Malak Afaneh

Malak Afaneh trespassed and disrupted a private event, spread hatred of Zionists and expressed support for a terror group. Afaneh has also shown support for terrorists and terror financiers. Afaneh has spread hatred of Israel and engaged in anti-Israel activism.

Afaneh’s disruption took place in April 2024 where she promoted hatred of Israel during Israel’s war against Hamas. The war began after Hamas terror atrocities and war crimes against Israeli civilians, including mass murder, torture, rape, beheadings and kidnappings. Hamas executed the attacks on October 7, 2023, which left over 1,200 Israelis dead, hundreds kidnapped and thousands wounded. Israel retaliated with a war called “Swords of Iron.” For more information, see the Canary Mission page on Hamas.  

In August 2022, Afaneh’s LinkedIn page said she was president of the Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) chapter at the University of California, Berkeley School of Law (Berkeley Law), which is known as Berkeley LSJP.

Afaneh drafted[00:03:25] an anti-Semitic bylaw [slide 3] which Berkeley LSJP adopted to its constitution in support of the Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) movement in August 2022. Afaneh personally pitched [00:06:10] the bylaw to other student groups, eight of which adopted the bylaw that month.

Berkeley Law was reportedly under investigation, since December 2022, by the U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Civil Rights over the administration’s response to the bylaw. A complaint filed by two lawyers in November 2022 alleged that Berkeley Law violated Title VI of the Civil Rights Act in how it responded to the bylaw.

On August 21, 2022, Afaneh was listed [slide 4] on a Berkeley LSJP Instagram post as the group’s contact person.  

As of June 2023, Afaneh’s since-deleted LinkedIn profile said she was pursuing a law degree at Berkeley Law “as a Human Rights Center Scholar,” slated to graduate in 2024. She was also listed as a member of the law school’s Muslim Student Association (MSA) chapter. However, as of June 2023, her Facebook page said she “Lives in Chicago, Illinois.”

As of June 2023, Afaneh’s LinkedIn said she had been a “Civil Rights Law Clerk” at the Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR) New York (CAIR-NY) since May 2023. Her LinkedIn also said she was a “Civil Rights Law Clerk” for CAIR California (CAIR-CA) as part of a “Remote” internship since January 2023.

Also as of June 2023, Afaneh’s LinkedIn said she was “Paltrek Lead Coordinator” at Berkeley Law. Palestine Trek (PalTrek) is a week-long anti-Israel activist trip for U.S. graduate students. 

As of the same date, Afaneh’s LinkedIn page said she had been a “Legal Intern” at the International Legal Foundation (ILF) in Ramallah since June 2022. Her LinkedIn also said she had been a part-time “Digital Relational Organizer” for the marketing firm People First, since August 2021. 
 
Afaneh’s LinkedIn said she received a bachelor’s degree from Pomona College (Pomona) in Political Science and Government & Middle Eastern Studies in 2021. Pomona is part of the Claremont Colleges (Claremont), a consortium of colleges sharing a campus in Claremont, California. Claremont is also known as the 5Cs or the 7Cs. She was affiliated with Claremont SJP in 2019.
 
Afaneh served as the Associated Students of Pomona College (ASPC) Senior Class President from June 2020 through June 2021. Her LinkedIn said she was the ASPC Sophomore Class President from September 2018 to May 2019. 
 
In August 2022, Afaneh was listed on Facebook as one of the “Co presidents” of the Pomona chapter of the Palestine Children’s Relief Fund (PCRF). Afaneh’s LinkedIn said she was an “Intern” at the Jerusalem Fund from May 2019 to August 2019.

As of June 2023, Afaneh’s LinkedIn page said she was founder of the apparel company Rosie the Hijabi, established in March 2019.

Also as of June 2023, Afaneh used the handle “havpotter1” and the username “Malak Afaneh (ملك) [Malak]” on Facebook, and the handle “@rosiethehijabi” on Twitter. She also went by “Malak A.” on LinkedIn. From May 2018 through August 2020, Afaneh used the name “Mary Smith” on Facebook. 

Trespassing and Disrupting a Private Event

On April 9, 2024, Afaneh reportedly trespassed at and disrupted a private event hosted at the home of UC Berkeley Jewish faculty members. At the event, which was during Israel’s war against Hamas, she promoted hatred of Israel. The incident took place in Oakland, California.

The event Afaneh reportedly attended was a celebratory dinner for graduating law students hosted by Berkeley Law dean Erwin Chemerinsky and his wife, Berkeley professor Catherine Fisk.

Initially, Afaneh said she and Berkeley LSJP were boycotting the dinner. On April 1, 2024, the organization posted on Instagram a graphic with text that read: “No dinner with Zionist Chem [Chemerinsky] while Gaza starves.”

The original graphic in the post showed a caricature of Dean Chemerinsky smiling with a bloody fork and knife in his hands, as he was leaning over a dinner table. The graphic was later replaced with a new graphic where the blood was removed from the utensils.

