Academic, Cultural, Sporting and other individuals and organisations supporting Palestine
Boycott and divestment actions of academics, academic institutions, student organisations, artists, musicians, literary figures,
sporting organisations and other individuals in protest against the policies and actions of the state of Israel
Canada
-
Association pour une Solidarite Syndicale Etudiante (ASSE). Quebec. 6/08
The federation, representing over 42,000 students throughout the province of Quebec, voted to join the anti- apartheid boycott campaign following workshops organized by Quebec's largest college-level teachers union and the Quebec Public Interest Research Group. The campaign marks a challenge to Canada's Conservative government's support for Israel and its occupation of the West Bank. www.electronicintifada.net/v2/article9599
-
Carleton University, Canada. 1/10
A student group called Students Against Israeli Apartheid has issued a call for Carleton University to divest from five companies it says are supporting and profiting from Israel's occupation of Palestinian land: Northrup- Grumman, BAE Systems, Tesco, Motorola, and L-3 Communications. http://globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=17323
-
L'Association pour une SolidaritÈ Syndicale …tudiante (ASS…), Quebec. 5/08
L'Association pour une SolidaritÈ Syndicale …tudiante (ASS…) is an important Quebec-wide student federation representing over 42,000 students. ASS… voted to support the international campaign against Israeli apartheid at a Quebec-wide level in May 2008, after several local assemblies at universities and college campuses across the province voted within general student assemblies to support the boycott campaign. ASS…'s boycott resolution marks the first time that a major student union in Quebec or Canada has voted to support the international boycott campaign opposing Israeli apartheid. http://bdsmovement.net/?q=node/141
-
Solidarity for Palestinian Human Rights, University of Ottawa. 1/10, 2/10
The student group hosted a forum entitled 'The Economic Crisis in Palestine' in January 2010. In addition to its Ottawa chapter and its national chapter in Canada, SPHR has chapters at Carleton, Concordia, Queen's, Western and Waterloo. The Carleton and Ottawa chapters took part in Israeli Apartheid Week in February 2010. http://sphrottawa.blogspot.com/
-
Students Against Israeli Apartheid - Carleton, Ottawa. 11/09
In Ottawa, Students Against Israeli Apartheid - Carleton organized mass outreach, forums, leafleting and film screenings from November 9-13, 2009 at Carleton University. The group has launched a divestment campaign. http://www.carleton.saia.ca/
-
Faculty for Palestine (F4P) Toronto. 7/10
A Joint Statement of the BDS working group of Faculty for Palestine (F4P, Toronto) and College and University Workers United (CUWU, Montreal) was issued on July 9, 2010. It condemned 'the Israeli attack on a humanitarian aid convoy to Gaza on May 31, 2010,' and 'other flagrant violations of international law by the Israeli state.' The groups support the Palestinian call for Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions against Israel until the occupation is ended. http://usacbi.wordpress.com/2010/07/12/statement-by-faculty-for-palestine-and-college-and-university-workers-union/
Artists, Writers, Film and Sports
-
Artists and Filmmakers Protest Toronto Film Festival. 9/09
An international group of more than 1000 prominent filmmakers, writers, artists and academics - including Ken Loach, David Byrne, Naomi Klein, Alice Walker, Harry Belafonte, Julie Christie, Viggo Mortensen, Jane Fonda, Wallace Shawn and Danny Glover - signed a letter protesting the Toronto International Film Festival's decision to spotlight the city of Tel Aviv and the work of 10 Israeli filmmakers. The letter was published online and the list of signatories continues to grow. http://mondoweiss.net/2009/09/toronto-film-fest-protest-grows-to-over-1000-supporters-including-harry-belafonte-julie-christie-and-viggo-mortensen.html
-
John Greyson, Film Maker. 8/09
Acclaimed Canadian film maker John Greyson decided to withdraw his new film "Covered" from the 2009 Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) because of the festival's decision to make Tel Aviv a focus of its programming this year. In his letter, to the festival, Greyson cited 'the devastating Gaza massacre of eight months ago, resulting in over 1000 civilian deaths; the election of a Prime Minister accused of war crimes; the aggressive extension of illegal Israeli settlements on Palestinian lands; the accelerated destruction of Palestinian homes and orchards; the viral growth of the totalitarian security wall, and the further enshrining of the check-point system' as reasons for his decision. http://www.yorku.ca/greyzone/figtrees/docs/open_letter_to_TIFF.pdf
Cuba
-
Cuban University Students Federation. 1/09
In January 2009, the Cuban University Students Federation (FEU) urged Israel to halt its attacks on civilians in the Gaza Strip, which they regard as 'a disguised slaughter of the Palestinian population.' According to a press release, the students' statement was endorsed by all Cuban university students and more than 32,000 foreign students at Cuban universities. The statement condemns the deportation, persecution and eviction of the families of Palestinian combatants, the siege on Gaza and inaccessibility of foreign reporters to the area. It favors the Palestinian people's right to sovereignty and self-determination, and the withdrawal of Israel from the territories occupied in 1967, including the Jewish settlements, so that they can return to their land and build an independent state. http://www.periodico26.cu/english/news_cuba/jan2009/students-condemns011009.html
