Erakat_BDS in the USA, 2001-2010

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BDS in the USA, 2001-2010

Author(s): Noura ErakatSource: Middle East Report, No. 255, WEAPONS OF THE STRONG (Summer 2010), pp. 34-39Published by: Middle East Research and Information Project (MERIP)Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/40660870.

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Silent igil n theBerkeley ampus. riyabhattacharjee/berkeley daily planet

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April 6, 2010, he tudentenate t theUniversityfCalifornia-Berkeleypheld, yonevote, n executiveveto n SB 118 the tudent ody esolutionndorsingdivestmentfuniversityunds romGeneralElectric ndUnitedTechnologies,wocompanies hatprofit rom heIsraeli ccupationfEastJerusalem,heWestBankandtheGaza Strip. roponentsf theresolution eeded14votes ooverrideheveto nd,as 16 senators adspoken nfavor fdoing o, tappeared simple ask.But thevote n Berkeleyadshiftedhegazeof nationalpro-Israelrganizationsrom apitolHillwestward,egettinganunlikelylliance etweenhe awkish mericansrael ublicAffairsommitteeAIPAC) nd ts elf-proclaimediberalival,JStreet. he twogroups ollaboratedn lobbyingffortsncampus o sustain heveto.Ultimately,wo enatorshangedtheir otes nd thirdbstained,ringinghe inalount o13nfavorf verridinghe eto nd fivepposed.While dherenceto tudentody rocedureasblockedhe ivestmenteasure,the numbersndicate hestrong upport ordivestmentnBerkeleysampus nd canbe regardeds a milestonen theboycott,ivestmentnd sanctionsBDS) movement.The strident esponse o Berkeley'sesolution rom ff-campus roups hat heBDS movementsbeing akenmoreseriouslyy ts pponentshan ver efore. erkeleytudentshave een tthe orefrontfBDS effortsince ebruary, 2001,thedayAriel Sharonbecame sraeliprimeminister.heyerected mock heckpointncampus nd unfurledannersexclaiming,Divest romsraeli partheid. ithin he panNoura Erakat s human ightsttorneyndadjunct rofessorf nternationalumanrightsaw at Georgetownniversity.

of hree ears,his irstniversity-basedivestmentampaignspreadntodozens f ther mericanampusess well s ntochurchesndcommunityrganizations.et hemovementidnotgain nternationalegitimacynd elicit erious reatmentuntil callfor DS camefrom alestinianivil ocietyn2005.Sincethen, ndespeciallyince heresoundingailurefthe nternationalommunityo hold srael o account orwarcrimes ommitteduringOperationCastLead,theassaulton Gaza in the winter f2008-2009, the notionof extra-governmentalacticsargetingsraeli uman ightsiolationshaspermeated ainstreamnstitutions.o longerhe assionof dealistictudentslone,BDS demands avereverberatedwithin mericanetailtores,orporationsnd nternationalmultilateralrganizations.The movementdeepeningcceptance mongmainstreamstakeholdersorrelates iththesteady eclineof faith neffortsoachieve negotiatedwo-stateolution othe sraeli-Palestinianonflict. hileheads f tate ail o extracthemostmodest ommitmentsromsrael,uch s a settlementreeze,BDS activistsave ncreasedompliancealbeitncrementally)with nternationalawamong orporationsnd institutionsthat ave istancedhemselvesrom,rdivestedheir oldingsin, ettlement-relatednterprises.BDS victories odate, t east ntheUnitedStates, avetargetedsraelipolicies in theOccupied Territories,henotionbeingwhatshouldbe boycottednd sanctionedstheoccupation, ather han srael tself. utthemovementdraws nspirationrom imilar ffortsimed at apartheidSouthAfricanthe1980s, oupledwith he2005callfromPalestine hat ncludes demandforequalityfor srael's

