Catholic University President John Garvey issued a statement (h/t Avi Mayer) on December 31, 2013, rejecting the boycott of Israel passed by the American Studies Association.
That makes Catholic U. the 100th university to issue a rejection.
And oh, what a rejection it was (emphasis added):
STATEMENT BY PRESIDENT JOHN GARVEYON THE AMERICAN STUDIES ASSOCIATION BOYCOTT OF ISRAELI UNIVERSITIES
The American Studies Association’s recent call for a boycott of Israeli academic institutions is lamentable. The Association has appointed itself as a kind of inept volunteer fire department, aiming to put out the Israeli-Palestinian conflagration by throwing gasoline on the fire. That’s not exactly right. It has decided to pour gas not on the source of the fire but on bystanders, some of whom are trying to extinguish the flames. No good can come of punishing academic institutions for the shortcomings, real and perceived, of their nations’ leaders and policies.Rather than restricting academic freedom to advance political causes, academic organizations like the ASA should be working to foster dialogue with their foreign interlocutors, perhaps especially those they disagree with. The academy – universities, faculties, and satellite institutions – is a place where research, open discussion, and creative thought can lead to reforms and new approaches to longstanding problems. I hope the ASA’s call for a boycott produces just the opposite of its intended result – a proliferation of U.S. linkages with Israeli universities and other universities in the Middle East.
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