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The decision of the University and College Union congress to instigate a national debate on the question of whether it would be appropriate to boycott Israeli universities is condemned as an attack on academic freedom in your article ¡°Boycott opponents gain momentum¡± (June 15). On the same page, a much smaller piece records the decision to deny tenure to Norman Finkelstein following a campaign against him led by Alan Dershowitz.

Can someone tell us when we passed through the looking-glass into a world where attempting to discuss an issue constitutes an attack on academic freedom, while trying to deny employment to an academic because you disagree with him is acceptable?

David Alderson
Mike Sanders
Manchester University