Florida Senate Resolution 894 – Ummm, Israel a Democracy?

Florida SR 894 is on the committee agenda for today at 1:30 p.m. at the Knott Building in Tallahassee. The resolution seeks to express its “opposition to the academic boycott of Israeli universities and institutions of higher learning, and support of academic and political freedom and collaboration with Israeli universities.” No other action is proposed by the resolution.

The resolution is a response to the American Studies Association’s call to boycott Israeli universities- an attempt to reprimand Israeli institutes that the association considers to be infringing upon the academic freedom of Palestinian students.

SR 894 cites its support for Israel on the grounds that it is the only democracy in the Middle East. Yet this “democracy” continues to breach international law with little repercussion. Israel’s legalized system of discrimination meets the apartheid criteria as defined under international law, and the record of racism in Israel is long and documented.

The boycott is part of the grassroots BDS (Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions) Movement, which seeks to pressure Israel into complying with international code through peaceful action. The movement has been met with a number of critics, but how else can we get Israel to come in line with policies that the rest of the globe must abide by? The United Nations does little to discipline the state, and continued dialogue has shown to be futile.

Legislation was passed in New York in January to ban state funding to colleges that fund organizations participating in the boycott, passing through the State Senate with a 56-4 vote. Maryland and Illinois legislatures have drafted similar bills. As of now, SR 894 does not call for any specific action against institutes participating in the boycott, but if it is to pass today, a bill proposing such would be inevitable.

Dima Khalidi, Director of the Palestine Solidarity Legal Support group and Cooperating Counsel with the Center for Constitutional Rights explains why such legislation is unconstitutional:

Painting the ASA boycott resolution as discriminatory is not only inaccurate, but also distracts from the fact that its purpose is in fact to protest the human rights violations for which Israel is responsible, and the discriminatory policies and practices of the Israeli government. These bills would be both a violation of free speech and of academic freedom, which the proposed legislation cynically purports to defend.

What can you do to help stop this resolution from passing in the senate? Call and email the Florida senators below and explain why you disagree with the resolution.

 

Templates: Call your senator  and Email your senator.

SR 894 was drafted by Senator Eleanor Sobel from the 33rd District Broward County, which notably has the largest concentration of Jews in the state. Senator Sobel is also Jewish.

A look into USF’s Endowment: Our Money Assits the Israeli Occupation of Palestine

I’m not sure how many students research their university’s endowment, but I decided to do so. This just might’ve been the most exciting Saturday night I’ve had since discovering Chatroulette (before it became a revolving door of livecam masturbators).

Above is the USF endowment report as of June 30, 2013. Not everyone knows how to read these things, and I’m no expert, but I’ll try and simplify it.

To save you a trip to Wikipedia, an endowment is the total value of an institution’s investments. Circled in yellow is USF’s endowment, totaling almost $400 million as of June 2013. The USF foundation handles the fund, investing it in 11 different management firms, the names of which are in the left column. These investments come in different forms: domestic equity, fixed composite, etc.

I found quite disappointing the transparency of the firms that invest our university’s funds. Of the 11 management firms, I was able to find quarterly reports on four of them, indicated with a blue dash on the left. I may be in the minority, but I think it would be nice to know where my university is investing its funds. I wouldn’t want that money going to corporations with a poor adherence to human rights values.

Except that is exactly what is happening. Of those four management firms that release quarterly reports, three of them (circled in red) invest in corporations that are involved in human rights violations around the world.

Above are some of the corporations that these four management firms have stakes in. Wasatch seems to be clear, but the other three show investment in bodies that are clearly involved in human rights violations in occupied Palestinian territories. Highlighted are some of the more prominent names that benefit from Israeli occupation.

Read more below on how these companies aid human rights violations while keeping in mind that the UN and International Court of Justice have consistently ruled, since 1967, that Israeli expansion into the West Bank is in violation of international law.

Caterpillar – CAT machines are used in the demolition of Palestinian homes in the West Bank and in the construction of Israeli settlements in Palestinian territory and the separation wall. A wall reminiscent of that maligned structure in Berlin, or the DMZ dividing the Koreas.

Hewlett-Packard – Provides checkpoint technology that restricts Palestinian movement throughout territories.

G4S – Provides security technologies in prisons where some are held without charge, many of them children.

Lockheed Martin, Boeing, Northrop Grumman – Manufacture weapons and military aircraft used in bombardment of Palestinian homes.

Whether its Palestinians or otherwise, how many people are OK with their university investing its funds in companies that profit from the killing of civilians?

Again, I might be in the minority, but if three out four firms that actually release information about their activity are investing in corporations with a questionable human rights record, I’m not too sure the other seven are so kosher in their ways (no pun intended).

The USF community needs to demand more transparency in the handling of the endowment. Spending money in such a manner blemishes the integrity of everyone that is a part of this institution. Perhaps things would be different if more people were informed of the endowment report. If only there was something being done about this…

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