{"article":{"id":295406,"heading":"UPDATED: List of 200+ U.S. BDS Victories!","author":"Palestine Advocacy idVer:5faf31900cec515c9d59","created":"2017-06-05 05:30:13","modified":"2017-06-18 23:47:46","last_modified":"Mon, 19 Jun 2017 06:47:46","article":"https:\/\/uscpr.org\/usbdsvictories\/<\/a>
BDS @ 11
Eleven Years, 150 US Victories
http:\/\/endtheoccupation.org\/usbdsvictories<\/a>
May 14 2017
UPDATED: List of 200+ U.S. BDS Victories!
(Last updated May 2017)
By popular demand, below is a list of U.S. Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) Victories, originally released to commemorate ten years since Palestinian civil society issued the call for BDS.
Do you see something missing, or that needs to be changed? With victories unfolding daily, this is a work in progress. Click here to submit new victories or changes! (U.S. victories only) https:\/\/docs.google.com\/forms\/d\/1wwwelg00qnaZUQDE5_wMRwMaePKWLQpmlnTtNUlj7qY\/viewform<\/a>
Campus Victories
(See also Academic Boycott & Campus Labor Victories, listed separately)
May 10, 2017 – Associated Students, Inc. Senate at Cal State University – Long Beach (CSULB) passes resolution to divest from Israel – Long Beach, California
April 25, 2017 – University of California at Riverside Student Senate calls for divestment – Riverside, California
April 19, 2017 – Pitzer College passes new bylaws prohibiting use of student funds for companies or products associated with Israeli occupation – Claremont, California
April 9, 2017 – Tufts Community Union Senate passes divestment – Medford, Massachusetts
March 21, 2017 – Sacramento City College becomes first city college to pass divestment resolution – Sacramento, California
March 15, 2017 – De Anza becomes first Community College Student Senate to pass divestment – Cupertino, California
March 3, 2017 – University of South Florida students pass referendum to divest from Israeli apartheid, fossil fuels, private prisons, human rights violations – Tampa, Florida
February 2, 2017 – University of California at Riverside Associated Students vote unanimously to remove Israeli military-associated company Sabra hummus from campus – Riverside, California
November 13, 2016 – Manchester University — home of first Peace Studies in world — Student Senate votes unanimously in support of BDS, divestment – North Manchester, Indiana
October 26, 2016 – Associated Students of Portland State University Pass Divestment Resolution In Support of Palestinian Human Rights – Portland, Oregon
May 31, 2016 – Evergreen State College students vote to condemn the presence of Caterpillar equipment on campus – Olympia, Washington
May 31, 2016 – Overwhelming 73.9% Vote by Evergreen State College Students to Deshelve Sabra Hummus on Campus – Olympia, Washington
May 19, 2016 – University of Wisconsin at Madison Graduate Student Union Endorses BDS – Madison, Wisconsin
May 17, 2016 – Religious Studies Scholars Endorse BDS
April 26, 2016 – University of California at Merced Student Government Passes Divestment Resolution – Merced, California
April 12, 2016 – University of Minnesota student government passes divestment – Minneapolis, Minnesota
April 12, 2016 – University of Chicago College Council Votes to Divest from Israeli Apartheid – Chicago, Illinois
April 4, 2016 – Rutgers University-Newark Student Governing Association Passes Divestment Resolution – Newark, NJ
April 2, 2016 – University of Indianapolis Student Senate passes resolution to divest from companies profiting from occupation, deshelve Sabra hummus – Indianapolis, IN
March 6, 2016 – Vassar Student Association Passes Resolution Endorsing the BDS Movement – Arlington, NY
February 22, 2016 – Thirty Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis Faculty and Staff Group Endorses Boycott of Israel – Indianapolis, IN
February 16, 2016 – University of Illinois at Chicago Undergraduate Student Government Assembly Passes Divestment Resolution Unanimously – Chicago, Illinois
January 19, 2016 – University of South Florida Student Government Senate Passes Joint Resolution for Divestment – Tampa, Florida
