U.S. Educators’ Conscientious Objection Pledge to End Complicity in
Genocide
&
Apartheid

Islamic University of Gaza, 2 August, 2014. Courtesy of Alamy.

As educators, we recognize our profound responsibility to seek and teach the truth, foster critical thought, build a more just world, and end complicity in all forms of oppression. We recognize our additional responsibility as educators in the U.S., which serves as the world’s primary funder, enabler, and defender of Israeli violations of international law and human rights.In this urgent moment, as the Palestinian people, mainly in Gaza but also across Palestine and in exile continue to endure immense suffering under Israeli colonization, occupation, apartheid, and genocide, we reaffirm these responsibilities.Standing for equality, justice, and freedom for all people is a fundamental moral duty that none of us—especially those who teach—can ignore. We answer the call of Palestinian academics, educators, heads of academic institutions, and civil society in urging the international academic community to reject silence, racism, settler colonialism, and dehumanization, and to help end complicity in oppression.Inspired by the historical precedent of the academic boycott against apartheid South Africa, and in solidarity with the 2004 call by the Palestinian Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel (PACBI) and the 2005 Palestinian civil society call for the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) of Israel:We, the undersigned academics at U.S. academic institutions, and U.S. academics abroad, pledge, on grounds of conscience, not to engage in academic or cultural cooperation, collaboration, or joint projects with Israeli academic, cultural, state, or private entities that are complicit in the ongoing occupation, apartheid, genocide, or other violations of Palestinian rights as stipulated under international law. This includes, but is not limited to, participation in conferences, research collaborations, exchange programs, and institutional partnerships sponsored or organized by such institutions.We support the following additional actions:o Advocate for a comprehensive boycott of such Israeli institutions at the local, national, and international levels, including the suspension of all forms of funding and subsidies to these institutions;o Promote strategic and targeted divestment from entities that enable Israel’s atrocity crimes against Palestinians, by academic institutions and in our professional organizations and unions;o Press for non-cooperation boycott resolutions to be adopted by academic, professional, workers’, and cultural associations and organizations, against the Israeli state, and against organizations that fund, enable, or advocate for Israeli violations of international law and human rights;o Support Palestinian academic and cultural institutions directly, without requiring them to partner with Israeli counterparts as a condition for such support.We affirm that our boycott is institutional, not individual. We do not target individuals based on nationality, ethnicity, or beliefs, but focus on institutions and official representatives implicated in supporting or justifying colonial violence, violations of international law, and human rights.We commit to producing, fostering, and disseminating knowledge about the hundred-years’ war on Palestine and the Israeli state’s ongoing Nakba, and confronting the production of ignorance on Palestine.We call upon our colleagues, students, staff, and administrators to join us in this pledge, and to support the right of educators and academic workers to speak out against injustice without fear of retaliation. We demand that educational institutions protect academic freedom and freedom of expression and stand in solidarity with those who advocate for justice and the liberation of all peoples.While this pledge is primarily directed towards educators in U.S. higher education institutions, we invite all those who are in one way or another affiliated with any institution of learning to sign on in support.We believe that educators possess the right and carry the responsibility to educate about matters of public import in the public sphere. We believe that it is of the utmost urgency to uphold this right and to enact this responsibility in the case of the unfolding genocide in Palestine. We are committed to using our expertise–where relevant–to analyze and deconstruct the language used in media, government, and public discourse, demonstrating how language can be either a tool for propaganda or a pathway toward restorative and transformative justice.We invite all members of the academic community to join us in using our collective knowledge to build a just and liberated future for all.In solidarity with all educators who speak out against injustice and in favor of the liberation of Palestine, we pledge to support them and their right to academic freedom and free expression.Free Palestine.

Please fill in the form below to add yourself as a signatory to the pledge.