France
-
Medecins du Monde (Doctors of the World) - France, Spain, Switzerland. 6/09
Three separate chapters of Medecins du Monde, including doctors in France, Spain and Switzerland, signed a statement on the second anniversary of Israel's blockade of Gaza criticizing Israel's 'indiscriminate sanctions' and 'suffocation of the Gaza Strip' and calling for 'free and uninhibited access for all humanitarian assistance in accordance with the international agreements and in accordance with universally recognised international human rights and humanitarian law standards.' http://www.worldvision.org/content.nsf/about/20090618-2nd-anniversary-gaza?OpenDocument
Artists, Writers, Film and Sports
-
Lussas Documentary Film Festival, France. 8/06
Lussas cancelled screenings of Israeli documentary films following the outbreak of the massive Israeli attack on Lebanon in 2006. Festival directors wrote the Israeli directors that they planned to substitute a program of Lebanese and Palestinian films 'that will show our opposition to the war.' www.newsbusters.org/node/7136
-
Utopia Theatres, France, 6/10
In protest against Israel's use of violence during the raid on the Gaza flotilla and its blockade of the Gaza Strip, the Utopia theatre chain canceled all screenings of an Israeli comedy, 'Five Hours from Paris,' scheduled to open in June. Instead, it decided to show a French documentary about Rachel Corrie, a young American who was crushed to death by an Israeli bulldozer while she protested the destruction of Palestinian housing in Gaza in 2003. http://www.inminds.com/article.php?id=10423
Ireland
-
Irish Academics. 9/06
61 Irish academics asked the EU: "Halt financial support to Israeli academic institutions,' saying, 'Israel appears impervious to moral appeals from world leaders and to longstanding United Nations resolutions" to end the Occupation. www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/766389.html
Spain
-
University of Valladolid Nursing School, Spain. 7/10
Teachers and workers at the Nursing School of the University of Valladolid, in the same municipality as Villanueva de Duero, successfully petitioned in June to have Eden Springs products removed from vending machines on the school's campus. Eden Springs is a company in the Golan Heights, which belongs to Syria but has been occupied by Israeli military forces since 1967. http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=299415
-
Medecins du Monde (Doctors of the World) - France, Spain, Switzerland. 6/09
Three separate chapters of Medecins du Monde, including doctors in France, Spain and Switzerland, signed a statement on the second anniversary of Israel's blockade of Gaza criticizing Israel's 'indiscriminate sanctions' and 'suffocation of the Gaza Strip' and calling for 'free and uninhibited access for all humanitarian assistance in accordance with the international agreements and in accordance with universally recognised international human rights and humanitarian law standards.' http://www.worldvision.org/content.nsf/about/20090618-2nd-anniversary-gaza?OpenDocument
Sweden
Artists, Writers, Film and Sports
-
Swedish Under-21 Football Team. 6/10
Sweden's under-21 football team refused to play in Israel following Israel's attack on the Gaza aid flotilla in international waters on May 31, 2010. http://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/sports/after-flotilla-raid-sweden-wants-out-of-soccer-match-with-israel-1.293650
Switzerland
-
Medecins du Monde (Doctors of the World) - France, Spain, Switzerland. 6/09
Three separate chapters of Medecins du Monde, including doctors in France, Spain and Switzerland, signed a statement on the second anniversary of Israel's blockade of Gaza criticizing Israel's 'indiscriminate sanctions' and 'suffocation of the Gaza Strip' and calling for 'free and uninhibited access for all humanitarian assistance in accordance with the international agreements and in accordance with universally recognised international human rights and humanitarian law standards.' http://www.worldvision.org/content.nsf/about/20090618-2nd-anniversary-gaza?OpenDocument
Artists, Writers, Film and Sports
-
Jean-Luc Godard, Film Director. 2008
The Swiss film director refused an invitation to attend the Tel-Aviv film festival and received thanks and congratulations from Tadamon, a Montreal collective. http://www.tadamon.ca/campaigns/boycott-divestment-and-sanctions-against-israeli-apartheid/boycott-culturel-contre-lapartheid-israelien
Turkey
-
Physicians Association of Turkey. 6/10
The Physicians Association of Turkey endorsed the Boycott Against Israel campaign which aims to cut all ties, military, economic, diplomatic, academic and cultural, with the state of Israel. http://usacbi.wordpress.com/2010/06/25/turkish-dock-workers-union-joins-boycott-against-israel/
Artists, Writers, Film and Sports
-
Turkish Under-19 Football Team. 6/10
Turkey's under-19 football team refused to play in Israel following Israel's attack on the Gaza aid flotilla in international waters on May 31, 2010. Nine Turkish nationals were killed in the attack. http://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/sports/after-flotilla-raid-sweden-wants-out-of-soccer-match-with-israel-1.293650
United Kingdom
-
British Committee for the Universities of Palestine (BRICUP)
British-based academics work through BRICUP to support Palestinian universities, staff and students and to oppose Israel's suppression of Palestinian academic freedom. BRICUP encourages individual academics to boycott academic conferences in Israel and to refuse to collaborate with Israeli academics except those who support Palestinian scholars' demands for academic freedom. http://www.bricup.org.uk/