November 18, 2015 – San Jose State University Students Pass Resolution to Divest from Corporations that profit from the Israeli Occupation – San Jose, California
June 22, 2015 – Columbia University divests from private prisons including G4S, following coalition-led campaign – Manhattan, New York
April 30, 2015 – Oglethorpe University student goverment passes resolution to divest from Israeli occupation – Atlanta, Georgia
April 29, 2015 – Princeton graduate students pass divestment referendum – Princeton, New Jersey
April 22, 2015 – Earlham Student Senate passes resolution in support of divestment from Israeli occupation – Richmond, Indiana
April 16, 2015 – Wesleyan University president agrees to divest university from prisons as first step when Wesleyan students call for divestment from fossil fuels, prisons, and Israeli occupation – Middletown, Connecticut
March 25, 2015 – Student Government of Loyola Chicago passes resolution to divest – Chicago, Illinois
March 2, 2015 – Toledo student government calls for University divestment by margin of 21:4 – Toledo, Ohio
February 19, 2015 – Northwestern University Student Government calls for university divestment – Evanston, Illinois
February 17, 2015 – Stanford divestment passes in a landslide victory – Stanford, California
February 8, 2015 – University of California Student Association — representing hundreds of thousands of UC students statewide — endorses call for UC divestment in support of Palestinian rights – State of California
May 29, 2015 – University of California at Davis Associated Students pass divestment bill – Davis, California
December 5, 2014 – Wesleyan University Dining Facilities Remove Sabra Following Successful Boycott Campaign – Middletown, Connecticut
November, 2014 – University of California at Los Angeles undergraduate student government passes divestment resolution – Los Angeles, California
August 9-10, 2014 – United Students Against Sweatshops Endorses BDS
May 28, 2014 – University of California at Santa Cruz student government passes divestment resolution – Santa Cruz, California
May 23, 2014 – DePaul student body votes for divestment despite Israeli government interference – Chicago, Illinois
May, 2014 – Wesleyan Students Association divests its student endowment from Israeli occupation, calls for full university divestment – Middletown, Connecticut
April, 2014 – More than 10,000 Univ. of South Florida students call for divestment — largest petition in state’s history – Tampa, Florida
April, 2014 – University of New Mexico Graduate & Professional Student Association vote for divestment from companies involved in human rights violations in Palestine and on U.S.-Mexico border – Albuquerque, New Mexico
May 5, 2013 – Oberlin College Student Senate passes divestment Resolution – Oberlin, OH
April, 2013 – University of California at Berkeley Student Senate passes divestment – Berkeley, California
March 7, 2013 – University of California at Riverside Associated Students Council pass resolution calling for divestment – Riverside, California
March, 2013 – University of California at San Diego Associated Students Council pass resolution calling for divestment – San Diego, California
November 14, 2012 – Brown University Advisory Committee on Corporate Responsibility in Investment Policies calls on Brown Corporation to divest from the Israeli occupation – Providence, Rhode Island
November, 2012 – University of California at Irvine Associated Students unanimously pass resolution urging divestment from companies that profit from Israel’s occupation of Palestine – Irvine, California
September 2012 – Swarthmore College Deshelves Sabra Following Student Petition – Philadelphia, PA
September 5, 2012 – Earlham College Dining Services Stops Selling Sabra in Response to Student and Faculty Concerns – Richmond, Indiana
June 5, 2012 – Arizona State University Student Government Votes to Divest from Israel – Tempe, Arizona
June 4, 2012 – The Evergreen State College Flaming Eggplant Cafe Announces Boycott of Israeli Products – Olympia, Washington
April 18, 2012 – UMass-Boston Student Government passes resolution to divest from Boeing – Boston, Massachusetts
