Palestinians, leaving them isolated, lonely, abandoned, and invisible.
Alisse Waterston, Presidential Scholar and Professor of Anthropology Emerita, City University of New York, John Jay College
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EASA is a professional association open to all social anthropologists either qualified in, or else working in, Europe. It is a society of scholarship, founded on January 14th, 1989 at the “Inaugural General Assembly” in Castelgandolfo/Italy of twenty-one founder members from thirteen European countries and one from the US, supported by the Wenner-Gren Foundation for Anthropological Research. This meeting drafted the Constitution and elected the Association’s first Executive Committee (1989-90), chaired by Prof. Adam Kuper, Brunel University.
The Association seeks to advance anthropology in Europe by organizing biennial conferences, by editing its academic journal Social Anthropology/Anthropologie Sociale, its Newsletter and the two publication series. The Association further encourages and supports thematic networks.
EASA is a self-governing democratic body. It is both registered with Companies House and with the Charity Commission. As such it is bound by its constitution, relevant laws and EASA adheres to guidance on proper governance. No member may be elected to office more than twice in succession; the only exception are up to two members co-opted by the elected Executive so as to ensure the continuity of EASA’s administrative and publishing functions. The composition of the successive Executive Committees shows the pan-European character of EASA.
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3. Integrity
Principle
The board acts with integrity. It adopts values, applies ethical principles to decisions and creates a welcoming and supportive culture which helps achieve the charity’s purposes. The board is aware of the significance of the public’s confidence and trust in charities. It reflects the charity’s ethics and values in everything it does. Trustees undertake their duties with this in mind.
Rationale
Delivering the charity’s purposes for public benefit should be at the heart of everything the board does. This is true even when a board’s decision might be unpopular. Everyone who comes into contact with a charity should be treated with dignity and respect and feel that they are in a safe and supportive environment. Charity leaders should show the highest levels of personal integrity and conduct.
To achieve this, trustees should create a culture that supports the charity’s values, adopt behaviours and policies in line with the values and set aside any personal interests or loyalties. The board should understand and address any inappropriate power dynamics to avoid damaging the charity’s reputation, public support for its work and delivery of its aims.
Key outcomes
- The board safeguards and promotes the charity’s reputation by living its values and by extension promotes public confidence in the wider sector.
- Trustees and those working for or representing the charity are seen to act with honesty, trustworthiness and care, and support its values.
- The board acts in the best interests of the charity’s purposes and its beneficiaries, creating a safe, respectful and welcoming environment for those who come into contact with it.
- The board makes objective decisions about delivering the charity’s purposes. It is not unduly influenced by those who may have special or personal interests. This applies whether trustees are elected, nominated, or appointed. Collectively, the board is independent in its decision making.
- No one person or group has undue power or influence in the charity. The board recognises how individual or organisational power can affect dealings with others.
israel-academia-monitor.com 