Israel Denial is the first book to offer detailed analyses of the work faculty members have published--individually and collectively--in support of the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) movement; it contrasts their claims with options for promoting peace. The faculty discussed here have devoted a significant part of their professional lives to delegitimizing the Jewish state. While there are beliefs they hold in common--including the conviction that there is nothing good to say about Israel--they also develop distinctive arguments designed to recruit converts to their cause in novel ways. They do so both as writers and as teachers; Israel Denial is the first to give substantial attention to anti-Zionist pedagogy. No effort to understand the BDS movement's impact on the academy and public policy can be complete without the kind of understanding this book offers.
A co-publication of the Academic Engagement Network

PREFACE
INTRODUCTION

PART ONE-CONTRASTING AGENDAS: BOYCOTT VERSUS PEACEBUILDING
I THE GOALS AND TACTICS OF THE BOYCOTT MOVEMENT
II FIVE COMPONENTS OF A PEACE PLAN

PART TWO-FOUR BDS FACULTY PORTRAITS
III JUDITH BUTLER: A Philosopher Promotes a One-State Fantasy
IV STEVEN SALAITA: The Fluid Line Between Anti-Zionism and Anti-Semitism
V SAREE MAKDISI: Criminalizing Israeli Law and Culture
VI JASBIR PUAR: Obsessive Demonology as a Research Agenda

PART THREE-TEACHING FOR EMPATHY OR HOSTILITY
VII ANTI-ZIONIST HOSTILITY:
Teaching to Delegitimate the Jewish State
VIII PEDAGOGY AS EMPATHY:
Teaching Jewish-Israeli, Arab-Israeli, and Palestinian Poetry Together

PART FOUR-CHALLENGES IN PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATIONS AND IN PALESTINE
IX A FACULTY GROUP ORGANIZES A BOYCOTT CAMPAIGN
X ACADEMIC FREEDOM IN PALESTINIAN UNIVERSITIES
XI THE CASE FOR COORDINATED UNILATERAL WITHDRAWL FROM THE WEST BANK: A Proposal to Rescue the Two-State Paradigm

AFTERWORD
Where BDS is Headed in the Academy
BIBLIOGRAPHY
NOTES
INDEX