Baruch and others - 'Our resistance made us weak' - NO! Academics are weak
in any case - and of course you should not be surprised to find that even a
left-liberal journal like Ha'aretz expels you when you cross 'the line'. But
its not resistance that makes you weak - on the contrary, its the compliance
of the Israeli intelligentsia as a whole (and of course there are honourable
exceptions) and its failure to oppose and resist systematically and
wholeheartedly the depredations of succssive governments and the military
authorities in the Occupied Territories, that has been 'weak'.
Those of us 'outside' Israel or Palestine also have few weapons. One,
however, is to demonstrate our opposition to the Israeli government project
through a boycott of Israeli academic institutions and organised activities
(conferences, journals etc.). It is evident - from this very exchange - that
this does not preclude us from conversations, indeed arguments, with Israeli
colleagues, of all hues. So, please understand the sociological location and
political context of the boycott and do not seek to oppose it. Welcome
instead the declaration it makes of profound and principled opposition to
the formal institutions and endeavours of institutionalised Israeli academe
and seek to make your opposition also felt - in the various ways open to
you - to the support provided (by silence, compliance or active initiatives)
by many of your academic colleagues to the continuing barbaric efforts to
destroy any possibility for a just and peaceful settlement of the
Palestinian/Israeli 'question'.
david seddon
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Based upon the newsletter of the European Sociological Association
> (ESA). [mailto:[log in to unmask]]On Behalf Of Baruch
> Kimmerling
> Sent: 31 March 2003 19:39
> To: [log in to unmask]
> Subject: Re: to bycott British and American academy?
>
>
> On Mon, 31 Mar 2003, David Seddon wrote:
>
> > In the meanwhile, I am saddened that Baruch Kimmerling - whom
> we know to be
> > against the current academic boycott of Israeli academic
> institutions - is
> > unable to distinguish between the two situations (despite some undoubted
> > parallels). What is really horrific is the way in which the war
> in Iraq has
> > effectively given the 'green light' to the Israeli government
> and military
> > authorities to intensify their crimes against humanity in the Occupied
> > Territories of Palestine.
>
> Dear David at all:
> I'm also horrified among the other horrifying things by the
> implications of the Anglo-American colonial war on the legitimacy of what
> the Sharonoids should do in the occupied territories. I'm also aware that
> many of my American and British colleagues are highly active in the
> anti-war movements (in the US they are called
> "dessidents" - sic!) and I do highly appreciate they efforts.
> However, this is prdciselly one of my points. The British and American
> academe - just right the Israeli one - are weak and fragil stading against
> the political system, most of the recruited mass media, and the majority
> of the poblic opinion.
> If the Israeli occupation and sbjugation of the Palestinians are only
> increased and became monsterious it is preciselly because - among the
> other factors - we are weak and fragil and not because we were not active
> in anti-occupations moveents. On contrary - our resistance made us more
> weak and even complitely excluded from the legitimate public discourse. 35
> years I was a regular colomnist of Haaretz newspaper, about a year ago
> after I published an article about the legitimacy of Palestinian
> resistence (not terror against civilian populations) I found myself out
> from Haaretz editorial pages...
> That why and also because intrinsic reasons (booycott contradict any
> notion of academic freedom!) I strongly oppose the idea of any academic
> boycott. I hoped that British and American academics - finding themselves
> in a similar situation - should finally better understand the Situation of
> Israeli academy. And Sara Dayson, yes, we are talking SOCIOLOGY.
> Yours, BK.
>
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