March 30 , 2012 – National Movimiento Estudiantil Chican@ de Aztlán (MEChA) Endorses Palestinian Boycott of Israel
May\/November, 2011 – Majority of DePaul students vote to boycott Sabra Hummus; force ethical alternatives offered – Chicago, Illinois
June 2, 2010 – Evergreen State College student body votes for boycott of Caterpillar equipment, becoming “CAT-free campus”; Student Senate votes unanimously to support BDS
Spring, 2010 – Evergreen State College Student Body votes for divestment from companies involved in Israeli occupation – Olympia, Washington
February 12, 2009 – Hampshire College becomes first campus to divest from the Israeli occupation – Amherst, Massachusetts
2005, 2006, 2010, 2014 – University of Michigan at Dearborn Student Government passes divestment resolution – Dearborn, Michigan
April, 2003 – Wayne State University student council votes for divestiture – Detroit, Michigan
Cultural Boycott
(See joint Cultural\/Academic Boycott victories listed below under Academic Boycott)
February 23, 2017 – U.S. Literary Festival PEN America proceeds without Israeli government sponsorship following appeals from leading writers – National
February 22, 2017 – Oscars Celebrities #Skipthetrip to Israel – National
February 9, 2017 – Super Ball star Michael Bennett boycotts trip to Israel, says he won’t be used by Israel – National
December, 2015 – American journalist Doug Henwood refuses to have his book on Hillary Clinton translated into Hebrew
July, 2015 – Thurstoj Moore of Sonic Youth endorses BDS
June 19-21, 2015 – Three Queer Cultural Organizations Cut Ties with Frameline SF International LGBT Film Festival Over Israeli Sponsorship – San Francisco, California
June, 2015 – Queer Women of Color Media Arts Project Announces Support for BDS, boycotts Frameline LGBT Festival – San Francisco, California
May 4, 2015 – Lauryn Hill cancels performance in Israel in response to calls for boycott
May, 2015 – Black Lives Matter Co-founder Patrisse Cullors endorses BDS
October, 2014 – Musician and Poet Boots Riley of The Coup endorses the call for the cultural and academic boycott of Israel
October, 2014 – Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist and MacArthur “genius award” recipient Junot Diaz endorses BDS
May 26, 2014 – American Rapper Talib Kweli cancels Israel gig
April 7, 2014 – Milwaukee People’s Books Coop endorses BDS – Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Spring, 2014 – Public Enemy’s Chuck D endorses BDS
August 14, 2013 – Influential jazz drummer Chris Daddy Dave cancels participation in Red Sea Jazz Festival
July 11, 2013 – Rock band The Killers pulls out of of Tel Aviv concert
November 29, 2012 – Stevie Wonder cancels performance for Friends of Israeli Defense Forces in response to calls for boycott
October, 2012 – Hip Hop duo Rebel Diaz cancel performance at Creative Time Summit, 2012, due to sponsorship by Israeli government-funded institution
June 21, 2013 – Mira Nair boycotts Haifa Film Festival
June 20, 2012 – Pulitzer Prize-winning author Alice Walker refuses permission to Israeli publisher, Yedhiot Books, to publish The Color Purple
March, 2012 – Seattle LGBT Commission Cancels “Pinkwashing” Event Sponsored by Israeli Consulate (Events in Olympia and Tacoma Also Canceled) – Seattle, Olympia, and Tacoma, Washington
February, 2012 – Singer-songwriter Cat Power cancels Tel Aviv concert
February, 2012 – American jazz singer Cassandra Wilson cancels performance at Holon International Women’s Festival
February, 2012 – American Indie Pop Band “The Pains of Being Pure at Heart” cancels Tel Aviv show
January, 2012 – Tune-Yards band cancels gig in Israel; Merrill Garbus, lead singer, is a signatory of the Artists Against Israeli Apartheid pledge
Summer, 2011 – 11 Indigenous and Women of Color Feminists, including prominent intellectual & activist Angela Davis, unequivocally endorse BDS
June, 2011 – Basketball legend and actor Kareem Abdul-Jabbar cancels visit to Israel in response to “Nakba Day violence”
April, 2011 – Washington University Hip-Hop Program Revokes Invitation to Israeli Cultural Ambassador – St. Louis, Missouri