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Initial SignatoriesA. Pollicino (Rutgers University)
Aaron Roussell (Portland State University)
Abdel Razzaq Takriti (Rice University)
Adam Rzepka (Montclair State University)
Adit Sabnis (Brown University)
Ahlam Muhtaseb (California State University San Bernardino)
Al Kagan (University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign)
Alan Wald (University of Michigan)
Alessandro Morosin (University of La Verne)
Alexa Firat (Temple University)
Alexander Elinson (City University of New York Hunter College)
Alexandria Hollett (California State University, Northridge)
Alicia Christoff (Amherst College)
Amanda Batarseh (University of California, San Diego)
Amber Hickey (University of Tennessee at Chattanooga)
Ambereen Dadabhoy (Harvey Mudd College)
Amelia Simone Herbert (Columbia University Barnard College)
Amira Jarmakani (San Diego State University)
Amy Hagopian (University of Washington)
Ana Carolina Díaz Beltrán (University of Texas Rio Grande Valley)
Anand Vaidya (Reed College)
Andrea Schmidt (Temple University)
Andrea Herrera (Texas A&M University Corpus Christi and Missouri State University)
Andrea Morrell (City University of New York Guttman Community College)
Andrés Fabián Henao Castro (University of Massachusetts Boston)
Andrew Ross (New York University)
Anita Sanyal (University of Maryland)
Anna Feder (former Emerson College)
Annelise Orleck (Dartmouth College)
Anthony Alessandrini (Kingsborough Community College, CUNY Graduate Center)
Anton Shammas (University of Michigan)
Ara Merjian (New York University)
Ariana Vigil (University of North Carolina Chapel Hill)
Ariella Aïsha Azoulay (Brown University)
Askold Melnyczuk (University of Massachusetts Boston)
Atalia Omer (University of Notre Dame)
Bahia Munem (Middlebury College)
Barbara Foley (Rutgers University)
Barbie Wu (Reed College)
Barry Trachtenberg (Wake Forest University)
Bassam Bamieh (University of California, Santa Barbara)
Bassam Haddad (George Mason University)
Begum Adalet (Cornell University)
Beth Baker (California State University Los Angeles)
Beth Ribet (University of California, Los Angeles)
Bethany Letiecq (George Mason University)
Bill Mullen (Emeritus, Purdue University)
Brittany Munro (City University of New York)
Brooke Lober (University of California Berkeley)
Bruce Levine (University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign)
Bruce Robbins (Columbia University)
Caitlin Schroering (University of North Carolina at Charlotte)
Callen Zimmerman (State University of New York)
Candace Fujikane (University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa)
Carol M. Lang (City University of New York Bronx Community College)
Catherine Charrett (University of Westminster)
Catia Cecilia Confortini (Wellesley College)
Cesare Casarino (University of Minnesota)
Charlotte Karem Albrecht (University of Michigan)
Chris Tilly (University of California Los Angeles)
Chris Dole (Amherst College)
Christa Robbins (University of Virginia)
Christine Hong (University of California, Santa Cruz)
Christopher Stone (City University of New York Hunter College)
Colleen Rost-Banik (University of Hawai'i Mānoa)
Corinna Mullin (The New School)
Cynthia Franklin (University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa)
Dana Miranda (University of Massachusetts Boston)
Daniel Sidorcik (Rutgers University)
Daniel Segal (Pitzer College)
Danielle Purifoy (University of North Carolina Chapel Hill)
Dara Orenstein (The George Washington University)
Darlene Lee (University of California, Los Angeles)
Darrin Hoop (National Education Association)
Darryl Li (University of Chicago)
David Love (Rutgers University)
David Laibman (City University of New York)
David Yaghoubian (California State University San Bernardino)
David Klein (California State University Northridge)
David Lloyd (University of California, Riverside)
David Letwin (Rutgers University)
David Palumbo-Liu (Stanford University)
Deborah Rosenfelt (University of Maryland)
Devon Clifton (University of Nevada, Las Vegas)
Diana Gallo (University of California Los Angeles)
Dina Omar (University of California, Berkeley)
Dylan Rodriguez (University of California, Riverside)
Edgar Garcia Velozo (University of Kentucky)
Eli Meyerhoff (Duke University)
Elisabeth Weber (University of California, Santa Barbara)
Elsa Auerbach (University of Massachusetts Boston)
Elybeth Sofia Alcantar (University of Texas at Austin)
Elyse Crystall (University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill)
Emad Abou Arab (University of Michigan Medical School)
Emmaia Gelman (Institute for the Critical Study of Zionism)
Eric Cheyftiz (Cornell University)
Ericka Kimball (Portland State University)
Erin Hammond (Virginia Tech)
Erin Clancy (University of Wisconsin Madison)
Erin Pineda (Smith College)
Eunsong Kim (Northeastern University)
Eve Meltzer (New York University)
Fawzia Afzal-Khan (Montclair State University)
Federico Pérez Fernández (Portland State University)
Fidelito Cortes (Hunter College)
