Chicago, IL – On Thursday, January 22, organizers in Anti-War Committee (AWC), Chicago, United States Palestinian Community Network (USPCN), and BDS Chicago braved the cold to host a press conference demanding that Illinois State Treasurer Michael Frerichs divest state funds from Israel Bonds. They were joined by rank-and-file members of the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) Local 73 to announce that they are filing their third ethics complaint against Frerichs for his investments.

“Michael Frerichs, what don’t you understand? We are not going to stop until you divest from Israel,” declared AWC Chicago Co-chair Jae Franklin, addressing the crowd gathered outside the Illinois State Treasurer’s office.

A representative from 73 for Palestine, Gaby Martinez, explained the reason for the complaint. “Treasurer Frerichs needs to be censured in that he is not investing for the people of Illinois, but for his personal political agenda.” The charges submitted to the Executive Inspector General include “abuse of authority, corruption, favoritism, improper use of state time and other resources, and prohibited political purposes and misuse of political assets.”

The state of Illinois currently has $100 million actively invested in Israel Bonds, making Illinois one of the leading state governments supplying material support to Israel. Funds raised from the sale of Israel Bonds are unrestricted. They are transferred directly into Israel’s general budget and can be used for any purpose. “We’ve seen what they do with these resources,” stated Franklin, “mass starvation, occupation, the destruction of schools, hospitals, places of worship.”

Organizers spoke to the repression they have faced from the state treasurer’s office, as well as from the Illinois State Board of Investments (ISBI), who are also under fire from the public for their investments in companies that provide material support to Israel.

Tulsi McDaniels from the Chicago Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression (CAARPR) recounted her experience of being forcibly removed from the most recent ISBI meeting. “State police separated us and purposefully brutalized another protester in the room – but not before denying us entrance unless we removed our keffiyehs.” The meeting was also delayed by over an hour, and protesters were left to stand outside in freezing temperatures.

Noura Ebrahim from the United States Palestinian Community Network (USPCN) summed it up, “Frerichs is clearly more comfortable engaging with representatives of Zionist organizations and supporters of genocide than with the people whose money he manages—a profound breach of public trust.” Michael Frerichs still has not publicly addressed any calls for divestment.

Protesters were also joined by state senator and candidate for Illinois comptroller Karina Villa, who represents the 25th District of Illinois. She spoke to the connections between these atrocities overseas, and the violence being committed by ICE within the United States itself, both of which are funded by taxpayer dollars stating, “These monsters that are wreaking havoc at home or abroad, this Donald Trump regime, understands one thing: he understands money. We understand money, too. This is Illinoisans’ dollars.”

Organizers attempted to deliver a copy of the ethics complaint to the state treasurer’s office but were denied entry. They were told that a representative from the office would come down to receive the papers, but no one ever arrived to do so. Eventually, the papers were handed off to the state police officer managing the entrance, who said that they would be delivered.

Call Frerichs’ office and sign the letter to divest!

Organizers are urging the public to call Michael Frerich’s office and demand for him to divest from Israel Bonds, starting with two bonds with a total value of $15 million that are set to expire on February 1.

Illinois residents can also sign the letter to divest as an individual or endorse as an organization to join the divestment network. For updates about the campaign and further calls to action regarding divestment, follow @uspcn, @bdschicago, and @antiwarchicago on Instagram.

#ChicagoIL #IL #AntiWarMovement #Divest #Palestine #Labor #SEIU #BDS #USPCN

New York, NY – On February 25, over 20 NYU students, faculty and workers picketed the board of trustees meeting demanding they disclose and divest from all companies supplying Israel in its genocidal occupation of Palestine.

In addition to disclosure and divestment, the NYU People’s Solidarity Coalition demanded the closure of the NYU Tel Aviv campus, built upon stolen Palestinian land, and the reversal of all suspensions and probation charges of Palestine student activists. The coalition’s demands aim to cut the university’s ties to the state of Israel.

As board of trustee members were escorted into their meeting by campus security officers, they were confronted by picketersdemanding that they disclose and divest. As the meeting went on, picketers chanted “Trustees pick a side, justice or genocide” and “We want justice you say how! Answer our demands now!”

The picket was called for by the NYU People’s Solidarity Coalition, which consists of the NYU Students for a Democratic Society, NYU Students for Justice in Palestine, Shut It Down NYU, NYU Graduate Student Workers Union – UAW, and several other organizations.

The participating organizations vow to continue their fight against NYU, no matter what repressive tactics are thrown their way. They will continue struggling until they win all their demands.

#NewYorkCityNY #NewYorkNY #NYC #NYU NYUPSC #SDS #NYUSDS #NYUSJP #SJP #BDS #UAW #NYUGSWU #FreePalestine #Disclose #Divest

New Orleans, LA - On November 13, students packed a room to hear about their university’s difficult financial future and anincreasingly bloated and unaccountable administration.

The Muslim Student Association (MSA) and members of Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) created an exposé highlighting their campaign demanding that Loyola disclose their $250 million endowment fund.

Students were especially frustrated with tuition increases and cuts to their financial aid to bail out the university from its poor financial management.

“Loyola’s plans for the future are not looking great. You can expect tuition to increase from $47,390 to $51,656 and total financial aid to drop by 3%. This is all for what admin has called a ‘premium education’,” said Nadir Benslimane, a Liberate and Unite New Orleans (LUNO) SDS member. “If you think this premium education means more classes and higher paid professors, you’d be wrong. Loyola plans to hire two more vice presidents who will make over $300K, bloating our administration while professors who have worked here for 15 years haven’t ever seen a raise.”

On top of extreme tuition increases, this panel exposed the board of trustees and the corporation that controls the endowment fund and where that fund is invested. “The board of trustees iscomposed of wealthy business owners whose interests do not align with students’ material interests by any means,” said Miu Sims, an SDS member.

The exposé revealed that the university’s “ethical investment statement,” despite pandering to the Jesuit and Catholic values regarding investments, includes a clause that says ethical investing is very hard, and so they are free to do as they wish. The “corporation” is a small group of high-ranking Jesuits who control the board of trustees and have the ultimate say on where the investment fund ends up.

“The corporation excludes all outside perspectives by only hiring Jesuits and those in ‘good standing’ in the Society of Jesus, meaning only men can be on this corporation,” said Mae Guidry, SDS member.

The Jesuit Order has released several statements on the genocide of Palestinians and Pope Francis, a Jesuit, has called Israel a terrorist state. “They [the corporation] claim to represent Jesuit values but only at their convenience and your silence,” continued Mae.

The panelists then explained the retaliation that students have faced for demanding disclosure and exercising free speech and expression. “We’ve been consistently struggling for financial transparency, the right to free expression, and a meeting with admin. Now, two students have been fired for protesting; people are on disciplinary probation, and the administration is consolidating its power to shut down student free speech,” said Nour Saad, president of Loyola MSA.

The panelists concluded with a call to action to sign a letter to the president of Loyola, Xavier Cole, the Loyola board of trustees and the corporation with the following demands: Disclose all investments made by the university; divest from all companies related to Israeli apartheid; rescind all institutional sanctions placed on students related to free speech and expression, including but not limited to protesting, and calling for meetings with relevant university administrators regarding the above demands, including but not limited to President Xavier Cole.

This event served as a way to unite students around disclosure and institutional transparency.

#NewOrleansLA #NOLA #SDS #FreePalestine #LoyolaMSA #Loyola #Budget #Disclose #Divest #BDS #Endowment