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Palestinian itizens nd theright freturn orPalestinianrefugees.hisgeneaologymakes BDS abhorrento manyloyalistsf he wo-stateolution. Street,or xample,eesthemovements an attack n Israel's haracters a Jewishstate. n his blog entry pposingtheBerkeley esolution,Isaac LuriaofJStreet omplains hat he movement failsto draw cleardistinction etween pposition o thepost-1967occupationndopposition o the xistence fthe tateof srael tselfs thedemocraticomeof theJewish eople.Even f twas not he ntent f he tudents ho draftedhisbill, tspassage s nowbeing eizedon bytheglobalBDSmovements a victoryn tsbroader ampaign. DS activ-ists nsist hat heymphasize ights,sopposedtopoliticalsolutions, reciselyoescape hedebate verwhethersraelandPalestine houldbe one or twostates. heyrecognize,however,hat he fruitionf the2005 demandsmay eadto an Israelthat s a state f all itscitizensrrespectivefreligion. ence it s inevitablehatBDS will be anathemanotonly oAIPAC,but also toJStreet ndArabAmericanpartisansf the wo-stateolution ikeHussein bishoftheAmerican askForceon Palestine.In arousinghe reof boththerightnd the eft ndsofthespectrumfpermissiblepinionon Israel-PalestinenWashington,heBDS platformnd movementutsto theheart f he onflictver he sraeli-Palestinianonflict andcouldbecome entralothe onflicttself.VisionsfJusticeThe tripartitetrategyf boycott, ivestment nd sanc-tions s rooted n economicogic: sraelmust omplywithinternationalaw becausenon-compliances too politicallyand economicallyostly o maintain. ivestment ressuresinstitutionsith takesn sraeli ompanies,r ncompaniesthat ustainsraeli umanrightsbuses, o droptheir old-ings. oycottsncourageonsumerso let hemarket ecideupon ustice y efusingobuy oodsmadeby ompanieshatbenefitrom he ccupationr nequalityn srael. anctions,on theother and, re trade estrictionsmposed ygovern-ments ponothers.IntheUS, BDS is associated ith he olidarity ovementaimed tending partheidn SouthAfrica. hat movementiswidely redited ithhelping otopple partheidnd freeNelsonMandela, political risoneror 7years, hobecamethe irstlack residentf outhAfrica.heAfrican ationalConferencefwhichMandelawas a partcalledupon theworld oboycott,ivest rom nd sanction partheidouthAfrican1958.Due to theSouthAfricanxperience,DS isseen s a grassrootstrategyhatworks. ccordingo AbdulMinty,ecretaryf heBritishnti-Apartheidovement,Theworldwide ovementas ffectiveecausetwas coalitionfcommittedovernmentsndpeople movementsntheWestthatmanagedo nfluenceolicy tthenationalevel, s wellas nstitutionsike heUN.

As withSouth Africa, he impetusfor a global BDScampaign gainstsrael ame rom alestinianivil ociety.nJuly , 2005, year fter he nternationalourtofJusticeshistoricdvisorypiniondeclared he route f Israelswallillegal, 70Palestinianivil ocietyrganizationsssued callfor oycott,ivestmentnd sanctions. he callgavevoice oa growingmovement hatbegan, ppropriately,n Durban,SouthAfrica t the2001WorldConferencegainst acism,where on-governmentalrganizationsnd activistsquatedIsraels aciallyiscriminatoryolicies hroughoutsrael roperandtheOccupiedTerritoriesith partheidnd advocatedBDS as thestrategyf choicefor ightingack. n Durbanandsubsequently,he ctivists avedrawn ponthegeneraldefinition f apartheidaid out in the1973 nternationalConventionon the Suppression nd Punishment f theCrime fApartheid:olicies designedo divide hepopula-tion. by he reation f eparateeservesndghettoesor hemembers fracial roups, or] he xpropriationf andedproperty...or]thepersecutionforganizationsrpersons...because hey ppose partheid. irectlyrecedinghe2005call, group fPalestinianntellectualsnd academicsssueda call for he cademic ndcultural oycottf sraeln2004.The Palestinian cademic nd CulturalBoycott f Israel's(PACBI) fundamentalrinciplesltimatelyormedhebasisfor he2005document,whichdemands hat srael omplywithnternationalaw ndupholduniversaluman ightsy:

