Professor Refuses to Write Letter For Student Wanting To Study Abroad in Israel

On Monday, a professor at the University of Michigan reportedly refused to send a student’s letter of recommendation — after originally agreeing — because the student wished to study in Israel.

According to the Times of Israel, John Cheney-Lippold, an associate professor in the university’s Department of American Culture, offered to write a letter of recommendation for a student named Abigail to study abroad. After Cheney-Lippold found out which country she wished to study in, he sent Abigail an email telling her he could not write it because “many university departments have pledged an academic boycott against Israel in support of Palestinians living in Palestine,” adding “[t]his boycott includes writing letters of recommendation for students planning to study there.”