Frank T. Fitzgerald (College of Saint Rose)
Fred Rowland (Temple University)
Gabi Kirk (California State Polytechnic University Humboldt)
Ganesh Trichur (City University of New York College of Staten Island)
Gina Crandell (Boston Architectural College)
Grace Kyungwon Hong (University of California, Los Angeles)
Hannah Appel (University of California, Los Angeles)
Hannah Manshel (University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa)
Heather Ferguson (Claremont McKenna College)
Heather Dorfman (Portland State University)
Heba Gowayed (City University of New York Hunter College)
Heidi Morrison (University of Wisconsin-La Crosse)
Heike Schotten (University of Massachusetts Boston)
Helen DeVinney (The George Washington University)
Hosu Kim (City University of New York College of Staten Island)
Howard Winant (University of California Santa Barbara)
Huda Fakhreddine (University of Pennsylvania)
Hussein Rashid (Columbia University Barnard College)
Ilham Khuri-Makdisi (Northeastern University)
Ira Dworkin (Texas A&M University)
Irene Siegel (City University of New York Hunter College)
Isabel Ortiz (Amherst College)
Isabella Arzeno Soltero (University of California, Los Angeles)
Ishad Zaman (City College of New York)
Isaac Kamola (Trinity College)
J. Kehaulani Kauanui (Princeton University)
Jacqueline Siapno (University of California San Diego)
Jairo I. Fúnez-Flores (Texas Tech University)
James Hoff (City University of New York Borough of Manhattan Community College)
Jamie Jones (Portland State University)
Jan Haaken (Portland State University)
Janet Jakobsen (Columbia University Barnard College)
Janet Winston (California State Polytechnic University, Humboldt)
Jay Arena (City University of New York College of Staten Island)
Jazmine Janay Cuevas (Cornell University)
Jean Beaman (City University of New York)
Jean Halley (City University of New York College of Staten Island)
Jennifer Ruth (Portland State University)
Jessica Pabón (Indepent Scholar)
Jessica Hardie (City University of New York Hunter College)
Jodi Dean (Hobart and William Smith Colleges)
John King (New York University)
John Cox (University of North Carolina at Charlotte)
John Gianvito (Emerson College)
John Maerhofer (Rutgers University)
Jolie Chea (University of California, Los Angeles)
Jonah Rubin (Jewish Voice for Peace)
Jonathan Graubart (San Diego State University)
Jorge Coronado (Northwestern University)
Judith Butler (University of California Berkeley)
Judith Norman (Trinity University)
Julia Gettle (Independent Scholar)
Julie Diamond (City College of New York)
Julie Carlson (University of California, Santa Barbara)
Justin Flatt (Rutgers University)
K.D. Thompson (University of Wisconsin–Madison)
Kai Bosworth (Virginia Commonwealth University)
Karen Suyemoto (University of Massachusetts Boston)
Karim Mattar (University of Colorado at Boulder)
Karla Strand (University of Wisconsin–Madison)
Karlyn Koh (City University of New York LaGuardia Community College)
Karma Chavez (University of Texas at Austin)
Katherine Killmer (Brescia University)
Katherine Franke (former Columbia University)
Kathryn DePaolis (Eastern Washington University)
Kevin Winkler (City University of New York)
Kevin Bruyneel (Babson College)
Key K. Bird (University of Massachusetts Boston)
Khaled Mattawa (University of Michigan)
Kolson Schlosser (Temple University)
Kristen Gillespie-Lynch (City University of New York College of Staten Island)
Kristian Contreras (National Women's Studies Association)
Lara Deeb (Scripps College)
Laura Tanenbaum (City University of New York LaGuardia Community College)
Laura Goldblatt (University of Virginia)
Laura Bray (University of Oklahoma)
Leila Mansouri (Scripps College)
Leila Kawar (University of Michigan)
Lisa Rofel (University of California Santa Cruz)
Lisa Hajjar (University of California, Santa Barbara)
Lizabeth Roemer (University of Massachusetts Boston)
Loryn Hilferty (Temple University)
Loubna Qutami (University of California Los Angeles)
Louise Penner (University of Massachusetts Boston)
Lucien Baskin (City University of New York)
Lynne Layton (Harvard Medical School)
Macy Miller (University of Illinois Chicago)
Mahruq Khan (University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign)
Malek Abisaab (McGill University)
Manijeh Moradian (Columbia University Barnard College)
Manisha Desai (Stony Brook University)
Manzar Foroohar (Emerita, California State University, Polytechnic)
Mar Golub (Scripps College)
Marcy Newman (Independent Scholar)
Margot Weiss (Wesleyan University)
María Regina Firmino-Castillo (University of California Riverside)
Mark Rifkin (University of Buffalo)
Mark Driscoll (University of North Carolina Chapel Hill)
Mark LeVine (University of California Irvine)
Marlon Bailey (Washington University in St. Louis)
Martin Vega (Scripps College)
Mary Stricker (Temple University)
Matt Chorpenning (Portland State University)
Matthew Thomas Miller (University of Maryland)
Maura Finkelstein (former Muhlenberg College)
Max Weiss (Princeton University)
