Engage (organisation)

Engage is a British website, and briefly an online journal (from 2006–7), that aims to help people counter the boycott Israel campaign.[1] Engage describes its mission as to "challenge left and liberal antisemitism in the labour movement, in our universities and in public life."

Anti boycott activity

In 2005, the Association of University Teachers (AUT) took a decision to boycott two Israeli universities.[2][3][4] Engage was founded, by David Hirsh, who teaches at Goldsmiths, University of London, and Jon Pike, who teaches at the Open University, in order to try to reverse this,[5] which, with the involvement of Academic Friends of Israel, occurred within a few weeks.[6][7] Supporters of Engage included the late Norman Geras[8] and the late David Cesarani.[9] In 2006, the AUT merged with the National Association of Teachers in Further and Higher Education, and proposed a Boycott Israel measure that Hirsh, speaking on behalf of Engage, called "nastier" than the 2005 proposal, because it proposed the boycott of individual academics who refused to disassociate themselves with Israel.[5] Hirsh was also quoted in relation to a proposed boycott of Israeli academic institutions by the University and College Union in 2007.[10]

External views

In an essay, in the New Statesman, Nick Cohen described Engage's position as pointing out that "the act of singling out Israel as the only illegitimate state - in the absence of any coherent reason for doing so - is in itself anti-Semitic, irrespective of the motivation or opinions of those who make that claim," and noting that the Association of University Teachers provided no justification for singling out the Jewish State.[11] An article in the online journal of International Marxist Tendency described Engage as "a group of academics... ostensibly set up to combat ‘left-wing anti-Semitism’ (but which in reality devotes much of its website space to articles beautifying Israeli foreign policy from a ‘liberal’ standpoint.)"[12] Leslie Wright observed that "Engage’s activities range from earnest theoretical debates about left-wing ideology to practical campaigning to ensure the election of antiboycott candidates in academic union elections".[13]

Positions

According to its founding statement, the organisation:[14]

  • Opposes Israel's occupation of the West Bank and Gaza. Engage is in favour of the foundation of a Palestinian state alongside the state of Israel.[15]
  • Opposes the idea of an academic or cultural boycott of Israel.[15]
  • Aims to encourage, facilitate and publicise positive links between both Arab and Jewish Israeli, Palestinian, British and global academia.[15]
  • Stands up against antisemitism in universities, in unions and in students unions. In Engage's opinion, opposing the sometimes brutal actions of the Israeli government and army is not antisemitic, but certain expressions of criticism of Israel constitute antisemitism.[15]
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References
  1. Halkin, Talya (10 February 2006). "Unions in Britain, Canada Urge Boycotts Against Israel". Jerusalem Post. ProQuest 319506851.
  2. Lappin, Yaakov (4 May 2005). "Anti-boycott profs fight back. UK academics' petition forces emergency meeting". Jerusalem Post. ProQuest 319486472.
  3. Mendes, Philip; Dyrenfurth, Nick (2015). Boycotting Israel is Wrong; the progressive path to peace between Palestinians and Israelis. NewSouth Books. ISBN 9781742234144.
  4. David Newman (2008) Britain and the Academic Boycott of Israel, Israel Journal of Foreign Affairs, 2:2, 45-55, DOI: 10.1080/23739770.2008.11446311
  5. Cowell, Alan (15 May 2006). "British Union Weighs Boycott Of Teachers From Israel". New York Times. ProQuest 93035215.
  6. Pessin, Andrew (2018). Anti-Zionism on Campus: The University, Free Speech, and BDS. Indiana University Press. p. 108. ISBN 9780253034083. Retrieved 12 Feb 2019.
  7. Shchansky, Anatole (2007). Academics Against Israel and the Jews. Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs. p. 201. ISBN 9789652180575. Retrieved 13 Feb 2019.
  8. Pike, Jon (22 March 2006). "The new fault line on the left". The Guardian. Retrieved 13 February 2019.
  9. Cesarani, David (2 June 2006). "The Left's 'anti-Semitism' can't go unchallenged". The Times. Archived from the original on 15 June 2007. Retrieved 6 November 2015.
  10. Lappin, Yaakov (30 May 2007). "Israel being ostracized". Ynet News. Retrieved 12 Feb 2019.
  11. Cohen, Nick (10 October 2005). "the Association of University Teachers". New Statesman. 18 (880). ProQuest 224353345.
  12. Leon, Walter (25 June 2009). "From Bolshevism to Bush – exploring the political trajectory of the Jewish people". Defense of Marxism. Retrieved 13 February 2019.
  13. Wright, Leslie (Fall 2010). "At Issue WATCHING THE PRO-ISRAELI ACADEMIC WATCHERS". Jewish Political Studies Review. 22 (3): 69. Retrieved 10 February 2019.
  14. "Original founding statement". Engage.
  15. Hodges, Lucy (5 May 2005). "The rebellion begins". The Independent. ProQuest 310803828.
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