BDS

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Campus BDS Threat Shifting to Academic Boycotts
Supporters of Israel, democracy and the free exchange of ideas must recognize the threat that academic boycotts pose to the health of the university environment and make clear that these attacks on academic freedom are not welcome on any campus.
Read AJC's Analysis
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AJC Praises Supreme Court Action Upholding Arkansas Anti-BDS Law Read the Press Release
What is the boycott, divestment, and sanctions movement?
Tough Questions on the Anti-Israel BDS Movement Answered Read More
College students on campus
BDS on Campus: What Should Jewish Students Expect? Listen to the Podcast

Past Articles

Israeli flag outside of Ben & Jerry's facility in Israel.
Five 2022 Failures of the BDS Movement
It’s been a rough year so far for the anti-Israel Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) movement. Nearly two decades after its founding, the campaign has suffered a string of stinging defeats in its attempt to rally world support to single out the world’s only Jewish state.
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AJC Praises Court Ruling Upholding Arkansas Anti-BDS Law
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.
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5 Reasons Why the BDS Mapping Project is Dangerous for Jews (and Everyone Else)
Here are five reasons why the Mapping Project is not only a dangerous threat for Jews, but also for everyone else.
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AJC Praises New York Decision to Disinvest in Unilever for Ben & Jerry’s Boycott of Israel
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.”
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AJC Applauds New Jersey Treasury Department Action on Ben & Jerry’s
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.
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AJC Applauds Burlington City Council for Rejecting Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions Resolution
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.
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American Jewish Committee Applauds Ben & Jerry’s U.S. Franchisees Letter of Concerns
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.
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Ben & Jerry’s New Mideast Flavor
AJC Chief Legal Officer Marc D. Stern responds to an oped by Ben & Jerry's founders.
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AJC Applauds Cambridge City Council for Voting Down Boycott, Divestment, Sanction Resolution
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).
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AJC Dismayed By Court Ruling On Arkansas BDS Statute
American Jewish Committee (AJC) is disappointed by today’s United States Court of Appeals for Eighth Circuit decision in Arkansas Times v. Waldrip.
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AJC Commends Governor Mike Parson for Signing Anti-BDS Bill into Law
“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.”
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Don’t Blame Israel for Racial Injustice in America
Hijacking this moment to attack Israel fundamentally trivializes and distracts the work being done to achieve meaningful progress for the cause of racial justice in the United States.
Campus Crash Courses
Why are Student Governments Obsessed with Israel? - AJC Advocacy Anywhere
Student government should be a platform to improve campus life, and plan fulfilling programs for one’s peers. So why does it seem like many student governments have become little more than a platform for constant vilification of Israel?
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AJC Applauds Missouri Legislature Passage of Anti-BDS Bill
American Jewish Committee (AJC) applauds the Missouri Legislature for overwhelmingly passing today SB 739, the "Anti-Discrimination Against Israel Act."
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Social Distancing Brings New Challenges, Opportunities for Jewish Students
The Coroavirus pandemic provides a singular opportunity for students to take stock of their communities and work to grow Jewish community engagement in creative new ways. Hostile voices aren’t quieting during quarantine—and neither will Jewish student leaders’ voices.
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AJC Deplores UN Blacklisting Firms Active in West Bank
“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.
Photo of Governor Noem signing BDS legislation.
AJC Applauds South Dakota Executive Order Banning Boycotts of Israel
AJC commends South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem for signing an executive order prohibiting state offices from doing business with companies that boycott Israel.
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Anti-Israel Activists On Campus Have Made Ignorance A Virtue
These incidents join a growing list of anti-Semitic episodes targeting Jewish students at institutions of higher education. But even worse, the episode at McGill shows how students aren’t just barring attachment to Israel; they are barring learning about it at all, for the simple reason that exposure to Israel inevitably means abandoning the good vs. evil narrative that prevails in progressive spaces.
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AJC Urges Appellate Court to Uphold Texas Law Against BDS
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.
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AJC Brief Urges Federal Court to Uphold Arkansas Anti-BDS Law
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.
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AJC Praises Pitzer College President Oliver’s Decision to Preserve Haifa University Program
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.