-
British Universities: Student Sit-in Movement. 1-2/09
By mid-February 2009, 22 universities in England were or had been occupied, winning concessions from administrators ranging from divestment to scholarships for Palestinian students. www.stopthewall.org/worldwideactivism/1856.shtml
-
Caledonian University Students Parliament. 2008
Caledonian University Students Parliament (students' representative council) voted to cancel the university's Eden Springs contract - with no votes against. Eden Springs has operations on Israeli-occupied land in the Golan Heights, and profits from the sale of water belonging to the occupied people in violation of international law. This and similar actions by other Scottish groups led to the closing of Eden Springs' plant in Scotland in November 2008. http://www.badil.org/al-majdal/2008/winter-spring/document3.htm
-
Cardiff University students win divestment from the arms trade. 2/09
Cardiff University administrators agreed to sell off all holdings in General Electric and BAE Systems, both companies named by students as supplying military equipment to Israel. The agreement followed a three-day sit-in the Shandon Lecture Theatre, where students heard speeches, watched documentaries about the conflict, and took part in a live link-up with Gaza. www.walesonline.co.uk/.../../wales.../../27/power-of-student-action-forces-university-to-divest
-
Education Institute of Scotland (EIS), Napier University branch.
Napier University branch of the Education Institute of Scotland (EIS) passed a motion at its Annual Meeting to call for a cancellation of the university's Eden Springs contract. Eden Springs profits from natural resources belonging to an occupied people in violation of international law. Their plant is in the Golan Heights on Israeli- occupied land. This and similar actions by other Scottish groups led to the closing of Eden Springs' plant in Scotland. http://www.badil.org/al-majdal/2008/winter-spring/document3.htm
-
Heriot Watt University. 2008
Heriot Watt University in Scotland has decided to terminate its contract with Eden Springs, which has operations on Israeli-occupied land in the Golan Heights. The company profits by exploiting the natural resources of an occupied people in violation of international law. Similar actions by other Scottish organizations led to the closing of Eden Springs' plant in Scotland. http://scottishpsc.org.uk/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=2518:campaign-update&catid=288&Itemid=200256
-
London School of Economics Student Union (LSESU). 2/08
After weeks of debate, nearly 400 LSESU students voted 6-to-1 to call on their university and on the National Union of Students to divest from companies that provide military and commercial support for the Israeli occupation. The Union also resolved to join international campaigns to end the siege of Gaza and to publicize Israel's discriminatory policies more widely. http://www.bdsmovement.net/?q=node/166
-
National Association of Teachers in Further and Higher Education (UK). 5/06
Britain's largest faculty association voted to urge its 67,000 members to 'consider the appropriateness of a boycott' of Israeli faculty who fail to 'publicly dissociate themselves' from Israel's 'apartheid policies, including construction of the exclusion wall and discriminatory educational practices.' They asked British college teachers 'to consider their own responsibility for ensuring equity and nondiscrimination in contacts with Israeli educational institutions or individuals.' http://chronicle.com/article/British-Faculty-Union-Votes-to/23332/ , http://www.forward.com/articles/694/
-
St. Andrews University Student Union, Scotland.
St. Andrews University Student Union voted to cancel the university's Eden Springs contract. Eden Springs has a company on Israeli-occupied land in the Golan Heights and exploits the resources of the occupied people for its own profit. This and similar actions led to the closing of Eden Springs plant in Scotland. http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=2218670784
-
Strathclyde University, Scotland. 2/09
University authorities agreed to cancel their contract with Eden Springs, an Israeli water company that had been the main supplier for their water coolers. A group of 40 students had issued urgent appeals in response to Israel's attacks on Gaza. The university further agreed to establish a scholarship arrangement for Palestinian students. "We are particularly aware that the infrastructure of higher education has been damaged," said University secretary Dr. Peter West, "making it particularly difficult for Palestinian students to pursue their studies." This was one of many actions by Scottish organizations which led to the closing of Eden Springs plant in Scotland in Nov., 2008. www.news.scotsman.com/scotland/University-agrees-to-cancel-Israeli.4954032.jp
-
Stevenson College Edinburgh, Scotland. 2008
Stevenson College Edinburgh (SCE) is one of the largest colleges in Scotland. The college terminated its contract with Eden Springs in response to student pressure to sever ties with the company due to its location on occupied land in the Golan Heights. Eden Springs profits from natural resources belonging to an occupied people in violation of international law. As a result of this and similar actions throughout Scotland, Eden Springs was forced to close its Scottish plant. http://scottishpsc.org.uk/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=2742:israels-eden-springs-taking-hits-from-successful-boycott-campaign&catid=288&Itemid=200256
-
Sussex University, England.
