Congress: 107 · Status: active · Israel/Palestine classification: pro-Israel
Data (JSON) — machine-readable record of this bill (identifiers, sponsor, classification, actions, and the member-by-member vote breakdown).
Official record on Congress.gov — full text, actions, and cosponsor history for HRES 499.
Sponsor: Capuano, Michael E. (D-MA)
Expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that: (1) attempts to boycott Israeli scholars will neither advance truth nor achieve peace; (2) attempts to treat Israeli scholars as pariahs cannot fail to recall horrifying precedents such as the Nazi effort to "purify" German universities (make them "Judenrein") by expelling Jewish students and faculty and the Stalinist slaughter of Yiddish intellectuals; and (3) scholars in the United States and abroad are to be commended for their prompt and resolute defense of their Israeli colleagues and for their commitment to the free exchange of ideas.
A non-binding House resolution opposing academic boycotts of Israeli scientists and scholars. It states that such boycotts do not advance peace, compares them to Nazi and Soviet persecution of Jewish academics, and praises scholars who have defended Israeli colleagues.
This is a symbolic statement on the BDS (Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions) movement's academic component. It has no legal force but reflects House sentiment on restricting criticism of Israeli institutions and may influence future votes on related funding or research collaboration measures.