Haaretz reports: A group of professors is suing the American Studies Association over its academic boycott of Israel.
The lawsuit filed Wednesday in federal court in the District of Columbia charges the ASA with violating the District of Columbia law governing tax-exempt nonprofit organizations.
The four plaintiffs, who are longtime members of the association, also charge that the boycott violates the group’s internal rules. They are American studies professors Simon Bronner, Michael Rockland, Michael Barton and Charles Kupfer.
In December 2013, the ASA membership approved the boycott with two-thirds of the 1,252 members who voted in support. At the time of the vote, there were 3,853 eligible voters, meaning a third of the membership participated. The boycott is not binding on members and targets institutions, not individuals.
The lawsuit charges that a boycott of another country is outside the scope of ASA’s charter.
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