On November 6, 2009, students at the University of Sussex in England voted to boycott Israeli goods. The decision follows the Palestinian call for boycott, divestment and sanctions against Israel, which calls upon the Israeli state to respect international law and end the occupation of Palestine. In a campus-wide referendum, 56 percent of students voted in favor of the boycott. http://electronicintifada.net/v2/article10877.shtml
-
University and College Union (UCU) - UK. 2007, 2008
The UCU, a union of 100,000 university and other higher-education teachers in Great Britain, voted to ask members to "reflect on "the appropriateness of continued educational links with Israeli academic institutions," "to discuss the occupation" with "Israeli colleagues with whom they are collaborating," and to establish links with Palestinian educational institutions. The move echoed a motion adopted a year earlier that openly supported a campaign for educational institutions to consider boycotting Israeli academic institutions after a year of informed debate on British campuses, including a review of the Palestinian BDS call. The 2007 UCU boycott-discussion campaign was rescinded when lawyers retained by union leaders termed an academic boycott discriminatory and illegal. Union leaders stated that the new 2008 motion was not "a boycott motion." The UCU is a new union formed in 2006 through the merger of two previous UK academic unions, AUT and NATFHE. Its actions, in turn, echo the 2006 call of 61 Irish academics for a boycott of Israeli universities. www.spme.net/cgi-bin/articles.cgi?ID=4126 ; www.ucu.org.uk/circ/html/ucu89.html
-
University and College Union (UCU) - UK. 2010
At its 2010 Congress in Manchester, England, the University and College Union (UCU) voted with an overwhelming majority to "sever all relations with Histadrut [Israel's labor movement], and to urge other trade unions and bodies to do likewise." The union also voted to "commence the investigatory process associated with the imposition of a boycott of Ariel College," a college-colony built on occupied Palestinian territory, as a first step in implementing the academic boycott against the Israeli academy. http://www.pacbi.org/etemplate.php?id=1248
-
Education International. 6/10
Education International represents nearly 30 million teachers and education workers around the world. Its 402 member organizations operate in 173 countries and territories, from pre-school to university. EI's web site states that it is 'the world's largest Global Union Federation, and the only one representing education workers in every corner of the globe.' Education International condemned Israel's May, 2010 attack on the Gaza aid flotilla. http://www.uslaboragainstwar.org/article.php?id=22370, http://www.ei-ie.org/en/aboutus/
-
Architects and Planners for Justice in Palestine, UK. 2006, 2008
This British group calls for an economic boycott of the Israeli construction industry. They protest the building of Israeli settlements and the Wall in the Occupied Territories, saying that architects and others working on such Israeli projects are 'complicit in social, political and economic oppression.' 'The construction disciplines are being used to promote an apartheid system of environmental control.' A leader of the group, architectural critic Charles Jenckes, told The Independent, 'I understand fully that security is the problem for Israel and they have the right to protect themselves. But this is not the solution. It is an extremist measure which foments extremism, by incarcerating and intimidating Palestinians.' The group may target Israeli-made construction materials and Israeli architects and construction companies. It joined Adalah-NY in 2008, urging Parliament not to rent an embassy building in Tel Aviv from Lev Leviev, a settlement builder. The UK Foreign Ministry ultimately withdrew from its agreement with Leviev. http://www.bigcampaign.org/index.php?mact=News,cntnt01,detail,0&cntnt01articleid=358&cntnt01origid=84&cntnt01returnid=72 , http://electronicintifada.net/v2/article4502.shtml,
-
British Doctors. 5/07
130 British doctors called for a boycott of the Israeli Medical Association and its expulsion from the World Medical Association. The letter stated, "Persistent violations of medical ethics have accompanied Israel's occupation'We are calling for a boycott of the Israeli Medical Association and its expulsion from the WMA. There is a precedent for this: the expulsion of the Medical Association of South Africa during the apartheid era." http://www.ejpress.org/article/16412
-
Lawyers for Palestinian Human Rights (LPHR), UK.
