Colleges Are Moving to Divest From Israel

Some colleges in the U.S. are working to open up the possibility of divesting from Israel amid the growing number of ongoing pro-Palestinian protests at campuses nationwide.

In recent weeks, pro-Palestinian protests have occurred at dozens of college campuses across the U.S. including at Columbia University, Yale University, Northwestern University, University of North Carolina Chapel Hill and the University of California, Los Angeles. Student protesters are calling on their schools to divest from Israel amid their ongoing conflict with Hamas militants in Gaza.

The protests come as tensions have remained high across college campuses since the October 7, 2023, attack by Hamas militants on Israel. The Palestinian militant group attacked southern Israel, killing over 1,200 people and taking over 200 more hostage. Israel followed by launching strikes against Hamas in Gaza that has left over 34,000 people dead, The Associated Press reported, citing Gaza health officials.

In response to the recent protests, many schools have sought to reach agreements with the student protesters to alleviate tensions and end campus encampments set up by protesters.

At Brown University, school officials and student-protest organizers reached an agreement last week that ended that encampment on campus, in exchange for a possible future divestment from Israel by the school.

"The University agreed that five students will be invited to meet with five members of the Corporation of Brown University in May to present their arguments to divest Brown's endowment from 'companies that facilitate the Israeli occupation of Palestinian Territory,'" the school said in a statement.

According to the statement, Brown University President Christina H. Paxson said she will ask the Advisory Committee on University Resources Management "to provide a recommendation on the matter of divestment by Sept. 30, and this will be brought to the Corporation for a vote at its October 2024 meeting."

A spokesperson for Brown University told Newsweek, "A vote in October, either for or against divestment, will also bring clarity to an issue that is of long-standing interest to many members of the Brown community."

A similar agreement was reached between protesters and school officials at The Evergreen State College in Olympia, Washington. A memorandum released by the school states that the student encampment will end in exchange for the school looking into its investments and possibly divesting from Israel.

The school said its Investment Policy Disappearing Task Force "will address divestment from companies that profit from gross human rights violations and/or the occupation of Palestinian territories."

In a statement to Newsweek, Evergreen State College Executive Vice President, Dexter Gordon said, "Last week (Tuesday, April 29, 2024), we reached an agreement with students to disband the encampment that has been on Red Square for more than a week. Thanks to a team of staff who met with students daily to negotiate and educate alongside some faculty members who, on the last day, joined the negotiation as student advisors."

Northwestern University also reached an agreement with student protesters to end their encampment, but the school did not explicitly commit to divesting from Israel, the Daily Northwestern reported.

According to the student newspaper, the agreement states that the school will reestablish an investment committee among the board of trustees and will provide additional support for both Palestinian and Jewish students.

Update, 5/7/2024, 8:15 a.m. EST: This story has been updated with a statement from Brown University.

Correction 5/7/2024, 11:40 a.m. ET: This article was updated to reflect that the encampment in the photo was at George Washington University.