Afaneh told the press: “We thought that this dinner was kind of disgusting and extravagant and lavish, a display of wealth that was already being funneled using our tuition money for this genocide.”

During the private event at the dean’s home, which she and other LSJP students ultimately attended, Afaneh was recorded reaching for a microphone without the hosts’ permission and making anti-Israel remarks in front of the guests. Other anti-Israel students in attendance showed their support for Afaneh’s remarks.

Fisk then approached Afaneh and said: “It is my house, and I want you to leave.”

Chemerinsky approached the scene and asked Afaneh multiple times to “Please leave.” he added: “You are guests at our house,” and “...if you don’t want to be here, leave my house.” According to him, when Afaneh continued to speak, “there was an attempt to take away her microphone…About 10 students were clearly with her and ultimately left as a group.”

Afaneh was heard saying: “This is our First Amendment Right!” and said she planned to take legal action against the school.  

Hatred of Zionists

On April 11, 2018, Afaneh posted to Facebook: “Today it came to my attention that I was called a ‘liberal Zionist’...I have never been more offended and angry that someone…would call me the equivalent of a white supremacist.”

On June 21, 2020, Afaneh posted to Instagram a graphic that contained text suggesting that Zionist Jews “hate brown ppl” and that they are “zionist-israel-birthright-vacation-stuck-on-comparing-holocaust-to-racism-WW2-worshipping-b**ches.”

Birthright Israel is a heritage trip to Israel for Jewish young adults from across the world.

On June 22, 2020, Afaneh reportedly apologized to “Claremont Community Leaders” on Facebook, explaining that “my friend” had written “the anti-semetic [sic] comments…”

Support for a Terror Group

On June 5, 2022, Afaneh posted to Instagram a photo of herself wearing a red keffiyeh. She wrote: “Red kuffiyeh for the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine only 🥵.”

The U.S. State Department has listed the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) as a foreign terrorist organization (FTO) due to its history of bombings and airplane hijackings. The PFLP is dedicated to the destruction of Israel. In 2014, two PFLP operatives perpetrated the Har Nof synagogue massacre, murdering five Jewish men in prayer with a butcher knife, axe and gun. One police officer also died.

Support for Terrorists

On April 4, 2022, Afaneh shared photos to Facebook from her trip to Israel, including a photo and a video of graffiti images portraying [00:00:02] Leila Khaled. 

Leila Khaled is a leading member of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) and participated in the hijacking of TWA Flight 840 in 1969 and El Al Flight 219 in 1970. As of 2017, Khaled was a member of PFLP's Political Bureau. Khaled has said that the second intifada failed because it was not violent enough, advocated [00:36:07] for the use of children in terror activities and compared Zionists to Nazis.  

On July 1, 2022, Afaneh posted [slide 7] to her Instagram Highlights titled: “Palestine,” a photo of an ipad displaying a book by Ghassan Kanafani. Afaneh wrote on the slide: “Reading Kanafani on the beach.”

Kanafani was a leading member and spokesperson for the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) during the terrorist organization’s early years. Kanafani announced the PFLP’s responsibility for the Lod Airport Massacre of May 1972 and was linked to the airport attackers. The attack killed 26 people and wounded 80 others.  

On July 23, 2022, Afaneh posted [slide 79] an iconic image of Leila Khaled to her Instagram Highlights titled: “Palestine.”

Support for Terror Financiers

On November 26, 2018, Afaneh posted to Facebook an article from the Palestinian Youth Movement (PYM) in support of the Holy Land Five, also known as the HL5. She commented: “#10yearstoolong.” 

The Holy Land Five (HLF5) were five individuals associated with the Holy Land Foundation for Relief and Development (HLF) indicted for funneling funds to Hamas in the guise of humanitarian aid. The men were all convicted and sentenced in 2009 to federal prison terms ranging from 15 to 65 years.

On August 15, 2019, Afaneh shared to Facebook a link to an article she said she wrote for the Jerusalem Fund. In the article, Afaneh quoted Sana’a Mohammed Hussein El-Hafi [al-Hafi] and linked to an article that said El-Hafi “spent 10 months in prison and a further five months under house arrest for transferring money to a ‘hostile entity (Hamas)’.”

Hatred of Israel

On April 4, 2022, Afaneh posted photos on Facebook from a 2022 PalTrek trip and wrote: “Palestinians everywhere have engaged in active resistance against the apartheid state of Israel…as a lawyer, I hope to aid in this battle for liberation, so that I and generations to come may see a Palestine free from the river to the sea🤍."  

“From the River to the Sea, Palestine will be free” is a chant calling to dismantle the State of Israel. It has also been employed by Hamas leader Khaled Mashal to call for the replacement of Israel with an Islamic state.

On March 30, 2022, Afaneh wrote on Instagram: “For four generations, my family has engaged in active resistance against the apartheid state of Israel…we have engaged in armed struggle and joined in organizing…”

On August 15, 2019, Afaneh said on Facebook that she wrote an article for the Jerusalem Fund titled: “From Fetus to Felon: The Criminalization of Melanin.” She said in her Facebook post that she wrote it to highlight “the connections between the discriminatory legal system in both settler colonial states of the U.S and Israel!” 

