“ASA right to support Palestinian equality” by Yasmeen Serhan

The Dec. 16 vote by the American Studies Association to boycott Israeli academic institutions has been met with widespread criticism, with many university presidents — including USC’s own President C. L. Max Nikias — publicly denouncing the boycott. Most of this criticism, however, is based on a flawed understanding of what the boycott is all about.
As the ASA’s public statement reads, the academic boycott seeks to protest “the illegal occupation of Palestine, and the infringements of the right to education of Palestinian students and the academic freedom of Palestinian scholars and students in the West Bank, Gaza and Israel.”
Such a resolution is not an attack on academic freedom. Rather, it is precisely the repeated denial of scholarly freedom to Palestinians living under occupation that makes such a resolution all the more necessary.

The Daily Trojan
University of Southern California

“Depression is not punishment for inferiority, weakness” by Tyler Pike

By last spring term I had defeated my year-long struggle with depression. I say this not to brag about the fact, or to draw attention to myself, but to illustrate the point of this column: We shouldn’t be afraid to talk about depression.
We don’t all have to display it in a public forum like the Barometer, but depression should not be a taboo subject. It shouldn’t be something to be ashamed of, or scared of.
It is simply a mental health issue, no different than how medical issues can affect a specific part of your body — your heart, lungs, nervous system, etc.
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A support system will help you tremendously in your journey through depression, and will become a source of strength and hope.
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Seek help if you need it.

The Daily Barometer
Oregon State University

“Religious beliefs aren’t a justification for denying emergency contraceptives” by Andrea Harvey

The issue here is not the ethics behind the emergency contraceptives that have saved many women from further trauma in cases of sexual assault. The issue is not even the regulation or responsibilities of small businesses. It’s reasonable to allow private business owners to refuse service to a patient based on moral grounds.
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The fact of the matter is that everyone has a right to their own moral beliefs, even business owners. And they have the right to express those beliefs, but not when the product or service they’re providing is essential to someone’s health ­— whether it be physical or cognitive.

The Daily Emerald
University of Oregon