Ending tsoccupation nd colonization f all Arab ands and dis-mantlinghewall;recognizinghe fundamentalights f theArab-Palestinianitizens f srael o full quality;ndrespecting,rotectingandpromotingherightsf Palestinianefugeeso returno theirhomes ndpropertiess stipulatednUN Resolution94.The2005call marked significanthiftnthemovement orPalestinian elf-determination.ost importantly,t empha-sized he ightsfPalestiniansverywhererrespectivefwhichstateheyive ntoday rwhereheynvisionivingomorrow.OmarBarghouti,founderndsteeringommittee emberof PACBI anda drafterf the2005document,xplainshatthefundamentalillar f the BDS callwas itsrights-basedapproach hatdoesnot endorse nyparticular oliticalolu-tion to theArab-Israeliolonial onflict,ut nsists hat orany olution o be ust nd ustainabletmust ddress llthreebasicrightstatedn the all.Noteveryoneonsidershe ffirmationf ll three ightsobe a neutralct.The ikes fJStreet iew t asthreateningoIsraels elf-proclaimeddentitys a Jewishtate, ecause hereturnfrefugeesnappreciableumbers ouldrenderewssmallminority.hose ommittedo the wo-stateolution nthe pro-Palestinianide, ike bish,have nterpretedhe allas arepudiationf he tate-buildingrojectnplace ince 993and returnothe iberation odel.twas mportant,owever,to theBDS draftersorepresenthe nterestsf llPalestinians,and not ustthose ivingwithin he elastic oundariesf a

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futurealestiniantate. ence he alls econd lause emandsthefull qualityf sraelsnon-Jewishalestinianitizens.It is logical hat his lausewouldbe inserted,iven heparticipationnthedraftingf ttijah,heumbrella etworkofPalestinian GOs in srael, hich emandsqual reatmentbeforehe aw rrespectivef ace, thnicity,ationalriginndreligion.rom he erspectivef heBDS organizers,herefore,objectingothis lause mounts orejectingalestinians'elf-definitions a unified ational ody. till, or upportersfPalestinianuman ights hoprefero ndict he ccupationonly,he econd lauses naffronto theirolidarity.or hesesupporters,nding ewishrivilege ithinsraelmay e desir-able, ut t xceeds hemandate f movementor alestinianself-determination.espitets est ffortsotranscendoliticalsolutions,herefore,heBDS callhas beenread s an mplicitendorsementfthe ne-stateolution.Perhapsurprisingly,everal alestinian GO representa-tiveswithin heOccupiedTerritoriesnitiallypposedtheBDS call as well.Theyviewed hecomprehensivepproachtoPalestinianightss a veiled ndorsementf theone-statesolution,nd hence blow othePalestinianuthoritynd asubversionf he trategicirectionf he alestinianationalmovementince he ate1980s nd enshrinedythe peaceprocess f the1990s.Draftersf thecall, ncludingACBI,Ittijah,Badil and Stop theWall, invested tremendousamountf ime ndenergynexplaininghat he undamentalemphasisnrights asnecessaryoredresshe oncerns fcohesive alestinian ational ody s opposedtoendorsinga particular olitical olution.Ultimately,heCouncil ofNational nd IslamicForces n Palestine,hecoordinatingbody or hemajor olitical artiesntheOccupied erritories,alongwith he argestalestineiberationrganization assmovements,acilitatedhe cceptancef heBDS callbymajorsectors f Palestinianivil ocietywithin heTerritoriesndbeyond. onstrictedy heparametersf he peaceprocess,thePalestinian uthorityas neitherndorsed orrepudi-atedtheBDS call.Theyhave,however,aunched narrowerboycottf ettlement-producedoods. nJanuary010, rimeMinister alamFayyad taged heburning f$1million nsettlementroductsnd created NationalDignity und tosupportheproductionnddistributionfPalestinian-madegoods.Unlike he2005call,thePA initiativeerpetuatesstate-centricpproach o resolvinghe conflictnd as suchdoesnot ttemptorepresenthe ightsf unified alestiniannational ody.Barghouti xplains hat he callfor qualitywithin sraelremainshe east opular lement f he all mong olidarityactivists,ven morecontroversialhan theright f return,because tgoes eyondallingn srael o rein n ts ccupationpoliciesnthePalestinianerritoriesnd demands hat sraelrectifytsdomestic olicies oaffordon-Jewishrab itizensfull quality.ut sBarghoutisks: If politicalystemsbuilton a foundationf nequalityndwouldcollapsef qualityset n, s ta system orth eeping?

