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The Nature of the BDS Movement on US College Campuses: a Brief Analysis in Three Case Studies

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The Nature of the BDS Movement on US College Campuses: a Brief Analysis in Three Case Studies The Nature of the BDS Movement on US College Campuses: A Brief Analysis in Three Case Studies Master’s Thesis Presented to The Faculty of the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences Brandeis University Department of Near Eastern and Judaic Studies Jonathan D. Sarna, Ph.D., Advisor David Ellenson, Ph.D., Committee Member In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Master of Arts in Near Eastern and Judaic Studies by Stefany Truesdell May 2016 Copyright by Stefany Truesdell, A.A., B.A., M.A. © 2016 Acknowledgements This thesis is the fruit of my labors at Brandeis University in my second Master’s Degree program. Completing a second thesis was actually much more difficult that I had thought it would be and there are several people I am grateful to for helping me maintain my needed motivation. My boyfriend, Darrell Carter, who has been with me from the start of my return to college and has edited and offered assistance on my many papers, first thesis, and this thesis. I cannot express how much I appreciate his constant support and am grateful that he inspired me to return to school. I am additionally grateful for his encouragement to complete a second MA program. My friends here in Massachusetts and back in California: all of you have helped and inspired me more than you will ever know. I must offer my sincerest thanks to my committee, Dr. Jonathan Sarna and Rabbi Dr. David Ellenson. Having Prof. Sarna as my advisor is an experience that has been truly rewarding and I am fortunate to have been given his time. Prof. Ellenson is nothing short of a flawless gem in both academia and life. I am honored to have been given the chance to know him and seek his guidance while at Brandeis. It has come to my attention in my studies while at Brandeis that the US, as a whole, is lacking in higher education in both the Holocaust and antisemitism. This is something I hope to help change in my academic career. This thesis is dedicated to anyone and everyone who has endured the damage wrought by antisemitism and persevered to survive and teach their experiences. iii ABSTRACT The Nature of the BDS Movement on US College Campuses: A Brief Analysis in Three Case Studies A thesis presented to the Department of Near Eastern and Judaic Studies Graduate School of Arts and Sciences Brandeis University Waltham, Massachusetts By Stefany Truesdell This thesis studies the nature of the Boycott Divestment and Sanctions movement against Israel on select US college campuses. Using case studies as a method of information collection and presentation, I determined the primary BDS supporting student group on each campus. I then analyzed events held by the groups in order to evaluate how the student group garners support for and advances the ideology of the BDS movement on the college campuses. Additionally, this thesis evaluates if BDS on US college campuses is contributing to the spread of a “new” form of antisemitism in the guise of anti-Zionism. The campuses studied are University of California, Los Angeles, University of Michigan, and Columbia University. The student groups examined are the Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) and Students Allied for Freedom and Equality. Through lenses of alterity and liminality, this thesis examines the literature and activities of the aforementioned pro-BDS student groups on each campus for rhetoric, group definitions, justifications, and stances. This thesis offers an in depth examination into the language of the charters of the SJP groups as well as student reactions to events iv held on campus. When the language used and the details of their activities are measured against the U.S. State Department’s official definition of antisemitism, it becomes clear that there exists underpinnings, and in some cases outright examples, of antisemitism. This thesis ultimately concludes that BDS support on college campuses is indeed contributing to the evolution of a new antisemitic movement that implements a focus on the delegitimization of Israel as its primary vehicle. Additionally, this thesis theorizes that without better, and in some cases more, education of college students about the nature of what is and is not antisemitism, this troubling trend will continue to grow and gain popular support. v TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ......................................................................................... iii CHAPTERS 1. INTRODUCTION .......................................................................................... 1 2. LITERATURE REVIEW ................................................................................ 5 3. CASE STUDY OVERVIEW .......................................................................... 20 4. CASE STUDY: UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, LOS ANGELES ............... 22 UCLA Basic Campus Information ........................................................... 22 Campus Club Life for Students ............................................................... 23 Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) ................................................... 25 UCLA SJP BDS Activity .......................................................................... 30 UCLA SJP Example Event ..................................................................... 38 Concluding Thoughts about the UCLA SJP Chapter .............................. 42 5. CASE STUDY: UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN .............................................. 45 Basic Campus Information ..................................................................... 45 Campus Club Life for Students ............................................................... 49 Students Allied for Freedom and Equality (SAFE) .................................. 50 University of Michigan SAFE BDS Activity ............................................. 54 University of Michigan SAFE Example Event ......................................... 61 Concluding Thoughts about the U of M SAFE Chapter .......................... 64 6. CASE STUDY: COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY ................................................... 66 Basic Campus Information ..................................................................... 66 Campus Club Life for Students ............................................................... 70 Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) ................................................... 70 Columbia University SJP BDS Activity ................................................... 71 Concluding Thoughts about Columbia University SJP Chapter .............. 79 vi 7. CONCLUSION ............................................................................................. 82 APPENDICES .................................................................................................. 94 A. UCLA PRINCIPLES OF COMMUNITY ........................................................ 94 B. COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY APARTHEID DIVEST PETITION ....................... 96 C. CALL FOR THE ACADEMIC AND CULTURAL BOYCOTT OF ISRAEL ..... 99 D. PALESTINIAN CIVIL SOCIETY CALL FOR BDS ........................................ 102 E. PACBI GUIDELINES FOR THE …BOYCOTT OF ISRAEL ......................... 105 F. UCLA MISSION AND VALUES .................................................................... 112 G. UCLA SJP CONSTITUTION ....................................................................... 114 H. PALESTINIAN BDS NATIONAL COMMITTEE ............................................ 137 I. PACBI STATEMENT REGARDING “NORMALIZATION” ............................. 139 J. UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN SAFE CONSTITUTION ................................. 145 K. U OF M SAFE DIVESTMENT CAMPAIGN .................................................. 156 L. UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN SAFE MOCK EVICTION NOTICE ................ 157 M. COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY RESPONSE TO CUAD DEMANDS .................. 158 BIBLIOGRAPHY .................................................................................................. 160 vii CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION The concept of boycotting and imposing sanctions on a government in order to achieve political and social goals is not novel. They have been used previously to protest governmental/social situations such as apartheid in South Africa, and economic sanctions remain in place against many governments, such as those against Iran today.1 However, a specific Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) campaign now targets Israel. It seeks legitimacy through comparisons to South African apartheid, albeit that this may not be an appropriate comparison for a variety of reasons. In my opinion, a problem inherent in the BDS movement aimed at Israel lies in distortions and ignorance of Israel’s actual policies regarding the Palestinian people. This lack of knowledge has led social justice elements on many college campuses and in many academic circles to attack the State of Israel for its policies in relationship to the Palestinian people. Through social justice activism, much good has been done and many changes for the betterment of various societies have been implemented. However, social justice activism ought to demand activists who are fully informed and investigate the facts of the issue they advocate for or against. As Cary Nelson, in his introduction to the work entitled The Case Against Academic Boycotts of Israel, states: 1 Many of these sanctions are set to be lifted with the Iran Nuclear Arms Deal. 1 The international Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) movement is the most influential current version of a long-term effort to delegitimate the State of Israel. Many of BDS’s most prominent
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