Illinois Palestinian and Solidarity Organizations Protest Anti-BDS Law and Censorship
Illinois Coalition for Justice, Equality, and Free Speech
For Immediate Release: Monday, December 20, 2021
Press Contacts: Muhammad Sankari, U.S. Palestinian Community Network (USPCN)-Chicago, 773.656.9928; Lesley Williams, Jewish Voice for Peace (JVP)-Chicago, 847.373.6812
Illinois Palestinian and solidarity organizations protest anti-BDS law and the censorship of individual and corporate actions for human rights
WHEN: Wednesday, December 22, 2021, at 11 AM
WHERE: Thompson Center, 100 W. Randolph St., Chicago, IL 60601
On Wednesday, December 22, 2021, a coalition of Illinois Palestinian, solidarity, civil, and human rights organizations will rally at the Thompson Center in downtown Chicago to protest the Illinois Investment Policy Board’s Committee on Israel Boycott Restrictions’ investigation of Unilever for its subsidiary Ben & Jerry’s July 2021 decision to withdraw business from illegal Israel settlements in the Palestinian West Bank. The Investment Policy Board is also investigating Chicago-based Morningstar for its decision to not recommend investment in Israel because of the apartheid state’s clear human rights violations against the Palestinian people.
Coalition members will rally in front of the Thompson Center to call on Governor Pritzker to disband the Committee on Israel Boycott Restrictions, and then will proceed upstairs to testify in front of the committee during public comments.
In 2015, the Illinois General Assembly, supported and encouraged by then-governor Bruce Rauner, passed Public Act 099-0128, which prohibits state-run pension funds from investing in companies that – for political reasons – refuse to do business with “the state of Israel or in territories controlled by Israel.” This law criminalizes the legitimate and First Amendment protected activities of the Palestinian-led Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) movement, which seeks to pressure Israel to comply with international law by boycotting and divesting from companies that profit off Israel’s human rights violations.
“The decision by the Illinois Investment Policy Board’s Committee on Israel Boycott Restrictions to punish Unilever and Morningstar does not represent the best interests of public sector employees in the state or Illinoisans in general,” said Muhammad Sankari, organizer with U.S. Palestinian Community Network (USPCN)-Chicago. “Asserting Israel’s right to control the illegally-occupied West Bank settlements flies in the face of all international laws and norms.”
“We call on Governor Pritzker to support the right of companies and pension funds to follow socially-responsible investment principles,” added Lesley Williams of Jewish Voice for Peace (JVP)-Chicago
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Community Renewal Society is deeply rooted in a mission of affirming the sanctity of life. We affirm and honor the humanity of Palestinians and their right to freedom and ownership of their land. Any act that disinherits a race of people and disproportionately utilize militarized state violence to occupy illegally obtained land is a crime against humanity. We call for loving, just and humane acts of reconciliation so that Palestinians can flourish in freedom without the fear of torture, discrimination, and death. Further, those who seek to be in solidarity with human rights should not be penalized and silenced. We unite in today’s rally because we who believe in Freedom Cannot Rest Until it comes for us all. We unite in today’s rally because it is a breach of our democracy in the United States to accept even a threat of sanction against Ben and Jerry for using their platform to expose racism and oppression. We unite in today’s rally because enough is enough and lives are at stake if we remain silent amidst the suffering of Palestinian people. Palestinian liberation is our liberation because we are one as believers in a God of love and justice. Freedom now! Let us unite in the spirit and hope of Beloved Community!
-Rev. Dr. Waltrina Middleton, Executive Director, Community Renewal Society
The Illinois Coalition for Justice, Equality, and Free Speech includes these organizations: American Friends Service Committee, American Muslims for Palestine, Arab Jewish Partnership for Peace and Justice in the Middle East, Black Lives Matter Chicago, Chicago Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression, Chicago Area Peace Action, Chicago Faith Coalition, Chicago Religious Leadership Network on Latin America, Committee for a Just Peace in Israel and Palestine, Community Renewal Society – Chicago, Democratic Socialists of America – Chicago chapter, If Not Now – Chicago, Indigenous Peoples' Day Coalition – Illinois, Jewish Voice for Peace, Palestine Legal, Students for Justice in Palestine, U.S. Campaign for Palestinian Rights, U.S. Palestinian Community Network