These British lawyers campaign to oppose the import of settlement products in Britain and the European Union as part of their international campaign to affirm the right of the Palestinian people to self-determination and freedom from domination and exploitation. They address a range of specific injustices such as the separation of Palestinian families. (Lawyers for Palestinian Human Rights, PO Box BMJP1, London WC1N 3XX). www.nclg.org.uk/book1/3_9.htm, www.bigcampaign.org/index.php?page=letter-to-the-observer-from-lawyers-for-palestinian-human-rights
Artists, Writers, Film and Sports
-
Dance Europe Magazine
This London-based dance magazine, with a circulation of 17,500, joins the cultural boycott. 'We are opposed to the occupation,' says advertising director Naresh Kaul. Dance Europe screens its ads: 'If any company in Israel cooperates with us by adding a disclaimer saying it is opposed to the occupation, settlements and everything else, we will cooperate with them.' The magazine prints Israeli ads if the advertiser includes a statement saying the firm disapproves of the occupation. www.danceeurope.net, http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3230909,00.html
-
Edinburgh International Film Festival. 2006, 2009
The 2009 Edinburgh International Film Festival organizers announced that they were returning money donated by the Israeli Embassy. The return of the money was accompanied by an admission that it had been 'a mistake to accept the £300 from the Israeli Embassy' and followed a torrent of angry letters expressing incomprehension, fury or sadness at the EIFF for being associated with the Israeli State. Many pledged to support SPSC pickets of screenings throughout the 2009 Festival and an initial public protest planned for the following day. In 2006, the Festival had also returned a donation to the Israeli Embassy and cancelled several Israeli films following the Israeli War against Lebanon. The Israeli donation was intended to underwrite the attendance of Israeli director Yoav Shamir at the showing of his documentary 'Five Days,' about the withdrawal of Israel from Gaza. The festival decided to show the film nevertheless and offered to fund Shamir's expenses itself. Seven Israeli films were cancelled of the eighteen originally scheduled for screening. Festival artistic director Christophe Postic explained, '(T)he war in Lebanon changed the picture. We couldn't present only Israeli films for three days and ignore what is happening.' www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3290032,00.html, http://www.bdsmovement.net/?q=node/405
-
Elvis Costello. 5/10
Elvis Costello cancelled two concerts he was scheduled to play in Israel in protest at that country's treatment of Palestinians. Costello, one of the most gifted British songwriters of his generation, was due to play on 30 June and 1 July but says his "conscience" dictated that he pull out of the performances. He joins a list of performers who have decided not to play in Israel, including Gil Scott-Heron and Santana. http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/2010/may/18/elvis-costello-cancels-israel-concerts
-
Gorillaz Sound System. 6/10
Gorillaz Sound System. 6/10 The British band Gorillaz Sound System cancelled a June 9, 2010 performance in Israel in the wake of the Israeli military raid on the Gaza aid flotilla that killed 9 aid volunteers. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/10250452
-
International authors, film-makers, musicians and performers ask colleagues not to visit, exhibit or perform in Israel.
By 12/06, nearly 100 artists, including Brian Eno, Sophie Fiennes, and Arundhati Roy had signed a boycott letter written by noted author John Berger, stating "the day to day brutality of the Israeli army in Gaza and the West Bank continues. Ten Palestinians are killed for every Israeli death, . .UN resolutions are flouted, human rights violated as Palestinian land is stolen, houses demolished and crops destroyed. For Archbishop Desmond Tutu...the situation of the Palestinians is worse than that of black South Africans under apartheid. Meantime, Western governments refer to Israel's 'legitimate right' of self-defence, and continue to supply weaponry. The challenge of apartheid was fought better. The non-violent international response was boycott, divestment, and finally UN sanctions that enabled the regime to change without terrible bloodshed." Artists can endorse the letter at info@bricup.org.uk http://www.pacbi.org/etemplate.php?id=415
-
Ken Loach, Film Director. 8/06
The British film director announced his support for an Israeli boycott, stating: 'Palestinians are driven to call for this boycott after forty years of the occupation of their land, destruction of their homes and the kidnapping and murder of their civiliansÖ. As British citizens we have to acknowledge our own responsibility. We must condemn the British and US governments for supporting and arming Israel.' The director, who won the Palme d'Or at Cannes in 2006, added, 'I would decline any invitation to the Haifa Film Festival [to which he had been invited] or other such occasions." www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/755249.html.