MainstreamingDSBarghoutirhetoricaluestion spreciselyhatmakesBDSso controversial.hough BDS is in fact reformmove-ment, ne that eeksto alter orporatend statebehavior,it has beenviewed s radical.MarkLance,a Georgetownphilosophyrofessornd co-founderf topUSTaxpayeridto sraelNow (SUSTAIN), explainshatwhenhisgroup irstapproachedohorts ith he deaofdivestmentn2001, heywerehostilely ismissed s nave.The establishedolidarityorganizationseared uch a tacticwould alienate verageAmericans ho were eady osupport Palestiniantate utnot to criticizesraelor call its nternal olicies ntoques-tion.SUSTAIN redirectedtsenergytyoung lobalusticegroups, ancecontinues,nd waited or he ime or DS toripen.Within woyears,heUS Campaign o End the sraeliOccupation, he connective issue fAmerican alestinesolidarityroups, ad ncorporatedumerous DS activists.Establishedn2001with $20,000grantnd a few ozenmember rganizations,oday heCampaignhasgrown omorethan300 membersnd boasts budget f$250,000.In2005, heCampaign ndorsed heBDS calland mounteda campaign gainstCaterpillar, anufacturerf theheavybulldozers used by the Israeli armyto raze Palestinianhomes.Phyllis ennis, Campaign o-founderndsteeringcommitteemember, xplains hatCaterpillarmerged sa target or ts role n thedestructionfPalestinian livetrees nd themurderf RachelCorrie, heEvergreentateCollege tudent un ver y bulldozern2003while ryingtopreventhomedemolition.oon,Bennis ays, the iscus-sionmovedfrom hetactical argetingfCaterpillaro thestrategicffort o build a campaign gainst orporationsprofitingrom ccupation.The Campaignsfocus,whichreflectsts member roups'prerogatives,as continued o shift.n 2006, the coalitionadopted n anti-apartheidramework,hich xpounds nthediscriminatoryreatmentf Israel's on-Jewishitizens,and in2009, tendorsed he cademic nd cultural oycottof srael,notherontroversialtrand f theBDS movement.TheCampaign's rogressionromivestingromccupationoboycottingsraelmay e a bellwetherf hangenmainstreamorganizationshathave oinedtheBDS movementuthavelimited heir ctivism o targeting ar-profiteeringorpora-tions nvolvednthe ccupation.

CodePink, hewomen'seacegroup amed or ead-to-toepink ttirend unabashed isruptionfbusiness s usualonCapitolHill, coalescedn opposition o war nAfghanistanand raq.Accordingomember ancyKricorian,ode Pinkexpandedtsmandate oinclude heoccupationf Palestinewhen t oinedtheCampaignn2006 but thegesture aslargelyymbolic,s thegroupsworkremained ocused nAfghanistannd Iraq.Thisquietengagementecamemuchloudernthe ftermathfOperation astLead,whenCodePink roughtalestineo the rontnd center f ts genda, o36 MIDDLEAST EPORT 55 SUMMER010



