The Louis D. Brandeis Center was pleased to sign on to the following letter, signed by over 100 organizations and organized by the AMCHA Initiative, commending Pitzer College President Melvin Oliver for his strong stance against an attempted academic boycott of Israel on Pitzer’s campus. The boycott, which sought to suspend Pitzer College’s study abroad program in Haifa, was approved by the Pitzer College Council before President Oliver refused to give his required approval. President Oliver stated that resolutions like the one proposed on Pitzer’s campus “curtail the academic freedom of those students who wish to study [in Israel]. Among Pitzer’s core values is the promotion of intercultural understanding.” President Oliver went on to state that study abroad programs in Israel provide Pitzer’s students with the opportunity to “reach their own conclusions about some of the world’s most vexing challenges through on-the-ground, face-to-face, people-to-people experience.” The entire text of the letter can be found below. Dear President Oliver, Our organizations heartily applaud you for your courageous leadership in vetoing the College Council’s vote to shut down Pitzer’s study abroad program at the University of Haifa. Your staunch defense of the academic freedom and educational opportunities of Pitzer students and faculty in the face of an academic boycott of Israel is exemplary. We hope that your outstanding statement affirming Pitzer’s commitment to the pursuit of knowledge and the fostering of intercultural understanding and acknowledging that academic BDS undermines that commitment will serve as a model for university presidents across the country.Thank you again for your strong moral leadership, Academic Council for Israel Academic Engagement Network Aggies for Israel Alpha Epsilon Pi Fraternity (AEPi) Alums for Campus Fairness – National Alums for Campus Fairness – UC Davis Alums for Campus Fairness – UCLA Alums for Campus Fairness – University of Michigan AMCHA Initiative America Israel Cooperative Enterprise American Council of Trustees and Alumni American Institute for Jewish Research American Jewish Congress American Society of the University of Haifa American Truth Project American Values American Zionist Movement Americans Fighting Antisemitism Americans for a Safe Israel Americans for Peace and Tolerance B’nai B’rith International BEAR: Bias Education, Advocacy & Resources Binghamton University Zionist Organization (BUZO) Bobcats for Israel at Ohio University Boston Israel Action Committee Brandeis Center for Human Rights Under Law Bulldogs for Israel (Brooklyn College) California Association of Scholars Campus Anti-Semitism Task Force of the North Shore Christians and Jews United for Israel Club Z Coalition for Jewish Values Committee for Accuracy in Middle East Reporting in America (CAMERA) Creative Community for Peace CUFI on Campus Dartmouth Students for Israel Davis Faculty for Israel Eagles Wings Endowment for Middle East Truth (EMET) Facts and Logic About the Middle East (FLAME) Grandchildren of Holocaust Survivors Hasbara Fellowships Hillel of Silicon Valley Hillels of Northern Nevada Institute for Black Solidarity with Israel Iranian American Jewish Federation Iranian Jewish Women’s Organization Israel in NYC Israel Matters Israel on Campus Coalition Israeli-American Civic Action Network Israeli-American Civic Education Institute Ithaca Area United Jewish Community JAM Jewish American Affairs Committee of Indiana Jewish War Veterans of the USA Jews Indigenous to the Middle East and North Africa (JIMENA) Mercaz USA Merrick-Bellmore Jewish Community Council Middle East Forum Middle East Political and Information Network (MEPIN) National Conference on Jewish Affairs National Council of Young Israel Nazareth College Hillel NCSY NH4Israel North Carolina Coalition for Israel North Carolina Hillel Northeastern Hillel Proclaiming Justice to the Nations Rabbinical Alliance of America Rhode Island Coalition for Israel Russian Jewish Community Foundation Santa Barbara Hillel Scholars for Peace in the Middle East Simon Wiesenthal Center Slugs for Israel (University of California Santa Cruz) StandWithUs StandWithUs Saidoff Legal Department Stop BDS on Campus Students and Parents Against Campus Anti-Semitism Students Supporting Israel at City College of New York Students Supporting Israel at Columbia Students Supporting Israel at Drake University Students Supporting Israel at San Jose State University Students Supporting Israel at UCLA Students Supporting Israel at University of Minnesota Students Supporting Israel at Wake Forest University Students Supporting Israel National Swarthmore Alums Against Antisemitism on Campus Swarthmore Students for Israel The Hillels of Israel The Israel Christian Nexus The Israel Group The Israel Project The Lawfare Project Tufts Friends of Israel University of New Mexico Hillel WoMen Fight Antisemitism World Jewish Congress, American Section Young Jewish Conservatives Zionist Organization of America ZOA’s Fuel for Truth