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Vote in the Referendum &
2022 MESA Nominating Committee Election


Deadline to submit your ballot:

12:00 Noon EDT on March 22, 2022
 
Vote Now

All full 2022 MESA Members (fellows and students) are asked to cast their votes on the proposed resolution, and in the 2022 Nominating Committee Election.

At the 2021 Members Meeting, members voted to advance a resolution endorsing the Palestinian call for solidarity in the form of boycotts, divestment and sanctions, or BDS, to a full membership vote. The full text of the resolution is provided below. Voting members are called to cast their vote on whether to accept the resolution. The result shall be decided by the majority.


The 2022 Nominating Committee will be responsible for identifying candidates for President-Elect and for two positions on MESA's Board of Directors.
 
Eligibility: Only current-year Full members (Fellows, Students, and Honorary Fellows) are eligible to vote. This is an opportunity to select the nominators of the candidates who will be elected later this year as directors of our association. One ballot per eligible voting member is allowed. You must be a current MESA member for 2022 to vote; your membership status will be verified.
 
Instructions: You may vote only once. Please select up to five candidates among the fellows, and one candidate among the students. The five fellows receiving the most votes and the one student receiving the most votes will serve on the committee. If you would prefer a mail ballot, please request one from Sara Palmer at 
sara@mesana.org.

Deadline: to be counted, your ballots must arrive at the office of the Secretariat by no later than Tuesday, March 22, 2022 at Noon Eastern Time (US).

Fellows
Seth Anziska
Kathryn Babayan
Ayşe Baltacıoğlu-Brammer
Fadi Bardawil
Antoine Borrut
Lale Can
Jennifer Derr
Roberta Dougherty
Brahim El Guabli
Noura Erakat
Susanna Ferguson
Elizabeth Holt
Loren Lybarger
Mezna Qato
Dana Sajdi
Jeannie Sowers
Students
Tariq Adely
Faisal Abdulhassan
Ezgi Cakmak
Deren Ertas
Maral Sahebjame
Candidate Bios
Resolution on BDS

Whereas, Palestinian civil society issued a call in 2005 for boycott, divestment, and sanctions (BDS) against Israel; and

Whereas, Members of the Middle East Studies Association (MESA) have organized various forums for discussion and debate of that call through MESA's commitment to academic freedom; and

Whereas, International intergovernmental organizations and non-governmental organizations, including Palestinian and Israeli monitoring groups, have documented and verified successive Israeli governments’ systematic violations of the human rights of Palestinians living under Israeli direct or indirect control; and

Whereas, Systematic violations include restricting freedom of movement for Palestinians; isolating, undermining, or otherwise attacking Palestinian educational institutions; harassing Palestinian professors, teachers, and students; harassing Israeli professors and students criticizing Israeli policies; destroying, confiscating, or otherwise rendering Palestinian archival material inaccessible; and maintaining inequality in educational resources between Palestinians and Israelis; and

Whereas, Israeli universities are imbricated in these systematic violations through their provision of direct assistance to the Israeli military and intelligence establishments; and

Whereas, The United States government has systematically shielded successive Israeli governments from being held accountable for such violations and facilitated them through unprecedented diplomatic, military, and economic support; and
 
Recalling that the BDS campaign against Israel is one that targets institutions and not individuals; and

Recalling that MESA recognizes the right of scholars to academic freedom as well as the right of scholars to choose whether or not to participate in an academic boycott;

Be it resolved that the majority of the MESA membership

(1) Endorses the 2005 call of Palestinian civil society for BDS against Israel; and
(2) Directs the MESA Board of Directors to work in consultation with the Committee on Academic Freedom to give effect to the spirit and intent of this resolution, in a manner consistent with MESA’s bylaws as well as relevant US federal, state, and local laws.
 
A note from the Secretariat regarding unsolicited messages
 
It has come to our attention that third parties have targeted some current, former, or assumed MESA members by phone or email regarding the referendum. Please be assured that MESA has not shared any personal contact information. Current and former members are under no obligation to respond to such inquiries, which can be directed to the MESA Secretariat.



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