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thedismayf everalmembersnd funders. ndeterred,hewomen's rouphas since aken wosolidarityelegationsoGaza,co-led heGaza FreedomMarch nFebruary010 ndlaunched tolenBeauty, boycottfAhava, he ettlement-manufacturedosmetics ine. Since its inception nJune2009,Stolen eauty aspressuredxfam nto uspendingtsgoodwillmbassador,Sex nd theCity tarletristen avis,for he urationfher ontracts anAhava pokeswomanndpushedCostco, nationalwholesaler,o take heproduct ffits helves.Despite hesechievements,hich ave een overedntheNewYork ost ndelsewhere,ricorianhares hathergroupstill ses he A-word ingerly.hileBDS can bepresentedwithin heframeworkfcorporateccountabilityndwarprofiteering,he ermapartheids controversial.Thiswordstill riggerseople emotionsnaway hat huts ff ialogue.It s a triggerecause f tshistorynSouthAfrica,ut nthecaseofSouthAfrica, ost eoplewouldnothavedreamedfsayinghat partheid asnecessaryor ecurity'sake, r thatitwas a good deatokeepblacksnban us ans.Fayyadbaihat, formerniversityfWisconsin tudentand leadingmemberf l-AwdaWisconsin, hich arneredfacultyenate ndunion ndorsementfdivestmentcrosshe25UniversityfWisconsinampusesn2005, xplainshat hefirstndstrongestpposition oBDS came fromong-timeallieswhofearedhat hemovement oulddrivewayiberalsor nduce backlashn srael. Itwas a hindrancenthe hortterm, ays baihat. Notonlywas BDS too much o ask ofthe fair-weatherriends'fPalestine,ut lso twastoo muchfor hemo ccept r ivewith he partheidnalogy. owever,part f he ppealofBDS as werecognizedtwasgettingheuninterestedobegin sking uestionsndthen uestioningIsraels haracter,ndusing he partheid nalogywasa waytoprovokeuestionsrom he asual bserver.Glenn Dickson hopes to presentprecisely his chal-lenge o thePresbyterianhurchUSA. At its2004 generalassembly,he .3million-stronghurch ndorsed ivestmentfrom ompaniesprofitingrom sraelioccupationby anoverwhelmingote f460-41.Despite hreatso burndownhousesofworship nd pressure romCongress o rescindtheresolution,he churchhas reaffirmedts commitmentto corporate ngagementt subsequent eneral ssemblieswhere upport ordivestmentasonly ncreased.n 2006,17of the170overturesubmittedo theassemblypposedthedivestmentesolution,hile n2008only wooverturesprotested he church's tance.Today,the Presbyterians'MissionResponsibilityhroughnvestmentommittee asdenouncedCaterpillarorprofitingrom henon-peacefuluse of tsproductsndcontinues oexplore ivestmentromMotorola, TT, Citibank ndUnitedTechnologiesor heirrole nsustainingheoccupation.Dickson s theretiredresbyterianastorwho ntroducedthe 004divestmentesolution.e did not onsiderncludingboycottt the timebecausehe felt hatunlikedivestment,

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which ends tselfocorporatengagement,oycott recludesdialogue.He rightlyredictedivestment'sotentialoexcitecontroversyespite he church'segacy fprincipledivest-ment rom outhAfrica,ndonesia ndSudan, mong therhuman ightsiolators.oday, ickson nd his olleaguesrenowthinkingf ntroducinghe oncept fapartheidt the2010GeneralAssemblyecause itwillhelppeople o realizethat srael s as bad as SouthAfrican itspoortreatmentfpeopleof color.... Becausemostpeople ntheUS see sraelas a benevolentemocracynd see Palestinianss terrorists,reframingho srael s willhelpus.BlessingrBurden?Notwithstandingtspopular ssociation ith outhAfrica'sexperience,heterm apartheid s not a requisitelementof the BDS strategy,houghtmaybe a useful nstrumentofbrandingn andof tself. ike theUS Campaign,CodePink and thePresbyterians,ctivist roupshave aunchedBDS campaignswithout dopting he loaded term, nly

