Jewish Leaders Slam ‘Antisemitic’ Scientists Following Vote to Boycott Israel

(VINnews) — Jewish leaders and organizations have slammed a large group of U.S. scientists, after they voted to boycott Israel.

The American Anthropological Association (AAA), which represents thousands of anthropologists in academia and the professional space, announced Monday that its members had voted to endorse a resolution that forbids the association from collaborating with Israeli academic institutions.

Rabbi Yaakov Menken, Managing Director of the Coalition for Jewish Values, sharply condemned the disgraceful vote.

“Congratulations, AAA, upon becoming the American Antisemitism Association,” Rabbi Menken tweeted.

He added, “The “Palestinian” narrative violates every rule of actual anthropology, proving that this “discipline” is now utterly meaningless. Reminder: 50% of the architects of the #Nazi “Final Solution” had PhDs.”

Congratulations, AAA, upon becoming the American Antisemitism Association.

The “Palestinian” narrative violates every rule of actual anthropology, proving that this “discipline” is now utterly meaningless. Reminder: 50% of the architects of the #Nazi “Final Solution” had PhDs. https://t.co/X94RFL9D5q

— Rabbi Yaakov Menken (@ymenken) July 24, 2023

Joel Petlin tweeted that the group is “full of antisemites”.

“If there’s only one country in the whole world that your organization is boycotting, and that country is Israel, congratulations, you’ve just announced that your group is full of Antisemites.”

If there’s only one country in the whole world that your organization is boycotting, and that country is Israel, congratulations, you’ve just announced that your group is full of Antisemites. https://t.co/d2wZelXN3A

— Joel M. Petlin (@Joelmpetlin) July 25, 2023

A prominent Twitter user known as ‘Elder of Ziyon’ tweeted, “Really cool that the very first paragraph of the resolution refers to a fictional “Palestinian Federation of Unions of University Professors and Employees” that has exactly one member. You guys are such amazing academics not to do any fact checking.”

Really cool that the very first paragraph of the resolution refers to a fictional “Palestinian Federation of Unions of University Professors and Employees” that has exactly one member.

You guys are such amazing academics not to do any fact checking. https://t.co/FTlxiIX9Sq

— Elder of Ziyon 🇮🇱 (@elderofziyon) July 25, 2023

The association voted to formally boycott Israeli academic institutions, seven years after shutting down a similar vote, in a sign of the shifting tides of the Israel debate on American college campuses.

Pro-Israel groups quickly condemned the AAA vote. Tammi Rossman-Benjamin, director of the AMCHA Initiative, a pro-Israel campus advocacy group, called it “a dark day for higher education” and said the group’s “commitment to academic BDS is likely to spread throughout the university like wildfire and have rippling effects for years to come.”

Another pro-Israel group, the Deborah Project legal firm, threatened to sue the association in the lead-up to the vote, claiming the resolution as written would put it afoul of laws in some states endorsing the International Holocaust Remembrance Association’s definition of antisemitism.

“This was indeed a contentious issue, and our differences may have sparked fierce debate,” the group’s president, Ramona Pérez, said in a statement. “But we have made a collective decision and it is now our duty to forge ahead, united in our commitment to advancing scholarly knowledge, finding solutions to human and social problems, and serving as a guardian of human rights.”

As written, the resolution calls Israel an “apartheid regime from the Jordan River to the Mediterranean Sea.” It pledges to continue the boycott “until such time as these institutions end their complicity in violating Palestinian rights as stipulated in international law.”