July 7, 2010 – Dustin Hoffman & Meg Ryan pull out of 2010 Film Festival after Mavi Marmara massacre
June, 2010 – Carlos Santana cancels concert in Tel Aviv following boycott calls
June, 2010 – The Pixies cancel concert in wake of Mavi Marmara massacre
May, 2010 – Renowned American poet and musician Gil Scott-Heron cancels concert in Israel
November, 2009 – New Orleans Theatre Zeitgeist signs on to BDS guidelines– New Orleans, Louisiana
August 17, 2009 – Amnesty International Withdraws from Leonard Cohen’s Israel Concert Fund
December 2008 – Stars’ Photos Removed from Leviev Website as Celebs Seek Distance from Rights Abuser
July 23, 2008 – Snoop Dogg cancels performance in Israel
Academic Boycott
April 15, 2016 – CUNY Graduate Students Vote for Academic Boycott of Israel – New York, NY
November 27, 2015 – National Women’s Studies Association Members Join the BDS Movement
November 21, 2015 – American Anthropological Association (AAA) Conference Passes BDS Resolution with 88% Majority
April, 2015 – National Association of Chicana and Chicano Studies endorses boycott of Israeli academic institutions
January 14, 2014 & November 10, 2015 – Green Party of the U.S. defends and endorses ASA and AAA boycotts of Israeli academic institutions
November 15, 2014 – Peace and Justice Studies Association endorses BDS – International
July 18, 2014 – Critical Ethnic Studies Association passes BDS resolution supporting academic boycott – International
December 15, 2013 – Native American and Indigenous Studies Association endorses boycott of Israeli academic institutions
December, 2013 – American Studies Association endorses academic boycott of Israel by sweeping majority membership vote after national council passes unanimously
October 24, 2013 – Association for Humanist Sociology Votes to Support the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel – International
April, 2013 – General Membership of Association for Asian American Studies votes to support academic boycott of Israel
September, 2012 – Prominent academic Judith Butler reaffirms support for BDS
May 4, 2012 – Columbia University Prof. Franke boycotts conference with “featured nation” Israel & Israeli Ambassador keynote speech
November, 2009 – Prominent intellectual Sarah Schulman boycotts Lesbian & Gay Studies conference at Tel Aviv
Faith-Based Actions
January 19, 2017 – Majilis Ash-Shura \/ Islamic Leadership Council of New York endorse BDS – New York, New York
December 10, 2016 – Pax Christi International endorses BDS – International
August 13, 2016 – Evangelical Lutheran Church in America Overwhelmingly Passes Investment Screen
August 13, 2016 – Evangelical Lutheran Church in America Votes 82% Against Unconditional U.S. Aid to Israel
April 10, 2016 – Alliance of Baptists Divests from Companies Profiting from Israel’s Occupation of Palestinian Land
April 7, 2016 – Unitarian Universalists Divest from Companies Profiting from Israel’s Occupation
March 30, 2016 – Catholic Conference of Major Superiors of Men Calls for Boycott of Illegal Settlements
January, 2016 – United Methodist Church Excludes Top 5 Israeli Banks for Involvement in Illegal Settlements
December 2015 – United Methodist Church declares Israeli company Elbit Systems, long excluded for weapons production, also ineligible for investment due to involvement in human rights violations
June 30, 2015 – United Church of Christ General Synod votes overwhelmingly to boycott and divest from Israeli occupation
June, 2015 – National Council of Fellowship of Reconciliation Unanimously Endorses BDS
July 31, 2014 – No Más Muertes endorses Palestinian call for BDS
June 20, 2014 – Presbyterian Church (USA) General Assembly divests from companies involved in Israeli occupation
June 12, 2014 – United Methodist Church divests from G4S in response to role in Israeli prisons
Winter 2013\/2014 – United Methodist Church General Board of Church and Society Boycotts Sodastream
March 16, 2013 – Mennonite Central Committee unanimously adopts AFSC 29-company no-buy list for divestment
18 Victories spanning 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015 – 18 Quaker Meetings Across 15 States Endorse Boycott, Divestment, and, in some cases, Both