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to adopt t later s their dvocacy ffortseveloped.EvenStudentsonfrontingpartheidy srael, group t StanfordUniversityorwhom he erm asobviouslyentral,as usedittacticallyt most.Accordingo Omar Shakir, foundingmember f thegroupwho is now at Georgetown,heStanford tudentswanted o make partheidentral o demonstratehepowerdisparitynherentn the Israeli-Palestinianonflict ndmovebeyond he anguage f two ides, which an implythat srael nd thePalestinians ave qualresourcesodrawupon.Whencampus pposition ocused n the symmetrybetween he South African nd Palestinianases,however,Shakir ndhis olleaguesroppedhe rameworknd focusedinstead n divestmentriteria,ncludingisparatereatmentof sraelsnon-Jewishrab itizens. hemethod erewas todescribe he violation ather han call itbyname. In thebeginning, hakir omments,theopposition ocused napartheidmore han urgoalofdivestment. Weliked hewaywedid t becausewecouldpick ndchoose;we weren'twedded oapartheid.Theapartheidrameworks both blessingnda burden.On the onehand,becausetheSouthAfricanxperiencesso wellknown nd soroundlyondemned,meremention fapartheidorcesro-Israeldvocates odefendnentrenchedsystemf racialdiscriminationndoppression atherhanrally upport or sraelssecurity. n theotherhand,thetwo cases are farfromdentical.No South African lackswere llowed to vote or participaten government,s arePalestinian itizens n Israel.Blackswerenot subjected omilitaryffensivesr debilitating umanitarian lockadesas arePalestiniansn the Gaza Strip, nd nor weretensofthousandsxiled s refugeeso raise ubsequent enerationsin thediaspora.Notwithstandinghesedifferences,n theBDS movementheresgeneralonsensus hat he partheidframeworkseffective,speciallynthe ymbolic ealm.AsLisaTaraki,Birzeit niversityrofessorndPACBIsteeringcommitteemember, omments,Allhistoricnalogies refraught ithproblems, ut in thiscase... think his ineof rgumentas beenveryuccessfuln thewhole, ndhasput srael's upportersna very ncomfortableosition, oput tmildly.That activists eploythe A-word actically oes notdiminish heir incere elief hat he rameworksapt.To thecontrary,hakir ndTaraki attitudesreresponseso detrac-torswhosefocus n the nalogy's ine rints anattemptodismiss tfor ack ofperfect ymmetry.uch attemptsremisguided ecausealthough heSouth African xperiencemakes he partheid aradigmmore ompelling,t s bynomeans heyardstickgainstwhich o measure ll occurrencesof partheid,hethern srael-Palestinerelsewhere.erhapsonlya legalforum ike the nternational ourt ofJusticecan settle his ension. n themeantime,ublicdiscussionsof sraeli partheidontinue o be a battle ordominationofthe ymbolic orld.