Pitzer Risks Setting Dangerous Precedent with Ending Haifa Study Abroad Program
A critical vote at the private liberal arts Pitzer College will determine whether the Claremont campus will formally end its study abroad partnership with the University of Haifa in Israel.
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AJC Welcomes Decision to Strip Malaysia of Para Swimming Championships Due to Ban on Israeli Athletes
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 Join AJC in Calling on Paralympics to Condemn Malaysian Ban on Israeli Athletes, Relocate Swimming Championship
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.
Pitzer College Should Reject BDS
When a governing council comprised of Pitzer College faculty and students meets during the spring semester, its members should firmly reject the recent faculty decision to suspend the study-abroad program in Israel.
Pushing back on the BDS movement
AJC's Houston Director responds to an op-ed on the anti-BDS law in Texas.
The Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions Movement
Anti-BDS laws neither prohibit expressing criticism of Israel nor infringe on the right to engage in political boycotts.
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AJC Urges Appellate Court to Remove Block on Arizona Anti-BDS Law
“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.
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AJC Applauds University of Michigan for Disciplining Anti-Israel Professor
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.
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AJC Honors Ohio State University and University of Michigan Hillels for Pro-Israel Advocacy
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.
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AJC Brief Calls on Court to Uphold Arizona Anti-BDS Law
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.
Leader of Chile’s Jewish community: “President Piñera will seek improved ties with the state of Israel”
Leader of Chile’s Jewish community: “President Piñera will seek improved ties with the state of Israel”
Former President Sebastián Piñera won Chile’s presidential election on Sunday, December 17. His triumph demonstrates a turn towards the center-right in a region that has been dominated by leftist movements for over a decade. In 2012, Piñera became the first Chilean president to visit Israel, a fact that sets great expectations for the future of bilateral cooperation.
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How Jews on the left and the right are empowering BDS
The BDS debacle at the University of Michigan proved once again that Jews can be their own worst enemies.
Photo of members of the founding class of LFT students with Prime Minister Netanyahu
AJC Empowering Youth On Israel Advocacy
Jewish college students need to be better prepared to discuss Israel before they arrive on campus. That's why AJC designed Leaders for Tomorrow (LFT) - a program aimed at empowering a new generation of young Jewish leaders to advocate on behalf of their community, and to do so thoughtfully.
Photo of a Boycott Divest Sanction sign at a BDS protest
Why the Anti-Israel BDS Campaign Doesn't Stand a Chance
BDS has shown its ugly face at Columbia and Jewish students have responded. Consider the strong words of Daniella Greenbaum when she writes in the Columbia Spectator that “the petition to divest is a tactic that marginalizes Jewish and Israeli students on this campus. It is no different than any other exclusionary initiative.
AJC Appalled by Treatment of Jews at Chicago Gay Pride Parade
AJC is appalled that several Jewish participants in a gay pride parade in Chicago were told to leave the event because their flags had the Jewish Star of David.
AJC Ad Salutes Unanimous Support of U.S. Governors for Israel, Opposition to BDS
A full-page AJC ad in today's Wall Street Journal salutes the nation’s 50 governors and the mayor of the District of Columbia for joining an AJC initiative to affirm their rejection of the BDS (boycott, divestment and sanctions) movement against Israel.
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50 U.S. Governors Join AJC Initiative to Support Israel, Fight BDS
In a profound display of bipartisan unity across the country, all 50 U.S. governors and the Mayor of the District of Columbia have joined an AJC initiative to affirm their rejection of the BDS (boycott, divestment and sanctions) movement against Israel.
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AJC Applauds the Passage of Anti-BDS Legislation in Texas
AJC applauded final adoption of the Texas anti-BDS bill today in the state legislature.
'Israeli Apartheid Week' Negates Jewish History
'Israeli Apartheid Week' Negates Jewish History
In anticipation of the “Israeli Apartheid Week” events soon to take place across college campuses, Seffi Kogen illuminates the true historical context behind the idea of Israeli settler-colonialism.
AJC Questions Ban on BDS Proponents Entering Israel
AJC Questions Ban on BDS Proponents Entering Israel
AJC is troubled by a new law, adopted by the Knesset yesterday, that will bar foreign nationals who have publicly expressed support for boycotting Israel or who work on behalf of organizations supporting the BDS (boycott, divestment, and sanctions) movement from entering Israel.
Open Letter to NFL Player Michael Bennett
AJC Welcomes MLA Rejection of Proposal to Boycott Israel
AJC Welcomes MLA Rejection of Proposal to Boycott Israel
AJC welcomed the rejection today by the Modern Language Association (MLA) of a resolution to boycott Israeli academic institutions.
How France Made Boycotting Israeli Products Illegal
UCLA's BDS Trial
AJC Welcomes Modern Language Association Rejection of BDS Measure Targeting Israel
AJC welcomes the Modern Language Association (MLA) membership rejection of a vicious resolution targeting Israel.
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