September, 2012 – Quaker Friends Fiduciary Corporation divests from HP, Veolia
July, 2012 – Presbyterian Church (USA) General Assembly votes to boycott settlement products
May, 2012 – United Methodist Church General Conference votes to boycott settlement products
May, 2012 – Quaker Friends Fiduciary Corporation divests from Caterpillar
June, 2010 – Presbyterian Church (USA) General Assembly calls for U.S. Government to place sanctions on military assistance to Israel
March 8, 2008 – American Friends Service Committee approves Israel-Palestine Investment Screen
October 21, 2007 – National Coalition of American Nuns Publicly Urges Boycott of Caterpillar
Summer, 2005 – United Church of Christ General Synod calls for the use of Economic Leverage — including ending military aid and divestment — to promote peace in Middle East
Dozens of Victories spanning 2005 – 2015 – 18 United Methodist Church Annual Conferences — representing thousands of churches and hundreds of thousands of members — adopt 30 resolutions and statements calling for divestment; several divest their own conference funds
Pensions & Other Investment Funds
(Not otherwise listed above)
August 3, 2014 – Soros Fund Management drops SodaStream
June 6, 2014 – Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation divests from G4S
Between July and November, 2013 – Pension giant TIAA-CREF divests Social Choice fund from Veolia
Between March and August, 2013 – TIAA-CREF divests from SodaStream
July, 2012 – Abigail Disney renounces shares of Ahava
June, 2012 – Morgan Stanley Capital International removes Caterpillar from socially responsible companies list
May\/June, 2012 – Pension giant TIAA-CREF divests Social Choice fund from Caterpillar
September 12, 2009 – TIAA-CREF divests from Africa-Israel company due to violations of “human rights and international law”
Boycotting & De-Shelving Israeli Products
(Many more listed above in other sections)
April 21, 2014 – Earth Day Network cuts ties with Sodastream
July, 2014 – Cambridge fixture Pemberton Farms stops selling Sabra following Boston BDS campaign – Cambridge, Massachusetts
2014 – Balady Foods deshelves Sabra hummus – Brooklyn, New York
January 24, 2014 – KQED Public Radio Pulls SodaStream from Gifts to Donors – Bay Area, California
January, 2014 – Hollywood Star Scarlett Johansson resigns as Oxfam International Global Ambassador due to deal with Sodastream
December, 2013 – Harvest Coop deshelves Sabra following boycott Boston BDS campaign – Cambridge and Boston, Massachusetts
January, 2012 – Lincoln-Way High School deshelves Sabra hummus – Chicago, Illinois
March, 2011 – National Cathedral gift store affiliated with Episcopal Church removes Ahava products after complaints from patrons – Washington, DC
July 15, 2010 – Olympia Food Co-op removes Israeli goods from shelves; first US store to institute boycott – Olympia, Washington
January 18, 2010 – Costco stops selling Ahava
Municipal & State Victories
April 6, 2017 – Portland City Council Permanently Halts All Investments in Private Corporations Following Historic Campaign – Portland, Oregon
December 21, 2016 – In Historic Vote, City of Portland Votes to Temporarily Cease Investments in All Corporate Securities Including Occupation Profiteer Caterpillar and Prison Profiteer Wells Fargo – Portland, Oregon
July 19, 2016 – City of Berkeley divests from G4S – Berkeley, CA
Spring 2016 – Denver Water Board Drops G4S Following BDS Campaign – Denver, CO
March 17, 2016 – Portland’s Socially Responsible Investment Committee Recommends City Boycott of Caterpillar – Portland, OR
January 2016 – Delaware Neighbors Against the Occupation Defeats Anti-BDS Bill – New Castle County, DE
October 12, 2015 – Portland Human Rights Commission Unanimously Endorses Placing 4 Companies on No-Buy List, First Step Towards Becoming Occupation Free City – Portland, Oregon
April, 2015 – Oregon Dept of Justice Mandates that SodaStream Change Misleading Product Labels – Portland, Oregon
December 3, 2014 – Baltimore Rejects Veolia following coalition campaign – Baltimore, Maryland
