Ahead of the March 18, 2026 meeting of the UBC Senate, a self-described “Apartheid-Free” campaign has been launched via social media. The campaign calls on the UBC-Vancouver Senate to “cut ties with all apartheid states, including the State of Israel.” As the text of the campaign does not define apartheid or list any other countries, we conclude that this is another attempt at an academic boycott of Israel under another name from groups opposed to Israel’s existence in any form.
We are concerned by the persistent focus on pressuring our common institutions to participate in demonizing Israel. We call for opportunities to have constructive academic and intellectual conversations in appropriate venues among all stakeholders about issues that concern the UBC community.
While social media posts claim that the motion is being put forward, as of this writing, no motion appears on the UBC Senate agenda, and no text of the motion has been made available to review or discuss. This precludes an opportunity for informed debate and collegial discussions, essential components of academic institutions to uphold democratic processes as a core value. The UBC Senate has already rejected a motion to cut ties with Israel, so a new motion with substantively similar content constitutes continued harassment of the Jewish community, who feels the consequences of this kind of vilification, the attempted hijacking of institutional prestige that belongs to all, and political obstructionism.
JAABC believes that UBC should be a place where ideas are discussed freely, based on academic core values, full evidence, and reason. We believe that students and scholars benefit from interacting with other countries that are different from our own, including Israel. Academic freedom includes the right for members of the academic community to choose their scholarly partners and collaborators. Above all, we believe that the UBC Senate should serve the interests of the entire UBC community without having to face down relentless obstructionism. The proposed motion runs counter to the values that British Columbians expect UBC to uphold. We call on the UBC Senate to recommit to its academic mission, including the protection of academic freedom, and democratic processes.