I’ve been on campus for over a month now. I like to think I’ve gotten a good sense of the place. From what I’ve seen so far — in cigarette-circle conversations as well as in eavesdropped discussions in the Mud Box — I’ve come to realize that the “politically active” label given to us is actually a valid one.
Yet I tend to find that we often speak in broad generalizations. That’s why I’d like to turn some attention toward something far more concrete that should be given thought in our various political exchanges.
In January 2005, Palestinian human rights activists launched an initiative urging the international community for the boycott, divestment and sanctions (BDS) of Israel and Israeli goods. Initially presented before the World Social Forum, the BDS effort was a response to the continued human rights abuses and international law violations carried out by the Israeli government, as confirmed by the UN General Assembly and the International Court of Justice.
The Palestinian BDS National Committee (BNC), a coalition of various Palestinian trade unions, NGOs and other organizations, began a call for the BDS strategy in order to achieve its goals. It called for the world to apply pressure until international law was upheld, including ending Israeli occupation of Arab lands acquired in June 1967, demolishing the separation wall being built between Israel and the West Bank, acknowledging full rights of Arab-Palestinian citizens living in Israel and guaranteeing the right of return for Palestinian refugees as denoted in United Nations Resolution 194 passed in December 1948.
Today, the BDS campaign has garnered a great deal of global attention, with the likes of prominent intellectuals Naomi Klein and Archbishop Desmond Tutu voicing their support for the movement. College campuses, historically the breeding grounds for political activism, have particularly embraced the BDS movement’s nonviolent approach to affecting change in the inhumane and illegal practices of the Israeli government.
More recently, Jewish Voice for Peace (JVP), a grassroots organization dedicated to reaching a peaceful solution that promotes the “security and self-determination of both Israelis and Palestinians,” launched an initiative urging TIAA-CREF, the largest retirement provider for academics and other such professionals, to divest from companies that contribute to the abuse of Palestinian human rights.
While proclaiming to maintain a socially responsible investment policy, TIAA-CREF has remained invested in various companies that profit from human rights transgressions against the Palestinian people. These companies include Caterpillar, which makes armored bulldozers used in destroying Palestinian lands and homes, and Northrop Grumman, which produced parts for aircraft used in the three-week Israeli bombing campaign against Gaza in 2008 and 2009 known as Operation Cast Lead.
Although JVP does not fully endorse all aspects of the BDS movement, it has promoted a growing movement on campuses across the nation to urge stakeholder professors to compel TIAA-CREF to divest from companies like Caterpillar and Northrop Grumman. Here at AU, many of our professors rely on TIAA-CREF for their retirement pension funds.
Cathy Schneider, Professor in the School of International Service and a JVP member, describes the TIAA-CREF campaign as a means to “target companies that support the repressive arm of the occupation.
“More and more Jewish Americans are alienated by Israel’s abuse of the human rights of Palestinians, particularly in the occupied territories,” Schneider said in a phone interview. “Operation Cast Lead marked a turning point for many. Mobilizing for human rights is not anti-Semitic.”
Currently, many students are already becoming engaged in JVP’s struggle to urge TIAA-CREF to divest from such companies. It’s time for the rest of us to set aside our fears and mobilize, too.
We now have on our hands a real opportunity to take direct action. So, sign the JVP petition. Reach out to your professors. Inform and prompt them to contact TIAA-CREF and hold it accountable for its investments. And most importantly, channel our hunger for debate and energetic defiance into something more than just a potential for affecting real change.