November, 2014 – Durham severs ties with G4S – Durham, North Carolina
January 8, 2014 – Veolia loses Massachusetts commuter rail contract – Boston, Massachusetts
October 29, 2013 – St. Louis Dumps Veolia – St. Louis, Missouri
January, 2013 – Veolia Withdraws from California Water Contract Bidding -Yolo County (Woodland and Davis), California
Corporate Announcements
(Not listed elsewhere)
December 2, 2016 – Following years of BDS campaigns, G4S ends most illegal business in Israel, sells most Israel business – International
March 9, 2016 – Ahava Announces Factory Relocation Outside of Occupied West Bank
August 28, 2015 – Veolia divests completely from Israeli market
October 29, 2014 – SodaStream moves factory out of Palestinian West Bank
Labor, Diplomatic, & Other
August 1, 2016 – Movement for Black Lives Platform Calls for BDS
June 6, 2016 – Green Party Candidate for President Endorses BDS
April 22, 2016 – New York University Graduate Employee Union Becomes First Private University Labor Union to Support Full BDS – New York, NY
April 14, 2016 – UMass Amherst Graduate Employee Union (UAW) Overwhelmingly Endorses BDS – Amherst, Massachusetts
October 22, 2015 – Connecticut AFL-CIO Convention Calls on National Federation to Adopt BDS – Connecticut
August 16-20, 2015 – United Electrical, Radio and Machine Workers (UE) Becomes First National Union in U.S. to Endorse BDS
August, 2015 – Over 1,000 Black activists, artists, scholars, students and organizations sign Black Solidarity Statement with Palestine, endorsing BDS
March 3, 2015 – 60 U.S. elected officials publicly #SkiptheSpeech by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, effectively boycotting him
December 10, 2014 – Members of University of California Graduate Student-Worker’s Union UAW 2865 ratify resolution to join BDS movement – State of California
November, 2014 – Dream Defenders endorse BDS at National Conference
Fall, 2014 – West Coast “Block the Boat” Port Actions Prevent Zim Lines from Docking – West Coast
July 7, 2010 – California International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) Local 10 Branch refuses to unload Israeli cargo ship – Oakland, California
October, 2008 – Oxfam International publicly denounces donor Lev Leviev due to support for Israeli settlements
June 21, 2008 – UNICEF severs ties with Israeli mogul Lev Leviev over settlement building
November 28, 2005 – Greens, Calling for Palestinian Rights, Urge Divestment from Israel
Do you see something missing? Click here to let us know so we can add it! (U.S. only please) https:\/\/docs.google.com\/forms\/d\/1wwwelg00qnaZUQDE5_wMRwMaePKWLQpmlnTtNUlj7qY\/viewform<\/a>
Thanks also to the BDS National Committee, Global Exchange Economic Activism for Palestine, American Friends Service Committee,Electronic Intifada, Steering Committee member Rahim Kurwa, and Rob Flahive for their research, reporting, and other contributions making this list possible.\n","contact":"","link":"https:\/\/uscpr.org\/usbdsvictories\/","address":"","phone":"","parent_id":0,"mime_type":"text\/plain","summary":"By popular demand, below is a list of U.S. Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) Victories, originally released to commemorate ten years since Palestinian civil society issued the call for BDS.","numcomment":4,"fileurl":"\/uploads\/","filesize":null,"article_url":"\/news\/2017\/06\/295406.php"},"attachments":[],"comments":[{"id":295433,"heading":"Incredibly Misleady","article":"This list is very misleading and close to fraudulent. Not a single university has "divested" from Israel, even though some student senates have voted to. Other "victories' listed here (Tiaa-Cref and caterpillar) are just wrong.\r\n\r\nTiaa-Cref has over $3.4 million invested in Caterpillar in their Social Choice Equity Fund. \r\n\r\nThe authors of this list need to work on their fact checking","author":"andy","parent_id":295406,"mime_type":"image\/jpeg","created":"2017-06-17 14:43:19","modified":"2017-06-17 14:43:19","fileurl":"http:\/\/la.indymedia.org\/\/uploads\/2017\/06\/untitled__1_.jpg","image":{"original":"http:\/\/la.indymedia.org\/\/uploads\/2017\/06\/untitled__1_.jpg"}},{"id":295434,"heading":"This is a BDS fail","article":""Hollywood Star Scarlett Johansson resigns as Oxfam International Global Ambassador due to deal with Sodastream "\r\n\r\nAn A list Hollywood star and role model to millions decided her support of Sodastream took precedence over her relationship with a non-profit. She CHOSE to work with Israel instead of Oxfam.