Nearly 2,000 signatories back calls to move the world’s top mathematical congress outside the US. Photo Credit: iStock/Neal McNeil
A petition for the relocation of the International Congress of Mathematicians (ICM) is circulating online, with signatories ready to boycott the event if it is staged in the US as planned.
The call for relocation hinges largely on the precedent set by the organising body, the International Mathematical Union (IMU), in not holding the congress in Russia in 2022. IMU had attributed the decision to Russia’s war on Ukraine, which the organiser said was “condemned worldwide, and made an in-person event in Russia impossible”.
The petition calling on IMU to reconsider holding the congress in Philadelphia has garnered more than 1,950 signatures at press time, and is endorsed by the Cuban Society of Mathematics and Computing. The list also includes more than 50 past congress speakers and other prominent names.
“Just as many mathematicians objected to Russia’s hosting of ICM on the basis of its invasion of Ukraine, we argue that the current American government disqualifies the US from hosting the ICM in 2026,” the petition reads, pointing to the US’ role in propagating instability or attacks in Venezuela, the Caribbean, Palestine, Greenland and now Iran.
Apart from the actions of the US around the world, travel restrictions and strong anti-immigrant sentiments within US borders pose serious concerns around safety and security.
With ICE agents empowered to stop and question civilians based on their racial appearance, international delegates face threats of harassment and physical violence, with the petition citing a string of cases indicating “systemic mistreatment of detainees”.
The petition reads: “Even if mathematicians from the 75 countries for which the current US administration has suspended visa processing are able to obtain conference visas, how can we expect such mathematicians to safely visit Philadelphia and engage fruitfully in the conference without fear of harm and unlawful detention? The IMU is irresponsible in its promotion of such risky behavior amongst the world's mathematicians, especially when over 40 countries have issued travel warnings to their citizens when traveling to and from the US.”
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Taking place every four years, ICM is today the foremost congress for the world’s mathematicians, and where the field’s most prestigious medal is awarded.
Having been around since 1897, the event has served as a historical barometer and microcosm of geopolitical tensions. The exclusion of Central Powers mathematicians after World War I cast a long shadow over early congresses, just as Cold War divisions influenced participation for decades. Both the St Petersburg and Philadelphia editions show how the congress continues to reflect the shifting fault lines of international relations as much as the frontiers of mathematics.
The meeting was last held in the US in 1986.