Divestment
Background
Israel’s war in Gaza has been recognized as a genocide by a number of foreign powers. Berkeley
students and faculty have directly lost family members in Israel’s bombing campaign and ground
invasion. In this sense, the war in Gaza constitutes not only a political crisis, but a direct
threat to the safety and wellbeing of the Berkeley community. Berkeley also has a history of
divestment from foreign oppression, namely South Africa’s apartheid government. The UC system as
a whole continues to hold investments in BlackRock, the private equity firm invested in US weapons production and Israeli technology development.
The demand for divestment is widespread, and its lack of support in ASUC is reflective of an
attitude of cowardice about losing future career prospects.
The regents have proposed a policy that would ban “political speech” on official Berkeley
websites. This would prevent departments from expressing their views on the Israel-Palestine
conflict (see the department of Middle Eastern studies). It is vital, now more than ever, to
protect the freedom of expression of Berkeley students and faculty.
History of ASUC Divestment Bills:
2013 Divestment Bill:
In 2013, the UC Berkeley student senate passed a divestment bill (source): Companies listed in the bill were Caterpillar, Hewlett-Packard, and Cement Roadstone, among
others (
source)
The Chancellor emphasized how the passing of the bill does not change anything about the
Regents’ investment policy (
source)
Landgraf criticized the “onesided narrative of this bill, and its complete and utter failure
to create any constructive discussion or dialogue on a complex and multifaceted issue”, while
still deciding not to veto it. (
source)
Advocating for divestment:
Support the UC Regent divestment petition This has precedent, namely in the UC’s divestment from South African apartheid.
Supporting student free speech and demonstration The UC regents have proposed a new policy forbidding UC employees from speaking through university channels about their political opinions,
but allows high-ranking UC members to continue to share their opinions. This allows for the UC system
as a whole to form a central narrative on issues, and prevents professors, GSIs, and other staff
from disagreeing and speaking their mind. We must work to ensure that this does not get passed. Objectives
Support the Palestinian struggle for liberation Protect the 1st amendment rights of students and faculty to organize and protest. Uphold the
values of senate resolution No.2023/2024-042 (Resolution Protecting Palestinian Students and
Their Allies at UC Berkeley) Our policy goals
Petition the UC regents to divest from Blackrock, the private equity firm invested in US weapons
production and Israeli technology development Petition against the passing of the Regents Policy on Use of University Administrative Websites