Anti-Divestment Petitions
by Lee Green
In the past, divestment campaigns have been soundly defeated, often with the help of anti-divestment petitions. Below are two versions of an anti-divestment petition.
The second one is Harvard/MIT's successful anti-divestment petition from several years ago. The first one is my revised version of the Harvard/MIT petition, to make it more appropriate for today. I hope you find these petitions useful as you work to counter current university or community divestment campaigns.
Revised University Anti-Divestment Petition (to counter an ongoing divestment campaign on a campus):
If there is a divest from Israel campaign taking place on your campus or in your town, I encourage you to initiate an anti-divestment petition as a way to educate the public and to defeat the divestment campaign. Feel free to use part or all of the revised petition below.
Petition to Protest Unfair Calls for Divestment from Israel
We, who support peace between the Palestinians and Israelis, oppose the misguided appeals for divestment, or other punitive actions, against the democratic State of Israel.
We have diverse opinions on how peace in the Middle East can be achieved, and a wide range of views regarding government policies of all the parties involved. We are unanimous, however, in condemning divestment as a one-sided attempt to delegitimize Israel.
We are appalled that, in response to the tragic situation in the Middle East, our colleagues should choose to associate their names with an unfair position that ignores recent events and history and revives rhetoric long discredited due to its use among extremists as code for the destruction of the Jewish state.
Israel has a right to exist free from terror. While Israel has long sought peace, it nonetheless has the right to respond militarily to those who perpetrate violence against Israeli citizens. To place blame solely on Israel for the lack of peace, and to demand unilateral concessions from Israel without showing any concern for Israel's self-defense, is unjust and illogical. It is unfair to single Israel out for partisan attack.
Divestment from Israel does not take into account the widespread desire within Israel for a long-term and just solution, nor of previous attempts by Israel to achieve a fair and peaceful settlement, including numerous offers of a two-state solution and Israel's removal of all Jews living in the Gaza Strip. Divestment does not support the citizens of Israel in the face of relentless hostility, threats of annihilation, and terror attacks.
Divestment from Israel does not address the Palestinians' lack of adherence to the most basic principles of a peace process - to solve all differences through negotiations, not violence. Divestment does not work to minimize the rampant extremism and maximalist attitudes of many Palestinians that lead to violence - not just against the Jews - but among the Palestinians themselves.
Instead, divestment efforts pour undeserved scorn on Israel, and provide moral support for the very elements within Palestinian society that are promoting violence and extremism - not peace. We therefore denounce divestment.
Reasonable people should work for a peacefully negotiated solution between an Israeli leadership and Palestinian leadership committed to a permanent two-state solution. Calling for Israel's destruction and continuing to incite violence and foster hatred against Jews are not congruent with peaceful intentions and Israel cannot be expected to negotiate with so-called peace partners who exhibit such counterproductive behavior.
We appeal to our colleagues who have expressed support for divestment, and in so doing tarnished their own reputations and the reputation of our university, to reconsider. We call on the administration of our university, and for all people of good will who wish for peace in the Middle East, to repudiate divestment from Israel and any other such counterproductive and unfair initiatives.
Signed by:
Harvard/MIT anti-divestment petition:
We, Harvard and MIT faculty, staff, students and alumni/ae who support peace in the Middle East, oppose the misguided divestment petition calling for punitive actions by the US government and our universities against the State of Israel.
We have diverse opinions on how peace in the Middle East can be achieved, and widely differing views of the current government's policies.
We are unanimous, however, in our condemnation of this petition as a one-sided attempt to delegitimize Israel. We are appalled that, in response to the tragic situation in the Middle East, our colleagues should choose to associate their names with a distorted position that ignores the history of the last few years and revives rhetoric long discredited by its use among extremists as code for the destruction of the Jewish state.
Israel has a right to exist free from terror. To place blame solely on Israel for the recent state of affairs, and to demand unilateral concessions without showing any concern for its self-defense, is unjust. Reasonable people should work for a peacefully negotiated solution, and not single out Israel for partisan attack.
The divestment petition does not support peace negotiations between Israelis and Palestinians -- indeed, the word "peace" does not even appear in it; it does not support the citizens of Israel in the face of an endless stream of suicide bombings; it does not offer aid to Palestinians who have lost property and dignity in the conflict. It makes no mention of the widespread desire within Israel for a long-term and just solution, nor of previous attempts to achieve a peaceful settlement. Instead, it pours scorn on Israel alone, and calls for abandonment and disengagement at this critical time.
We therefore denounce the divestment petition; we appeal to our colleagues who signed it, and in so doing tarnished their own reputations and the reputations of our universities, to reconsider; and we call on the administrations of Harvard and MIT to repudiate it and deny its demands.
Originally Published on 2/14/2007 for CAMERA