Momentum against the proposed academic boycott of Israeli universities by the UK’s University and College Union is fast gaining steam, reports the Guardian.
· Tony Blair has called the Israeli prime minister to say that the motion does not reflect broader public opinion.
· In Israel, MPs have begun drafting a bill to label British imports – permitting consumers to protest the boycott.
· In the US, approximately 2,000 American scholars – including a number of Nobel laureates – have pledged to stay away from any event from which Israelis are excluded.
· Thirty-one Congressmen have moved a resolution in the House of Representatives, condemning the boycott.
· Harvard law professor Alan Dershowitz has assembled a team of high-profile lawyers on both sides of the Atlantic to “devastate and bankrupt” anyone acting against Israeli universities.
The union must reject what Dershowitz calls “this immoral petition, [which] will destroy British academia.” The leaders of the UCU are meeting to decide on their next gambit.
Stay tuned. Sane academics worldwide just may win this round.