Why I spoke about the Right to Boycott in Philadelphia

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Why I spoke about the Right to Boycott in Philadelphia

Dear Friends,

On Tuesday, I traveled to Philadelphia, where the Democratic National Convention is underway, to join Yousef Munayyer (US Campaign to End the Israeli Occupation), Gerardo Reyes Chavez (Coalition of Immokalee Workers), and Caroline Hunter (anti-Apartheid activist and co-founder of the Polaroid boycott) on a panel discussion on the right to boycott, hosted and moderated by Rebecca Vilkomerson (Jewish Voice for Peace).

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2016 Mid-Year Report

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2016 Mid-Year Report

Palestine Legal responded to 171 incidents of suppression of Palestine advocacy from 19 states in the first six months of 2016 alone, a 22 percent increase* from the same period in 2015. The incidents predominantly targeted students and scholars across the country, and included a variety of punitive measures such as administrative sanctions, censorship, intrusive investigations and other forms of discriminatory treatment targeting speech in favor of Palestinian rights.

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Another frivolous lawsuit against the American Studies Association’s Boycott

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Another frivolous lawsuit against the American Studies Association’s Boycott

Israel advocacy groups are piling on meritless legal threats to punish the American Studies Association (ASA) in the latest attempt to erode the right to boycott. 

Inside Higher Ed reports on the newest lawsuit against the ASA, which was filed on Wednesday by “Athenaeum,” an organization that “has not attempted to apply for ASA membership.”

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New Report Finds UCLA Funding Restrictions Violated University Policy

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New Report Finds UCLA Funding Restrictions Violated University Policy

In November 2015, a student government official at UCLA restricted funding for a Diversity Town Hall event by requiring the event organizers to maintain “zero connection” to anyone with “Divest from Israel or any equivalent movement/organization” – or else they would lose their funding. The UCLA Discrimination Prevention Office confirmed in a report released this week that the funding condition violated campus policy and harmed the campus climate by chilling speech. 

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UC Irvine Moves to Criminalize Student Protest, Again

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UC Irvine Moves to Criminalize Student Protest, Again

A case involving a student protest outside a film screening and panel of Israeli soldiers speaking at University of California, Irvine (UCI) has been referred to the Orange County District Attorney (DA) to determine whether charges will be filed. The May 18 protest, conducted by members of numerous student organizations, aimed to draw connections between state violence at home and abroad. 

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Groups Seek Cuomo Documents About Executive Order Blacklisting Institutions That Support BDS

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Groups Seek Cuomo Documents About Executive Order Blacklisting Institutions That Support BDS

June 21, 2016, New York – Today, human rights and civil liberties groups filed a Freedom of Information Law (FOIL) request seeking documents relating to Governor Andrew Cuomo’s recent executive order that will blacklist institutions and companies that abide by Boycott, Divest, and Sanctions (BDS) campaigns related to Israeli human rights abuses and violations of international law. Under the order, New York State money will be divested from those institutions unless and until they drop their support of the constitutionally-protected movement for Palestinian rights.

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Statement: New NY Bill Unconstitutional

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Statement: New NY Bill Unconstitutional

SB 8017 is an unequivocally unconstitutional attack on First Amendment freedoms that strikes at New York’s college students. Boycotts to effect political, social or economic change are a constitutionally-protected form of speech, association and assembly, and have a long history of being used successfully to address injustice.

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