USA, American anthropologists vote for an academic boycott of Israel

The largest academic organization of anthropologists in the United States will hold a vote this week on whether to boycott Israeli academic institutions over their involvement in Israel's discrimination and oppression of Palestinians. The American Anthropological Association (AAA) vote, which will take place online from June 15 to July 14, is part of a growing movement within the anthropological community in the United States to restructure the field away from what scholars define as racist and colonial origins.

Supporters of the resolution argued that Israeli universities are complicit in Israel's violations of Palestinian rights, which have been denounced as apartheid by several human rights groups and United Nations experts. The resolution has also sparked controversy and debate among anthropologists. The previous vote in 2016 failed by a narrow margin of 39 votes, with some anthropologists opposing the boycott as a political meddling that would harm academic freedom and dialogue.

The resolution proposes to ban the AAA from collaborating with Israeli universities, such as hosting conferences and organizing joint programs. "Let it be decided that the AAA as an Association supports and will honor this call to boycott Israeli academic institutions until these institutions stop being complicit in the violation of Palestinian rights as stipulated by international law," the text of the resolution states.