StrategiconsiderationsActivistsavewaged his attle ffensivelyor ixyearsntheirorganizingf IsraeliApartheidWeek.Originallyimited oeducationalctivitiesnToronto nd NewYork,odayt pans40cities orldwide,ncluding,or he irstimen2010, eirut.Adalah-New ork's DS campaigns anorganic utgrowthof IsraeliApartheidWeekorganizing. nlikeother roups,Adalah-NYbeganwith theapartheid rameworkirstndmovedtoward he divestment actic ater.The successofitscampaign gainst ev Leviev,n Israelidiamondmogulwhose ompaniesupporthe xpansionf ettlementsnEastJerusalem,asmade t premierxamplefBDS organizingntheUS. LubnaKa'abneh fAdalah-NYxplainshat he part-heid nalogyonstitutedcornerstonef he roup'sutreachwork sothat ur US] audience ould make he onnectionto their wnexperiences. a'abnehand her cohorts avediscoveredhat mericanudiences elatemuchmore asilyonarrativesf nstitutionalizedacial iscriminationhan hoseof ccupation. encethey ork o draw arallelsetween hecivil ights ovementndthe alestinian ovemento chievefreedomndequality.Since launching tscampaign n 2008,Adalah-NY haseffectivelyressedDanish Bank Dankse and the Danishpension und KAtoexclude eviev'snterprise,frica-Israel,from ts nvestmentortfolio,ncouragedhe econd argestDutchpension und odivest rom frica-Israel,nd onvincedUNICEF, Oxfam, the Britishgovernmentnd severalHollywood tars odistance hemselvesrom he ntrepreneur.Adalah-NY's uccess n simultaneouslyighlightingsrael'sdiscriminatoryharacter hile hoosinghe ccupations itsBDS targetoth aptureshemovementstrategicossibilitiesand reflectsoliticalmaturitynthemovement.Thehistoryf effortst Berkeleys tellings well.Whileoriginallyritten o combat sraeli partheidnd thereforetargetllcompanieswith ubsidiariesorth 5,000ormorewithinsrael, hestudent odyresolution B 118 ventuallylimited tself o twoAmericanorporationshat rofitromIsrael'smilitaryccupation.Divestmentsultimatelyboutstudents ngaging he administration, ommentsAbdel-Rahman ahzah, founding emberf heBerkeleyampaignandnow leader f imilarffortsnBeirut. ahzahnotes hatBerkeleytudentsidnot tart utwith politicaltrategyn2001. nstead heyssued brupt hreatso the dministration:Divest ll yourholdings rom partheidsrael r we'll takeover cademic uildings. hile ctivistsidoccupyWheelerHall twice, hey idnot come closetoachievingivestmentuntilnineyearsaterwhen tudentsntroducedB 118 n thestudent enate.The acticalhifts derivednpart rom ampshireollege'smonumentaluccessnbecominghe irst mericannstitutionofhigherducation o divest romsraeln2009. ianaRosoff,a leading tudentrganizertHampshire,xplainshat heircampaign as directesponseothe alestinianDS call.Her

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fellows eremotivatedytheopportunityto standbehindandre-empoweralestiniansn their wn national truggle.Still, o avoiddebilitatingpposition,he tudentsevelopeda strategyhat argetedsraels ccupationbutdidnottryomakemoral rgumentsbout srael s a nation-state.The tudents onover he olleges oard f rustees henin February009, the trusteesotedto divestHampshiresholdings romCaterpillar, nitedTechnologies,GeneralElectric,TT andTerex, ompanies hat upply he sraelimilitaryith quipmentndservicesor se n theOccupiedTerritories.nderpressure romAlanDershowitz,ne ofseveralelf-appointedolicemenfAmerican iscourseboutIsrael-Palestine,ampshire'sdministrationeniedthat tsdecisionwas inked oIsraeli uman ightsbuses ndtrum-petedts thernvestmentsn sraeli irms.he minutesf heboard f rustees' eeting everthelessevealnexplicitink;the ollege residentacknowledgedhattwasthegoodworkof Studentsor usticen Palestinehat roughthis ssue othe ttentionf he ommittee. nd,ofcourse,he tudentstook are o claim hatHampshire asdivestingrom sraelioccupation,otfromsrael.The ogicfBDSWhiletheHampshirend Adalah-NY uccesses ave madeindeliblemarks,mostcampaignsannotdemonstrateheirwork'smpact n measurable nits. nstead, he virtue fBDS has been ts bilityochallengesrael'smoral uthority,arguablyhe most ovetedweapon n itsarsenal.sraelwasnot major ecipientfUS aid dollars ntil he ftermathftheSix-DayWar,whichgreatlynhancedsrael'smage s aDavidfacingown nArabGoliath.nJune 968, heJohnsonadministration,ith trongupportrom ongress,pprovedthe saleofsupersonicircrafto Israel nd establishedheprecedentfUS support or Israel'sualitative ilitarydgeovertsneighbors actually,nypossible ombinationf tsneighbors).incethen, oAmericanoliticianeeking ighofficeasspoken fMiddleEastpeacewithout irsttressingUS commitmento the ecurityf srael.BDS campaignsunctureoles nthis ecurityarrativeyassumingnoffensiveosture.y ssertinghatsraelsworthyofBDS treatment,ctivistsompelsrael's efendersoexplaintheogic f tspolicies,uch s the mprisonment,tone timeoranotherince 967, f20 percentf the ntire alestinianpopulation.Whenthe onversations taken o ts ogical nd,as t smore ndmore ften,ro-Israelpokespersonsre orcedto declarehat alestinians' ere xistencesa securityhreat.Ina recent ddressnHerzliya,ite f n mportantnnualsecurityonferencenIsrael,Harvard ellowMartinKramerleapt traighto thebottom fthis lipperylope.He arguedthat hen he roportionf dultmen ntheArab ndMuslimworld eaches0percentf he opulation,heirropensityoviolencencreasesecause hey avebecome superfluousnsociety.ramer otonlydismissed oliticalxplanationsor

