With pro-Israel groups all but absent, UCLA student government endorses divestment

[Mosby]

Some students held up posters, others wore t-shirts with pro-divestment slogans and most of the 400 UCLA undergraduates present repeatedly snapped their fingers along in near-unanimous agreement as they packed an auditorium on campus Tuesday night to hear – in the school's second public hearing in 2014 – their student government debate passage of a symbolic resolution that would call on school administrators to divest university funds from American companies that do business in the Israeli-controlled West Bank.

And unlike in the previous attempt in February, which failed by two votes, the student government voted this time for divestment by a decisive 8-2 margin, adding UCLA to a small but growing list of universities where the elected, representative undergraduate body endorsed the international Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement, which aims to weaken Israel and promote the Palestinian cause via economic pressure.

Supporters of the resolution, who comprised nearly 100 percent of the audience, saw the move as a protest against American economic support of what they view as Israel’s occupation of Palestinian land.

http://www.jewishjournal.com/los_angeles/article/with_pro_israel_groups_all_but_absent_ucla_student_government_endorses_dive

A BDS win!

[Anansi1171]

1. This is surprising....

...Hillel and other groups were always well represented at UCLA. Where were the pro-Israeli groups this round?

[Mosby]

2. They sat out in protest

...supporters of Israel effectively boycotted the hearing in an attempt to discredit and delegitimize UCLA’s strengthening pro-BDS movement. Only about 10 student representatives and members from those three organizations sat together during the hearing. While none of them participated in the public comment period that would have given the floor to dozens of divestment opponents in two-minute intervals, four of them made their case against divestment to the student government during a scripted 15-minute speech.

[shaayecanaan]

5. They're boycotting to protest a boycott, except not really (nt)

[azurnoir]

3. the comments should be read they along with this snip give an idea of the real tactics at hand

UCLA Chancellor Gene Block released a statement, which reads in part: "UCLA and the UCLA Foundation share the Board of Regents conviction that divestment decisions should not hold any one organization or country to a different standard than any other. The Board of Regents does not support divestment in companies that engage in business with Israel and UCLA agrees with that position."

http://www.jewishjournal.com/los_angeles/article/with_pro_israel_groups_all_but_absent_ucla_student_government_endorses_dive

[Scootaloo]

4. Sure is intriguing, all those comments that link Jewish identity with oppression of Palestinians

Coming from opponents of this vote.

[King_David]

6. They should of checked with Jewish spokespersons

Like yourself ?

[Scootaloo]

9. Why? They speak for themselves well enough

I'm simply offering my commentary on what they're saying.

Which one is your commenter name, Dave?

[King_David]

10. Not registered there

[shaayecanaan]

7. Not only that...

but linking Jewish identity with Boeing, Caterpillar, Cement Roadstone Holdings, Cemex, General Dynamics, General Electric, Hewlett-Packard, Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, Raytheon, and United Technologies.

Truly, the Jewish sages will record the sad day when the UCLA student government cashed in its unsecured notes and Class B ordinary shares in United Technologies, because...oh fuck knows why.

[grossproffit]

8. Avinoam Baral made me proud.

God bless him and keep him.