The campaign calling for the State University of New York system to adopt Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) must be categorically rejected.
“SUNY BDS”, an insidious unauthorized campaign run by students, faculty, and staff members on State University of New York (SUNY) campuses seeks to defame the world’ s only Jewish state and discriminate against Jewish students and faculty.
The “SUNY BDS” campaign targets Jews and Israelis. It is inherently racist and virulently antisemitic. Supporters of it call for the termination of partnerships between SUNY institutions and Israeli universities and organizations, the end of opportunities for SUNY students to attain jobs in the defense manufacturing industry, and the divestment of $250 million dollars in SUNY-associated pension funds and endowments in the Israeli bond market.
In light of their flagrant use of the university’s name, State University of New York (SUNY) has sent a cease and desist letter to SUNY BDS, threatening legal action. Perhaps because of this, according to SUNY BDS’s website, SUNY now stands for “Stop Unbearable Neoliberal Yuppies.”
On February 27th, the office of New York Governor Kathy Hochul released a statement stating
“To be clear, both Governor Hochul and the SUNY System do not endorse this group or their mission,” The letter also noted that Governor Hochul has “repeatedly condemned all forms of antisemitism…”
In its official statement, SUNY BDS continuously charges Israel as perpetrating a genocide against the Palestinian people. This is a lie.
Israel does all it can to prevent civilian casualties. In an interview published on February 20th, Israel Defense Forces Chief of Staff, Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi stated, “we must be careful not to use force where it is not required, to distinguish between a terrorist and those who are not…” If Israel was truly committing genocide, why would the IDF issue evacuation orders and drop leaflets warning residents of impending airstrikes.
Instead, it is Hamas that places Palestinians in harm’s way, they embed their terrorist infrastructure in UN buildings, hospitals, and densely populated regions of the Gaza Strip.
Ironically, Israel protects Palestinian lives using technology developed by the very same defense contractors targeted by BDS supporters. For instance, the Iron Dome missile defense system that intercepts rocket fire from Gaza uses technology developed by Raytheon and Rafael Advanced Missile Defense Systems.
The Iron Dome has protected the lives of Israeli civilians while minimizing Israel’s need to justifiably neutralize military targets in the Gaza Strip embedded into civilian areas. This effectively minimizes Palestinian casualties as well.
SUNY BDS not one time informs its prospective members why exactly Israel is conducting this operation in the first place. On October 7, thousands of Hamas terrorists invaded Israel and began raping, burning, and slaughtering both innocent civilians and security personnel. By the end of the massacre, 1,139 people were murdered. Soon after, Israel launched its mission to eliminate Hamas.
U.S. National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby himself denounced the claim that the Jewish State is committing a genocide. He declared, “Israel isn’t trying to wipe the Palestinian people off the map, Israel isn’t trying to wipe Gaza off the map. Israel is trying to defend itself against the genocidal terrorist threat.”
I fear that if SUNY BDS succeeded in their mission and implemented BDS policies across all SUNY campuses, there would be a strong wave of antisemitism.
From the University at Albany to The Fashion Institute of Technology, anti-Israel activists are pushing SUNY BDS’s hateful agenda.
In a New York Post article published on March 5, Binghamton students shared their experiences with extreme anti-Israel and antisemitic behavior from fellow students. One pro-Israel student activist reported that she had received vile antisemitic comments. In another instance, an anti-Israel protestor declared that, “Israel is worse than Nazi Germany.” This is on top of the regular calls for an intifada, a term synonymous with Palestinian-led violence and the murder of Israelis heard regularly at anti-Israel protests.
As I made clear above, my alma mater, Binghamton University, is no exception. Although possessing a strong pro-Israel community, SUNY BDS is working to establish a strong presence at the premier public ivy.
On March 26, A “Rally for Palestine” took place at Binghamton University Downtown Center. Participants at the rally called for SUNY BDS’s adoption across all 64 campuses. This rally further alarmed Binghamton’s Jewish students who have been living in a climate of rising hostilities.
Since October 7, Jew-hatred has permeated through the halls and quads of America’s Universities. From Harvard University to UC Berkeley, extreme criticism of Israel has passed the realm of anti-Zionism and has become antisemitism. The adoption of BDS in the SUNY system would further legitimize these open displays of hatred in our universities.
I call upon students, faculty and administrators across the SUNY system to see the “SUNY BDS” campaign for what it is: incessant hate mongering against Jews and Israelis that has no meaningful impact on improving the lives of Palestinians.
This article was originally published in the Jerusalem Post.