radicalizationnfavor f imple emographydubious ocialscience, o saythe east he concluded yencouraginghedeliberatetuntingfpopulation rowthmongPalestiniansasa matterfnationalecurityolicy. headdress,s Kramersaidhimself,as memorable.Its egitimacyontinuallyroded y uchpronouncements,Israeli tructural iscriminationill stillfind lliesamongChristian ionists,who beseechGod and Israelto hastenArmageddon,he defensendustry,hichwishes o protectnet arnings,ndthoseAmericanews ho,for ne reason ranother,emain lind oPalestinianuffering.hese llies reformidable,ut heyrenot hebroad pectrumfAmericanswhosebackingsraelwants o safeguardtsmoral uthority.Forthisreason,AIPAC's executive irector, owardKohr,dedicated is ddresst thegroup's009annual onferenceowarningsf hedangersfBDS,which e amenteds partfa broaderampaign ot implyodenigrater defamesraelbuttodelegitimizeer n the yes fher llies.The Reut nstitute,n Israeli hink ank, oncurs.n its2009 study, Building PoliticalFirewallAgainst srael'sDelegitimization,eut oncludeshat networkf ctivistsworking romhebottom p andfrom heperipheryo thecenter as succeededn castingsrael s a pariah tate ndwarns hat,within fewyears, hecampaignmaydevelopinto a comprehensivexistentialhreat. n itspresentationto theKnesset,he nstituteecommendedhat hegovern-mentmitigate histhreatwitha multi-prongedtrategy,includingndingts ontrol f thePalestinianopulationntheOccupiedTerritories.Taraki ays hat uchstatementshowBDS is having neffect. nlike effortst dialogue,whichreinforcedowerdiscrepanciesy reatinga falseense f ymmetrythat] oesnotacknowledgehecolonizer-colonizedelationship,DStackleshe sraeli tate eadon. TheproperesponseoendingIsrael'smpunitys the pplicationfpressurend the ogicofBDS is the ogic fpressure.On thehorizonstheburgeoning ovementor cademicand cultural oycotts. lthoughaunched yearbeforehe2005BDS call, cademic nd cultural oycottoesnotenjoythesupport f economicBDS campaigns.omeargue hatculture houldbe immunefrom olitics nd thatboycot-ting ntellectualsnfringespon academicfreedom. therscontend hat sraeli ntellectualsre the bestallieswithinIsrael f theglobalmovement or eacewithustice.A closeexaminationf thePACBI callmakes t clear hat oycottsrestrictedo sraelinstitutionsndentitieshat re omplicitin ustifying,romoting,upportingrotherwiseerpetuatingIsrael's ccupation, olonization nd apartheid. oday, hiscall couldnot be morerelevants Israel olls ut ts BrandIsrael ampaign,meantto rehabilitatetshobbled magethroughhe mediaofpopular ulture.rrespectivefform,Barghoutiays, DS is themost ffectiveorm f olidaritywiththe Palestinianpeople today. ts non-violent nduniversal aturemakes t Israel'sworst ightmare.

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Erakat_BDS in the USA, 2001-2010

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