Press Releases and Statements

A federal court ruled that an anti-BDS law that required companies doing business with the state of Arkansas to sign a pledge not to boycott Israel was constitutional.

American Jewish Committee praised New York State Comptroller Tom DiNapoli’s decision to pull pension fund investments out of Unilever, the parent company of Ben & Jerry’s. The ice cream maker announced in July that it would cease selling its products in the West Bank. “Comptroller DiNapoli has demonstrated that boycotting Israel has consequences,” said Marc Stern, AJC Chief Legal Officer. “Unilever’s failure to undo Ben & Jerry’s misguided decision to stop selling its ice cream in the West Bank contravenes state government laws across the United States.”

American Jewish Committee (AJC) applauds the preliminary determination by the New Jersey Department of Treasury’s Division of Investment that Ben & Jerry’s and its parent company, Unilever, have engaged in a boycott of Israel. Under New Jersey’s 2016 law on Boycott, Divest, Sanction (BDS), state pension funds must divest from investments in any business that engages in boycotts of Israel.

American Jewish Committee (AJC), the leading global Jewish advocacy organization, applauds the Burlington City Council’s decision to withdraw a non-binding resolution supporting the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement targeting Israel. The resolution will be sent back to the Council’s Racial Equity, Inclusion and Belonging Committee for further discussion.

Ben and Jerry’s franchisees in the United States are calling on the company to “re-examine and withdraw” its decision to stop selling its ice cream in the West Bank and its threat to discontinue operations in Israel. American Jewish Committee Chief Legal Officer Marc D. Stern praised the franchisees for their honesty and passion in directly communicating their concerns.

American Jewish Committee (AJC) applauds the Cambridge City Council’s rejection tonight of a resolution supporting the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement targeting Israel and Hewlett Packard (HP).

American Jewish Committee (AJC) is disappointed by today’s United States Court of Appeals for Eighth Circuit decision in Arkansas Times v. Waldrip.

“This law is about trade not politics, and it has the potential to create jobs and economic growth for Missourians, Palestinians and Israelis,” said American Jewish Committee (AJC) St. Louis Director Nancy Lisker. “We are grateful for the leadership of Governor Parson and for the dogged determination of its lead sponsors, Senator Dr. Bob Onder and Representative Holly Rehder, for championing this important legislation.”

American Jewish Committee (AJC) applauds the Missouri Legislature for overwhelmingly passing today SB 739, the "Anti-Discrimination Against Israel Act."

“The world body’s endless hypocrisy and double standards toward Israel are staggering,” said AJC CEO David Harris. “Of all the situations in the world in which territory is disputed, the UN chooses only to focus on Israel. Why? We call on Secretary General Guterres to denounce this outrageous assault on the Jewish state.

AJC commends South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem for signing an executive order prohibiting state offices from doing business with companies that boycott Israel.

American Jewish Committee (AJC) is urging the United States Court of Appeals to uphold a Texas law that bars the state from engaging the services of contractors involved in boycotts of Israeli products and services.

AJC is urging a federal appellate court to affirm a lower court ruling that the Arkansas Times has no grounds in challenging the validity of a two-year old statute barring state government contractors from engaging in the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement against Israel.

American Jewish Committee (AJC) praised Pitzer College President Melvin L. Oliver for his principled stance in affirming that a study abroad partnership with the University of Haifa in Israel will continue despite a vote by the school’s College Council recommending that the program cease to operate.

American Jewish Committee (AJC) has welcomed the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) Governing Board’s decision to strip Malaysia of the 2019 World Para Swimming Championships, due to the country’s refusal to admit Israeli athletes.

Thousands of people from over 75 countries have joined the American Jewish Committee (AJC) in calling on the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) to condemn Malaysia’s ban on Israeli athletes and relocate the 2019 World Para Swimming Championships, set to take place in Kuching, to a country willing to welcome athletes of all nationalities.

“Arizona lawmakers, like state officials across the country, recognize that the BDS campaign aims to single out Israel for punitive action and does not offer a path to achieve Israeli-Palestinian peace,” said AJC General Counsel Marc Stern.

AJC welcomed the University of Michigan administration decision to bring disciplinary actions against John Cheney-Lippold, the tenured associate professor who refused to write a letter of recommendation for a student applying to study in Israel.

AJC, the global Jewish advocacy organization, honored Jewish students involved with Hillel at The Ohio State University and the University of Michigan for their courageous advocacy efforts against BDS.

AJC is calling on a federal court to uphold an Arizona law supportive of the state’s relations with Israel and to oppose efforts to declare the measure unconstitutional.