Maya Mikdashi (Rutgers University)
Mayida Zaal (Montclair State University)
Meital Yaniv (University of California Riverside and Chaffey College)
Melanie Bush (Adelphi University)
Melissa Levy (University of Virginia)
Melissa Weiner (College of the Holy Cross)
Merrill Cole (Western Illinois University)
Michael Loeb (City University of New York)
Michael Drexler (Bucknell University)
Michel DeGraff (Massachusetts Institute of Technology)
Michelle Fine (City University of New York)
Miguel Valerio (University of Maryland)
Mita Banerjee (Pitzer College)
Momodou Taal (Cornell University)
Monica Morosin (Los Altos Elementary School District)
Monica Parmley-Frutiger (Portland State University)
Muhammad Ali Khalidi (City University of New York)
Nada Elia (Western Washington University)
Nadia Yaqub (University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill)
Nadine Sahyoun (University of Maryland)
Nadine Naber (University of Illinois Chicago)
Nadja Eisenberg-Guyot (Trinity College)
Nancy Khalil
Nandini Sikand (Lafayette College)
Naomi Schiller (City University of New York)
Naomi Braine (City University of New York Brooklyn College)
Navid Farnia (Wayne State University)
Neferti Tadiar (Barnard College)
Nerissa Balce (State University of New York at Stony Brook)
Ngo Nhan (Temple University)
Nic Francisco (former Portland State University)
Nicholas Mirzoeff (New York University)
Nichole Shippen (City University of New York LaGuardia Community College)
Nicole Lopez-Jantzen (City University of New York Borough of Manhattan Community College)
Nicole Simek (Whitman College)
Nicole Morse (University of Maryland Baltimore County)
Nina Silber (Boston University)
Noelle Mapes (City University of New York)
Nour Joudah (University of California, Los Angeles)
Noura Erakat (Rutgers University)
Nouri Gana (University of California, Los Angeles)
Omnia El Shakry (Yale University)
Oscar Fabian Soto (California State University San Marcos)
Oumar Ba (Cornell University)
Pam Butler (University of Notre Dame)
Paul Kohlbry (University of California Santa Barbara)
Paul Sawyer (Cornell University)
Rabab Abdulhadi (San Francisco State University)
Rachel Rosenbloom (Northeastern University)
Rachel Lockart (Augustana College)
Ralph Ghoche (Columbia University Barnard College)
Rana Jaleel (University of California, Davis)
Rana Sharif (University of California, Berkeley)
Randa Tawil (University of Washington)
Ranjani Srinivasan (Columbia University)
Rashid Khalidi (Columbia University)
Rebecca Jordan-Young (Columbia University Barnard College)
Rebecca Karl (New York University)
Rebecca Alpert (Temple University)
Richard Shin (University of Maryland)
Robert Warrior (University of Kansas)
Robin D. G. Kelley (University of California, Los Angeles)
Ron Hayduk (San Francisco State University)
Rosalind Petchesky (Emerita, Hunter College)
Rosemari Mealy (City College of New York)
Roshanak Kheshti (University of California, Berkeley)
Ruha Benjamin (Princeton University)
Rula Jurdi (McGill University)
Rupal Oza (City University of New York)
Russell Rickford (Cornell University)
Saadia Toor (City University of New York)
Sam Anderson (City University of New York Medgar Evers College)
Sam Malabre (University of California Los Angeles)
Samah Selim (Rutgers University)
Sameer Ud Dowla Khan (Reed College)
Samer Alatout (University of Wisconsin–Madison)
Samer M. Ali (University of Michigan)
Samera Esmeir (University of California, Berkeley)
Sang Kil (former San Jose State University)
Sangeeta Ray (University of Maryland)
Sanghyuk Shin (University of California Irvine)
Sara Pursley (New York University)
Sarah Horsley (University of Massachusetts Boston)
Sarah Katz (Temple University)
Sarah Combellick-Bidney (Augsburg University)
Saulo Colón (Connecticut State Community College)
Sean Malloy (University of California, Merced)
Setsu Shigematsu (University of California, Riverside)
Shahinaz Geneid (former Northeastern University & Harvard University)
Sherena Razek (University of California, Los Angeles)
Sherene Razack (University of California Los Angeles)
Sherene Seikaly (University of California, Santa Barbara)
Sherry Millner (City University of New York College of Staten Island)
Shireen Soliman (The New School and Pratt Institute)
Sid Jordan (Portland State University)
Sofya Aptekar (City University of New York)
Sonali Gulati (Virginia Commonwealth University)
Sophia Azeb (University of California, Santa Cruz)
Sophia Taborski (Cornell University)
Stacy Fahrenhold (University of California, Davis)
Stéphanie Wahab (Portland State University)
Stephen Sheehi (College of William & Mary)
Steve Roddy (University of San Francisco)
Steven Jordan (McGill University)
Stuart Chen-Hayes (City University of New York Lehman College)
Stuart Parker (Kingsborough Community College)
Summer Kim Lee (University of California, Los Angeles)
Surya Teja Gavva (Rutgers University)
Susan Slyomovics (University of California, Los Angeles)
Susie Pak (St. John's University)
Sut Jhally (University of Massachusetts Amherst)

