British Faculty Union Endorses Boycott of Israel (Sort of)

The University and College Union, the main faculty union in Britain, has again (kind of) endorsed a boycott of Israel. Past endorsements of boycotts have been widely criticized by academics (including those who criticize Israel's policies) as antithetical to academic freedom. Some have also said that the union lacks the legal authority in Britain to call for a boycott. A spokesman for the union said in an e-mail to Inside Higher Ed that it would be incorrect to say that the union had called for a boycott. The actual resolution calls on the union to "circulate to all members" the call for a boycott by the Palestinian Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel, but does not actually call for a boycott. A statement from Academic Friends of Israel scoffed at the distinction between calling for a boycott and distributing a call for a boycott. “If UCU distributes copies of the Palestinian boycott call to its members ... it is effectively asking them to participate in the boycott," said a statement from the group.