\r\n\r\nThats a fail for BDS, not a victory Nice spin, though","author":"Andy","parent_id":295406,"mime_type":"text\/plain","created":"2017-06-17 14:47:50","modified":"2017-06-17 14:47:50","fileurl":""},{"id":295436,"heading":"BDS started in 2001","article":"BDS began as a tactic at the Durban, SA conference in 2001. So the real question you need to be asking is are we any closer to peace after 16 years of #BDS?","author":"16 years of BDS","parent_id":295406,"mime_type":"text\/plain","created":"2017-06-17 15:41:23","modified":"2017-06-17 15:41:23","fileurl":""},{"id":295447,"heading":"Pitzer was overturned","article":"Pitzer College Board of Trustees Overturns Student Government Pro-BDS Vote\r\n\r\nThe Pitzer College board of trustees announced on Friday that, following \u201ccareful consideration,\u201d it had decided to \u201crescind\u2026and declare\u2026to be of no effect\u201d a student government vote held during Passover to add an anti-Israel boycott into its bylaws.\r\n\r\nThe decision, made public in an email sent to the campus community, overturned the student senate amendment prohibiting the use of Student Activities Funds \u201cto make payments on goods and services from any corporation or organization associated with the illegal occupation of Palestinian territories, as first delineated by the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) movement.\u201d Those companies included Caterpillar, SodaStream, Ahava Dead Sea Laboratories, Hewlett-Packard and Sabra.\r\n\r\nAs The Algemeiner reported, Jewish students felt \u201cambushed\u201d by the vote, particularly given that many concerned parties were off campus to observe Passover and Easter.\r\n\r\nThe Pitzer trustees explained their decision in their email:\r\n\r\nWe note that the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is among the most complex, emotional and divisive issues of our time, and is one on which the College has not taken a position. Students and other members of the Pitzer community, from all faiths and backgrounds, represent the full spectrum of viewpoints on this challenging issue\u2026\r\n\r\nStudent Activities Funds are derived from mandatory fees the College levies upon all students. Consequently, the Board expects the Student Senate to remain neutral in determining the organizations it recognizes and funds, the amount of funding allocated to each organization, and any restrictions imposed on such funds.\r\n\r\n[The BDS amendment] however, applies a particular point of view on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in restricting the use of Student Activities Funds by all Student Senate-approved student groups. In so doing, [the amendment] inappropriately curtails the funds usage rights of all such groups, including those that may have a different perspective.\r\n\r\nIn Pitzer\u2019s 54-year history, the Board has consistently supported Student Senate autonomy over the funds allocated to it by the College. However, the Board will not permit College assets to be restricted in order to endorse a point of view that is not the College\u2019s and that, in the Board\u2019s opinion, does not align with Pitzer\u2019s commitment to inclusion and respect for diverse viewpoints.\r\n\r\nIn the days immediately before the start of the Passover holiday, the student government at Tufts University also passed a pro-BDS motion in a landslide vote, leaving some in the Jewish community feeling \u201cbetrayed\u201d by their peers. Tufts\u2019 trustees also announced soon afterwards that the resolution would have no effect on the university\u2019s endowment.","author":"BDS fail","parent_id":295406,"mime_type":"text\/plain","created":"2017-06-18 23:47:47","modified":"2017-06-18 23:47:47","fileurl":""}]}