Terri Ginsberg (Rutgers University)
Thomas Van Riet (Leuven University)
Thomas Volscho (City University of New York College of Staten Island)
Timothy Seidel (Eastern Mennonite University)
Tom Alter (former Texas State University)
Tomomi Kinukawa (San Francisco State University)
Ujju Aggarwal (The New School)
Urmitapa Dutta (University of Massachusetts Lowell)
Victor Silverman (Pomona College)
Victoria Baena (University of Virginia)
Vinicius Navarro (Emerson College)
William Robinson (University of California Santa Barbara)
Yannis Hamilakis (Brown University)
Yasser Munif (Emerson College)
Yogita Goyal (University of California, Los Angeles)
Zahi Zalloua (Whitman College)
Zayde Antrim (Trinity College)
Zeynep Celik (New Jersey Institute of Technology)
Zeynep Korkman (University of California, Los Angeles)
Zillah Eisenstein (Ithaca College)

Additional SignatoriesAli Watts (Bowling Green State University)
Allen Zanca (Harvard University)
Anne Erde (University of Massachusetts Boston)
Annie Menzel (University of Wisconsin Madison)
Anthony O'Brien (Queens College)
Audrey Wycks (Suffolk University)
Benjamin Robinson (Indiana University Bloomington)
Bryan Sacks (Drexel University)
Ednie Kaeh (California Polytechnic State University San Luis Obispo)
Elana Wolkoff (William James College)
Ferit Güven (Earlham College)
Fida Adely (Georgetown University)
Gerry Yokota (University of Osaka)
Guru Sahai Rae Khalsa (Earlham College)
Hasham Khan (Independent Scholar)
John Cox (University of North Carolina Charlotte)
Joseph Howley (Columbia University)
Kathy Roberts
Kristin Koptiuch (Arizona State University)
Lisa Rofel (University of California Santa Cruz)
Matthew Katz-Bohen (Marymount Manhattan College)
Maya Wind (University of California Riverside)
Naomi Imbrogno (Independent Scholar)
Richard Solomon (Massachusetts Institute of Technology)
Rosalind Petchesky (City University of New York Hunter College)
Sami Hermez (Northwestern University in Qatar)
Sandra Smith (Harvard University)
Theodora Dryer (New York University)
Timothy Kaufman-Osborn (Whitman College)

Resources

The work to bring this pledge to life has been built upon the scholarship and organizing of many individuals and organizations, please see before for a selection of some of these resources that will continue to be updated:

Previous U.S. and International Pledges
(Chronological from Earliest - Latest)

Coalition for Action in Higher Education:
Mapping Anti-Palestinian Discrimination, Harassment, and Misinformation in U.S. Higher Education Series

Other resources on palestine

We appreciate the thoughtful questions we have received to date about the pledge, check back again soon for an updated FAQ addressing some of our most frequently asked questions.