-
Klaxons. 6/10
The Klaxons were among several musical groups cancelling their scheduled performances in Israel following Israel's deadly attack on the flotilla of ships carrying humanitarian aid to Gaza. http://www.inminds.co.uk/article.php?id=10407
-
Roger Waters. 6/06
Waters moved a June 2006 concert away from Tel Aviv, met with Palestinian artists, called for "an end to Israeli oppression" during his Israeli performance, and stated in Israel "Tear Down This Wall!" www.pacbi.org/boycott_news_more.php?id=A255_0_1_0_M
United States of America
-
Brown Students for Justice in Palestine. 3/10, 5/10
In March, 2010 Brown Students for Justice in Palestine held a spring kick-off event, Education without Occupation, presenting their campaign for divestment from companies profiting from the Israeli occupation of Palestine. The presentation, an hour-long slideshow, focused on the terms and the reasons used to frame their position. This event was part of a week-long series of lectures and presentations scheduled at Brown in coordination with the 6th annual International Israeli Apartheid Week. In May, 2010 BSJP hosted a talk by Dr. Moustafa Barghouti which was attended by an overflow crowd. Dr. Barghouti received two standing ovations from the audience during his presentation. http://www.browndailyherald.com/student-group-speaks-out-against-profiting-from-israel-palestine-conflict-1.2181202
-
Cornell University group: United for Peace and Justice in Palestine. 9/09
United for Peace and Justice in Palestine is an organization of Cornell students, faculty and staff dedicated to raising awareness of the Palestinian experience and supporting Palestine activism. They do this by hosting discussions, speakers, films and other educational events. While they do not endorse a single resolution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, they consider the dialogue regarding it at Cornell to reflect only a very small portion of a complex set of narratives, both Palestinian and Israeli. They aim to add to the discussion by facilitating the reception of viewpoints of Palestinians, as well as those who have spent time in the refugee camps, territories, and diaspora communities that make up the Palestinian network of national identity. In September, 2009, they co-sponsored a presentation entitled 'Why We Refuse: A National Tour of Israeli Young Women for Peace,' which featured a young Israeli who refused to serve in the IDF (Israel Defense Force). http://rso.cornell.edu/palestine/
-
Evergreen State College. 6/10
On June 3, 2010, the student body at Evergreen State College in Olympia, Washington, voted overwhelmingly in favor of divestment from companies that profit from the Israeli occupation and in favor of making their campus Caterpillar-free. Evergreen is the alma mater of Rachel Corrie, a Washington state resident who was killed by an Israeli bulldozer in 2003. The divestment vote won by 79.5%. The Caterpillar vote won by 71.8%. http://tescdivest.org/
-
Georgetown, Divest! 4/10
In April, 2010 the new student group Georgetown, Divest! presented the case for Georgetown University divestment from companies that they say profit from human rights violations in Israel and Palestine. On April 9, the group met with University officials and pressed them to pursue selective divestment from multinational corporations involved with 'operation on illegally occupied land, the construction and maintenance of the separation barrier, the facilitation of collective punishment including home demolition and land confiscation, and institutionalized discrimination.' Georgetown, Divest! also called for the University to divest from the following corporations whose work they say falls within those four categoriesóAhava, which is a cosmetics company, Motorola Israel, Roadstone Holdings and Riwal, both construction companies, Lockheed Martin, Caterpillar, Veolia Transportation, and Mekorot, a water company. http://www.inminds.co.uk/article.php?id=10359
-
Hampshire College. 2/09
Hampshire College announced that it would divest from six corporations, Caterpillar, United Technologies, General Electric, ITT Corp, Motorola, and Terex. The campus group Students for Justice in Palestine had, with alumni and professors, waged a two-year campaign calling for this action on grounds that the companies provide the Israeli military with equipment and services. The Hampshire College Students for Justice in Palestine held a national conference on the campus from November 20-22 for Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions, with the goal of forging a national BDS campaign against Israel's occupation. Hundreds of students from across the United States and Canada attended. www.electronicintifada.net/v2/article10304.shtml, http://www.hsjp.org/ http://stopthewall.org/worldwideactivism/2138.shtml
-
The Haverford Campaign, Haverford College, Pennsylvania. 2009
A group of students and alumni at Haverford College in Pennsylvania has launched a campaign to call on the University to divest from 'any entity that contributes to or supports Israel's military occupation of Palestine.' http://www.thehaverfordcampaign.com/, http://www.biconews.com/?p=15446
-
Howard University. 3/07
The faculty of the College of Arts and Sciences at Howard University voted overwhelmingly to ask the Board of Trustees to divest from companies that are "offering material support to Israeli Occupation." The resolution adopted the approach of the University of Wisconsin Platteville faculty (see below) and a recent divestment action citing Sudan for violations in Darfur. The movement in this historically Black university in Washington, DC, was initially stymied when Howard President Patrick Swygert rejected it outright. Faculty leaders planned to reintroduce it "in the hope that the resolution spread around the country and generate action comparable to the anti-apartheid movement of the 1980s." www.jai-pal.org/content.php?page=501
