Joseph Massad, a Palestinian Christian, is professor of modern Arab politics and intellectual history at Columbia University. His latest book is Islam in Liberalism (University of Chicago Press) (see: http://electronicintifada.net/content/recognizing-palestine-bds-and-survival-israel/14123 and http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joseph_Massad ).
Joseph Massad on pragmatic European subversion of BDS to permit continued gross violation of Palestinian rights after ending the Occupation (2014): “Due to the continued absence of an independent, representative and unified Palestinian liberation movement capable of articulating a coherent strategy and leading the struggle for liberation, BDS will continue, contrary to PACBI’s [Palestinian Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel] stated goals, to be utilized at best as a “threat” to Israel to end its 1967 occupation. This is nothing short of a smokescreen to perpetuate Israel’s other forms of colonial control over historic Palestine and the Palestinians and to preserve its institutionalized and legal racism.
Rather than call on the international community to adopt BDS without an explicit commitment to its goals, Palestinians must insist that those in solidarity with them adopt BDS as a strategy and not as a goal, in order to bring about an end to Israel’s racism and colonialism in all its forms inside and outside the 1948 boundaries.
Otherwise, BDS can and will be used to strengthen the Jewish settler-colony and the Israeli liberal project that backs it.” [1].
[1]. Joseph Massad, “Recognizing Palestine, BDS and the survival of Israel”, Electronic Intifada, 16 December 2014: http://electronicintifada.net/content/recognizing-palestine-bds-and-survival-israel/14123 .