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1
SENATE JOINT RESOLUTION

 
2    WHEREAS, Freedom of thought and expression is at the heart
3of our academic communities; boycotts of academic institutions
4threaten the free flow of ideas that is the lifeblood of the
5worldwide community of scholars; and
 
6    WHEREAS, Students of the State of Illinois need to have
7access to a global education, which is prohibited by academic
8boycotts of any particular country; and
 
9    WHEREAS, Singling out one nation for a boycott on purported
10human rights grounds, while ignoring nations with egregious
11human rights records, is a disturbing trend among some segments
12of the scholarly world, and, in the context of unfairly
13targeting only the nation of Israel, further raises questions
14of anti-Semitism; and
 
15    WHEREAS, Numerous university presidents in Illinois,
16including the presidents of DePaul University, Northwestern
17University, the University of Chicago, and the University of
18Illinois system, including the University of Illinois campuses
19at Urbana-Champaign, Chicago, and Springfield, have publicly
20condemned and rejected a recent resolution proposing an
21academic boycott of Israeli institutions; therefore, be it
 

 

 

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1    RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE NINETY-EIGHTH GENERAL
2ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
3CONCURRING HEREIN, that we call upon all college and university
4presidents in Illinois to publicly condemn academic boycotts
5because of the threat it proposes to academic freedom, access
6to international education for the students of Illinois, and
7opportunities for scholarly exchange and joint research
8projects for Illinois universities and their faculty members;
9and be it further
 
10    RESOLVED, That we commend those university presidents who
11have spoken out against academic boycotts of recognized global
12institutions of learning.