-
Students Boycott Apartheid (SBA). 7/10
Students for Justice in Palestine, a Bryn Mawr club that works to raise awareness regarding the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinians, called on Bryn Mawr College 'to divest from Caterpillar, General Electric, and Boeing because of strong evidence showing that these companies sell arms, technology, and other military products that support the illegal military occupation.' http://www.biconews.com/?p=1813
-
Swarthmore College Alumni for Peace. 1/09
A group of Swarthmore College alumni started a campaign in January 2009 to gather signatures asking Swarthmore College to divest from Israel because of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in the Gaza strip, West Bank and Israel. Those who signed the online open letter promised to withhold any future donations to the school until Swarthmore ceases to do business with any companies in Israel, those that do business with Israel, and 'other holdings that financially support or sustain Israeli state-sponsored apartheid.' http://www.theswarthmorecampaign.com/
-
University of Arizona and Tucson Medical Community. 5/10
More than 50 members of the UA and Tucson medical community have signed a letter calling for the UA to end its contracts with the Motorola and Caterpillar corporations because of their alleged roles in health and human rights violations in Palestine and Israel. http://wildcat.arizona.edu/news/divestment-gains-momentum-1.1470632
-
University of California, Berkeley. 4/10, 6/10
The student senate at UCal Berkeley passed a resolution in support of divesting the university's money from two companies that enable and profit from the injustice of the Israeli occupation of Palestinian land and violation of Palestinian human rights. The vote, which was 16-4 in favor of the resolution, was overturned by a veto from the president of the student senate and, after intense lobbying by pro-Israel groups, an effort to overturn the veto failed by one vote. In the process of garnering support for an override of the veto, students gathered 29 pages of letters from Jewish individuals and Jewish groups supporting divestment. They also received letters of support from Archbishop Desmond Tutu and other prominent human rights leaders around the world. A project by Students for Justice in Palestine at UC Berkeley, 'Facing Apartheid,' announced in June 2010, provides first-hand experiences of life for Palestinian students under occupation. It is part of an effort to educate the campus community on its connection to and responsibility for illegal military occupation and apartheid policies which directly and systematically impede access to higher education for Palestinian students in the West Bank, Gaza and 1948 Palestine. http://calsjp.org/category/news-watch/, http://mondoweiss.net/2010/04/uc-berkeley-divestment-vote-it-isnt-over-yet.html, http://www.scribd.com/full/29932279?access_key=key-wixme1lsgsle95zc4ux
-
Nobel Women Peace Laureates. 4/10
Four women who are winners of the Nobel Peace Prize sent a letter of support to the University of California, Berkeley Student Senate to support that group's call for divestment from companies that support the Israeli occupation of Palestinian land. http://mondoweiss.net/2010/04/nobel-laureates-we-are-all-peace-makers-and-we-believe-that-no-amount-of-dialogue-without-economic-pressure-can-motivate-israel-to-change.html
-
University of Houston SDS. 4/10
Students for a Democratic Society hosted Palestinian journalist Mohammed Omer Wednesday April 7th. International journalist and winner of the Martha Gellhorn Prize for Journalism, Omer presented 'Reflection on Life and War in Gaza' at the University Center as part of his international speaking tour. http://sdshouston.wordpress.com/2010/04/12/mohammed-omer-brings-stories-to-uh/
-
University of Michigan - Dearborn Student Government. 2/10
On February 25, the University of Michigan-Dearborn Student Government approved a resolution and issued a statement delineating the Israeli state's many violations of international law and resolving to carry out a petition to secure an advisory committee on campus, in order for this committee to officially investigate the University of Michigan's investments and determine if any are ethically unsound - which is to say, if any are designated for companies that sell weapons, goods, and services used "inhumanely" by the state of Israel. The students further resolved to urge the advisory to recommend immediate divestment from companies that are directly involved in the ongoing illegal occupation "because we deem these investments to be profoundly unethical and in direct conflict with the mission of this University." http://info.umdunderground.org/
-
University of Minnesota - Break the Bonds Campaign and Al-Madinah Cultural Center. 3/10
The University of Minnesota chapter of the Break the Bonds campaign and Al-Madinah Cultural Center hosted 'Gaza Week' at the University to mark the first-year anniversary of the invasion of Gaza by Israel. The week- long series of events was dedicated to Gaza, a just peace, and an end to the occupation of Palestine. Break the Bonds is the university chapter of the Minnesota Break the Bonds Campaign, a group put forth to raise awareness about the effects of US support of the ongoing Israeli occupation and to encourage Minnesotans, whose taxes support the occupation, to work together towards justice for Palestinians. Al-Madinah Cultural Center helps educate the University of Minnesota student body by creating a better understanding and appreciation for the diverse culture of Islam and Muslims. http://mn.breakthebonds.org/
