This is the first resolution of this nature ever to be presented at NYU. The “Resolution on the Human Rights of Palestinians” calls for divesting from corporations that violate Palestinian human rights and calls on NYU to adopt a socially responsible investment policy that upholds human rights for all. The resolution was presented by Senators-at-Large Bayan Abubakr and Rose Asaf along with Alternate Senator-at-Large Leen Dweik. Asaf, Abubakr, and Dweik are all seniors at NYU and members of Students for Justice in Palestine. Additionally, Asaf is a member of Jewish Voice for Peace.

NYU SJP logo

“I co-authored this resolution because I have a role and stake in the Palestinian struggle for liberation and justice. To quote Lilla Watson, all of our liberations are bound together. As a first-generation Sudanese-American Muslim, I cannot idly stand by as the institution that I attend perpetuates imperial violence in Palestine and beyond. I want NYU to reckon with the fact that it profits off of the destruction of Palestinian livelihoods, communities, and homes.” – Bayan Abubakr, Senator-at-Large and Students for Justice in Palestine NYU member.

Targeting three corporations – Caterpillar Inc., Lockheed Martin, and General Electric – the resolution brings attention to the ways in which these corporations violate Palestinian human rights. The resolution calls on the university to divest from these companies as well as others complicit in human rights abuses of Palestinians and globally. The resolution ultimately calls on the university to implement a socially responsible investment model, which would put in a place a screen to ensure the university’s investments that uphold human rights for all.

“As a Palestinian, this resolution is deeply personal to me. As an NYU student, it hurts and shocks me that the university would continue to invest in companies that directly contribute to the human rights violations of my family and my people.” – Leen Dweik, Alternate Senator-at-Large and Students for Justice in Palestine member.

The resolution is supported by 61 student groups listed in Appendix A. These include the undergraduate student government of the NYU Silver School of Social Work, the Black Student Union, the Interfaith Students of Color Coalition at NYU and the NYU College Libertarians, amongst others. In addition to these clubs, there are 34 faculty endorsements who are listed in Appendix B. The presentation of the resolution comes a month after more than thirty student groups at NYU pledged non-cooperation with the NYU Tel Aviv campus. This also comes weeks after student activists organized to get a talk by Milo Yiannopoulos cancelled. NYU’s study body now joins Barnard College’s, which passed a referendum in support of divestment last year.

“As an American-Israeli Jewish person, I am co-authoring this resolution because of my identity — not in spite of it. I believe that I, as a Jewish person, have a responsibility to support Palestinians in their struggle for justice and liberation. NYU likes to give the illusion that it is a progressive institution, but how progressive can it actually be when it is actively funding human rights violations?” – Rose Asaf, Senator at-Large and Jewish Voice for Peace-NYU member.

The resolution will next need to be heard by the University Senate, consisting of students, faculty, deans, and staff. If the resolution passes University Senate, it will be sent to the Board of Trustees for consideration.

Appendix A: Supporting Groups

Advocate Coalition (Against) Trafficking at NYU (Re-ACT)

African Heritage Month

African Student Union

NYU Aftab Literary Magazine

NYU Against Fascism

Arab Students United

Asian American Women’s Alliance at NYU

Asian Heritage Month

NYU Asian Pacific American Coalition

Bella Quisqueya (BQ)

Black and Brown Coalition at NYU

NYU Black Muslim Initiative

Black Students Union (BSU)

Brownstone Publication

Campgrrl

NYU Coalition on Law & Representation (CoLR)

NYU College Libertarians

NYU Disorient

NYU Divest for Climate Justice

NYU Dream Team

Gentlemen of Quality (GQ)

GSOC-UAW Local 2110 — The Union for Graduate Employees at New York University

Haitian American Students Association (HASA)

Hermandad de Sigma Iota Alpha, Inc.

Incarceration to Education Coalition

NYU International Socialist Organization

NYU Jewish Voice for Peace

La Herencia Latina

Latinos Unidos Con Honor y Amistad at NYU (LUCHA)

NYU Law Students for Justice in Palestine (LSJP)

Malaysian Students Association

NYU Mexican Student Association (MexSA)

Mosaic: The Interfaith Students of Color Coalition at NYU

MuCh — Muslim Christian Dialogue at NYU

Muslim Graduate Student Group

NYU Muslim Students Association

National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE) at NYU

Native American and Indigenous Student Group at NYU

The Omicron Chapter of Phi Iota Alpha

Pakistani Students Association at NYU

NYU PorColombia

NYU Sanctuary Student Taskforce

SHADES: For LGBTQ Students of Color and Allies at NYU

Shuruq: Islamic Heritage Month

NYU Slam! Poetry Club

NYU Students Against Gentrification and Expansion

NYU Students for Justice in Palestine

Student Labor Action Movement at NYU

NYU Tandon Muslim Students Association

Turkish Student Association at NYU

T-Party at NYU

NYU ¡Viva Perú!

NYU Young Democratic Socialists of America

Biracial and Multicultural Student Association

NYU-Wagner’s Black Student Association

Justice Initiative at Global Public Health NYU

Map Club at NYU

Nutrition Without Borders at Global Public Health NYU

NYU Silver Undergraduate Student Government Association

Bioethics @ NYU

Anthropology Undergraduate Student Association

Appendix B: Faculty Support

Andrew Ross, Professor

Arang Keshavarzian, Associate Professor

Arun Kundani, Visiting Assistant Professor

Barbara Weinstein, Silver Professor

Bertell Ollman, Professor

Diana Taylor, Professor

Elaine Freedgood, Professor

Fred Moten, Professor

Gianpaolo Baiocchi, Professor

Greg Grandin, Professor

Harty Field, Professor

James S. Uleman, Professor and T-FSC Senator

Jeff Goodwin, Professor

Jini Watson, Associate Professor

John Michael Archer, Professor

Kathy Engel, Associate Professor

Lenora Hanson, Assistant Professor

Lisa Duggan, Professor

Maria Josefina Saldaña-Portillo, Professor

Marie Cruz Soto, Clinical Assistant Professor

Marie Monaco, Associate Professor

Mark Crispin Miller, Professor

Monica Kim, Assistant Professor

Nicholas Mirzoeff, Professor

Paula Chakravartty, Associate Professor

Rebecca E. Karl, Professor

Renee Blake, Associate Professor

Sonya Posmentier, Associate Professor

Thuy Linh Tu, Associate Professor

Timothy J. Reiss, Emeritus Professor

Valerie Forman, Associate Professor

Vasuki Nesiah, Associate Professor of Practice

Vivek Chibber, Professor

Zachary Lockman, Professor