The student government of Michigan State University (MSU) has passed a resolution calling on school officials to endorse the boycott, divestment, and sanctions movement (BDS) against Israel, becoming the latest such body to attack the Zionist component of Jewish identity and advocate policies which would undermine Israeli security.

“The Associated Students of Michigan State University shall release a statement … reaffirming support for divestment from weapons manufacturers, the state of Israel, and investments firms and banks investing in weapons manufacturers, including, but not limited to Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, Boeing, Black Rock, and BNY Mellon,” the resolution, also known as “61-53,” said. “[We] shall continue to advocate for divestment during Board of Trustees meetings via liaison statements, meetings with Board members, meetings with administration, and meetings in academic governance.”

Formally launched in 2005, the BDS campaign opposes Zionism — a movement supporting the Jewish people’s right to self-determination — and rejects Israel’s right to exist as a Jewish nation-state. It seeks to isolate the country with economic, political, and cultural boycotts. Official guidelines issued for the campaign’s academic boycott state that “projects with all Israeli academic institutions should come to an end,” and delineate specific restrictions that its adherents should abide by — for instance, denying letters of recommendation to students applying to study abroad in Israel.

BDS has received renewed support amid Israel’s latest conflict with the Palestinian terrorist group Hamas, which was responsible for the rape and murder of hundreds of Israeli civilians during its invasion of the Jewish state on Oct. 7, 2023. Following its endorsement by Associated Students, MSU’s Jewish Student Union denounced what it described as the attempted erasure of pro-Israel Jews on campus.

“Our communities are deeply disappointed that the Associated Students of Michigan State University continues to pass antisemitic and divisive resolutions — as well as biased and hurtful statements that call for divestment from Israel,” the group said in a statement which followed the vote. “The BDS movement is an inherently antisemitic movement that creates division and emboldens anti-Jewish sentiment on campus.”

It added, “We condemn the passage of Bill 61-53 and will continue to advocate against the BDS movement.”

Associated Students president Connor Le defended the resolution in a statement to MSU’s student newspaper, The State News, saying it responded to “the differing and diverse needs of the student body” and that “while the language of 61-53, may be viewed as offensive to some communities, others on campus found it important to bring this issue to the General Assembly, the Board of Trustees, and the overall MSU community.”

Michigan State University has formally rejected the BDS movement and any other which would exert “political influence” on the university’s investment portfolio and undermine its “focus on strong financial stewardship that allows us to advance our educational and outreach mission.”

When anti-Zionist students installed an encampment on campus property and vowed not to leave unless school officials adopted BDS, university president Kevin Guskiewicz confirmed divestment was not on the agenda.

“We have no direct investments in gun manufacturers, and we do not have direct or indirect investments in the three publicly traded civilian firearms manufacturers,” he said. “Further, the university does not own an Israeli-issued security bond. Given this context, and as the Board has previously indicated, the university will not be making any divestment changes.”

Follow Dion J. Pierre @DionJPierre.

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