-
University of Rochester, NY. 2/09
Beginning in February 2009, students at the University of Rochester in New York and members of the surrounding community held a series of sit-ins in the University Atrium calling for divestment from Israel's occupation, humanitarian aid to Gaza, aid to a destroyed Gaza university and a minimum of five scholarships for Palestinian students every year. The sit-ins were organized by UR Students for a Democratic Society. http://rochester.indymedia.org/feature/display/19887/index.php
-
University of Wisconsin. 2005
This student group joined the Palestine Solidarity Committee of South Africa in November 2009 in releasing a letter calling for a campaign of boycott, divestment and sanctions to end the Israeli occupation. http://stopthewall.org/worldwideactivism/2121.shtml
-
Wayne State University. 4/03
In May 2003, Wayne State University Student Government Association became the first US student body to call for a total boycott of all companies doing business in Israel. Though the Wayne State University Board of Governors unanimously voted down the Student Council's resolution, it had already ignited a wave of similar student government resolutions on campuses around the world. http://www.inminds.co.uk/boycott-news-0376.html, http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_EbIZBUj7TAg/S9GHXfkzyeI/AAAAAAAAAIg/38lsFh4ofi0/s1600/WSU.bmp
-
National Lawyers Guild. 10/04
This guild of progressive lawyers throughout the United States adopted a "Resolution To Divest, In Principle And Practice, From Israel" at its National Convention, in 2004: The full text of its resolution, which highlights the legal argument for divestment, may be found at http://www.nlg.org/mideast/resolutions/resolutions.shtml
Artists, Writers, Film and Sports
-
Dustin Hoffman
Dustin Hoffman declined to participate in the annual Jerusalem Film Festival in July, 2010, following Israel's attack on a flotilla of international aid ships that attempted to break the Gaza blockade on May 31. http://www.jpost.com/ArtsAndCulture/Entertainment/Article.aspx?ID=180671
-
Gil Scott-Heron. 4/10
Gil Scott-Heron, a leading voice in calling for the cultural boycott of apartheid South Africa in the 1980s, cancelled his planned concert in Israel after pressure from groups opposed to Israel's occupation and treatment of Palestinians. http://www.counterfire.org/index.php/news/1-latest-news/4764-gill-scott-heron-cancels-israel-gig
-
Meg Ryan. 6/10
Meg Ryan cancelled her appearance at the annual Jerusalem Film Festival in July 2010, following the international outcry over Israel's attack on a flotilla of international aid ships that attempted to break the Gaza blockade on May 31. Her decision to cancel was made the day after the attack. http://www.jpost.com/ArtsAndCulture/Entertainment/Article.aspx?ID=180671
-
New Orleans Middle East Film Festival. 11/09
Managers of this annual film festival decided to join the cultural boycott of Israel in order to help end its occupation of Palestinian land. No Israeli films will be included in this year's festival. http://www.nola.com/movies/index.ssf/2009/11/new_orleans_middle_east_film_f.html
-
Pixies. 6/10
Influential US rock group Pixies cancelled their first performance in Israel, blaming "events beyond our control." The group did not specify why they were pulling out of the show, which was due to take place in Tel Aviv on 9 June. However, organizers said the decision was linked to Israel's deadly raid on a Gaza-bound aid flotilla last week. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment_and_arts/10250452.stm
-
Roger Ebert, Film Critic. 9/09
Roger Ebert, a leading US film critic, reversed his earlier support for the Toronto Film Festival's decision to celebrate Tel Aviv. He stated. 'I thought of it as an innocent goodwill gesture, but now realize it was part of a deliberate plan to 're-brand' Israel in Toronto, as a pilot for a larger such program. The Festival should never have agreed to be used like this." http://jewishpeacenews.blogspot.com/
-
Santana. 2/10
Guitarist Carlos Santana announced the cancellation of his show scheduled for early June at Bloomfield Stadium in Jaffa. He had received pressure from groups opposing Israel's occupation to cancel. http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3841916,00.html
-
Artists Against Apartheid, 4/10
Artists Against Apartheid is an international alliance committed to equal rights and justice, and the elimination of apartheid in our world. It has launched a campaign 'to help end apartheid in Palestine-Israel.' In April 2010, the group issued a draft statement calling for '(1) No Performance or Exhibition of our work within apartheid Israel, unless in solidarity with anti-apartheid events, (2) No Performance or Exhibition of our work at events sponsored by apartheid Israel, and (3) No Performance or Exhibition our work at events which deceptively suggest symmetry or shared responsibility between "both sides" for the ongoing oppression of the Palestinian people by Israel and its system of apartheid.' http://www.artistsagainstapartheid.org/, http://www.artistsagainstapartheid.org/?page_id=1125, http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-92527704.html
Acknowledgments
-
The Global DBS Maps, which have been produced by Sadaka, use 'mapper.js' from Christian Effenburger http://www.netzgesta.de/mapper/. Most of the information is taken from 'Global Actions to End Israel's Occupation' (http://www.interfaithpeaceinitiative.com/globalactions.pdf) produced by the Palestine-Israel Action Group, a committee of Ann Arbor, Michigan Quakers (http://www.quakerpi.org/Q-Action.shtml)