Minneapolis, MN – Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) at the University in Minnesota, in conjunction with over 30 UMN student organizations and faculty, is calling on Minnesota Student Association to pass a resolution urging the UMN to divest from corporations that profit from Israeli apartheid.

A statement from SJP said, “We call for the divestment of four specific companies: Elbit Systems, G4S, Caterpillar and Raytheon. The University of Minnesota’s investments in these companies shows implicit support for the decisions and actions of these companies, as well as their consequences, which include the killing of civilians and violations of their basic human rights.”

The call to divest is a response to the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) movement- a global campaign to pressure Israel into complying with international law and to recognize Palestinians’ rights. BDS was initiated by Palestinian civil society in 2005 and is endorsed by over 170 Palestinian political parties and organizations that represent Palestinian refugees and Palestinians living under occupation in Israel and the West Bank.

The SJP statement concluded, “We, the students, call upon our university to dissociate itself from companies that engage or aid in systematic prejudiced oppression, whether this system targets people based on their religion, nationality, gender, race or orientation, by divesting from companies that participate in or profit from human rights violations. The inalienable rights of the Palestinian people should not be infringed upon or disregarded.”

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