Two months after Syracuse University released a statement rejecting the American Studies Association’s boycott of Israeli universities, several university members expressed dissatisfaction that they were not consulted about it.

“It’s quite clear to me that there needs to be input of faculty, staff and students on any political position that the university takes in our name,” said Chandra Talpade Mohanty, a women’s and gender studies professor. “So yes, the issue of process is of great concern.”

The Academic Affairs Committee of the University Senate hosted an open forum Wednesday in Maxwell Auditorium to discuss the procedural issues behind the release of the statement. Roughly 50 people, including students and faculty members, attended the hour-long discussion. No members of the upper administration — the body that released the statement — were present.

Ian MacInnes, chair of the Academic Affairs Committee and discussion moderator, said the afternoon’s results would be passed onto the administration.

In early December, the ASA, a national group dedicated to the study of American culture and history, declared it would boycott Israeli academic institutions because of Israel’s treatment of Palestinians.

Though SU is not a member of the ASA, then-Interim Chancellor Eric Spina released a statement on Jan. 7, stating that the university rejected the boycott because it countered “our University’s commitment to the free and open exchange of knowledge, ideas and perspectives.”

However, some faculty members and students have said they were not part of any discussion about the situation, and that the university spoke on their behalf without their consent. Wednesday’s conversation focused on what went wrong in this process and how to further dialogue to ensure better collaboration between administration and university members.

Several participants connected SU’s January statement with its decision to suspend relations with Al-Quds University — another action done without further consultation.

Margaret Thompson, a Maxwell professor, said school faculty was only made aware of the statement just before it was released. What’s more, she said, is that some faculty members were afraid to disagree with the already-written declaration.

Linda Carty, an African-American Studies professor, expressed a similar sentiment. She is concerned that an environment of fear exists, which is why more faculty members haven’t contributed, she said. While the faculty-student conversation should include more input from varied groups, she asked, “Would the school support that?”

“The university … doesn’t always accommodate voices of dissent,” she said.

Mohanty then added: “When we have discussions like this, it’s not an equal playing field,” referring to people who are penalized for their positions.

Brian Steinberg, a member of Learning about Israel in the Middle East: An Israeli/Palestinian Dialogue Group, said it’s important to have an organized way of handling the consultation process. He advised looking at other universities to see how they approach similar situations.

“That conversation is important to have,” he said. “What is the procedure and what should people expect?”

A strong point made was that the university should consult the stakeholders before making a political statement, MacInnes said.

Participants noted that more people could have attended if the discussion was better advertised, as some students weren’t made aware of the meeting until earlier that day. An online survey could have been sent to listservs or provided in SU’s daily emails to give anonymity to those who wanted it.

Some participants said they wished that Wednesday’s discussion was more systematic, including spreading information beforehand to educate the group. Mohanty said it is difficult to discuss the content of SU’s statement without background on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Carty said the next discussion should be more constructive.

Members of LIME offered to host the next discussion on the issue.

“I greatly appreciate what LIME is offering to do, but it’s not a replacement for changing this process,” said Zaid Jilani, a Maxwell graduate student and member of the Graduate Student Organization.

In a post-meeting interview, MacInnes said he was pleased with the outcome of the conversation. He said he will take his notes from the meeting and online to the Academic Affairs Committee and decide where to go from there.

Published on March 27, 2014 at 1:07 am

Contact Maddy: mjberner@syr.edu