In the article, Afaneh wrote: “Both settler colonial states criminalize and stigmatize black and brown communities as a way of silencing their requests for liberation.” She also wrote: “Since the creation of the State of Israel…Palestinians have been incarcerated, expelled, displaced, murdered, banned the right of return, and left with no means of survival.”

The “right of return” is a Palestinian demand discredited as a means to eliminate Israel. International law mandates no absolute right of return and UN Resolution 194, which defined principles for “refugees wishing to return to their homes,” was unanimously rejected by Arab nations following the 1948 Arab-Israeli War.

Anti-Israel Activism (SJP, BDS)

As of August 2022, Afaneh’s LinkedIn said she had been the president of Pomona PCRF and she was listed on Facebook as one of the group’s “Co presidents” and the primary contact. Afaneh has been affiliated with the organization since March 2018.

Also as of August 2022, Afaneh’s LinkedIn page said she had been an intern at The Jerusalem Fund from May 2019 to August 2019. 

The Jerusalem Fund is an anti-Israel think tank in Washington, D.C. that frequently hosts events demonizing Israel. It has also hosted activists in the Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) movement and spread hatred of Israel on Twitter.

On March 25, 2019, Afaneh shared to Facebook a Claremont SJP page promoting an event called: “Palestine 101: A Primer.” Afaneh commented: “Come thru at 7 at the Motley [coffeehouse] today!!” The event’s description said it would be “the primer event to the marathon of events Claremont SJP will be holding for Palestine Freedom Weeks.”

Also on March 25, 2019, Afaneh shared to Facebook the event invitation for Claremont SJP’s “Palestine Freedom Week 2019,” a variation of Israel Apartheid Week. Afaneh wrote: “Show up and show out!”  


The event’s description said it was “a two-week long marathon of events and programming put on by Claremont SJP to bring visibility to the Palestinian struggle for liberation.” Events included: “The Theft of Hummus: Food Appropriation Workshop,”“WTF is BDS? US Imperialism and BDS” and “Visit the Mock Apartheid Wall.”

Mock “apartheid” walls have been constructed by SJP groups on campuses to draw attention to alleged Israeli human rights violations against Palestinians. 

Berkeley LSJP Anti-Semitic Bylaw

On August 6, 2022, Berkeley LSJP amended its group constitution to include a bylaw banning pro-Israel speakers from participating in club events. The bylaw explicitly excluded [p. 3] any speaker who had “expressed and continued to hold views…in support of Zionism, the apartheid state of Israel, and the occupation of Palestine.” 

Zionism is the belief that Jews have the right to self-determination in their own national home, and the right to develop their national culture.

Berkeley LSJP claimed that it created the bylaw “in the interest of protecting the safety and welfare of Palestinian students on campus.” 

Voting in favor of BDS at Pomona

In April 2021, Afaneh seconded and voted in favor of a resolution in the ASPC Senate compelling BDS compliance for ASPC campus stores and student clubs receiving ASPC funding. Afaneh cast her vote in her role as Senior Class President for the 2020–2021 academic year. Claremont SJP and the Jewish Voice for Peace (JVP) chapter at Claremont (5C JVP) co-sponsored the resolution.  On April 15, 2021, Claremont SJP and 5C JVP introduced their resolution to the ASPC Senate that mandated ASPC compliance with BDS. 

The resolution was titled [p.1], “Banning the Use of ASPC Funding to Support the Occupation of Palestine” and it required [p.2] that ASPC “internal spending” could not be used on products or services from companies that “knowingly support the Israeli occupation of Palestine.” 

The Claremont SJP and 5C JVP resolution cited [p.2] a list of mostly Israeli companies compiled by the United Nations Human Rights Council as a guide for which companies to boycott. ASPC internal spending includes multiple items such as funding 5C student clubs and student-run events. 

The resolution created [p.2] an oversight role for Claremont SJP over the ASPC-run Coop Store and the Coop Fountain restaurant. ASPC would “work in tandem with members of SJP, and other pertinent parties, to perform an annual check on the ASPC’s businesses to ensure all goods sold adhere to the guidelines outlined in this resolution.”

The resolution also said [p.2]: “Clubs that fail to divest and/or refrain from such uses of funding would face the loss of all Claremont Colleges Student Government Association funds.” This clause effectively mandated BDS compliance even for pro-Israel and Jewish student organizations like Claremont Hillel and Claremont Chabad.

Claremont Colleges pool mandatory student activity fees and distribute the money to the 5C student governments. ASPC provides almost 47% of the funding for all 5C clubs, although each 5C student government can fund 5C clubs. 

In spring 2021, ASPC gave more than $10,000 to 5C clubs. It also gave $30,000 for student-run events at Pomona that were coordinated through the ASPC’s Pomona Events Committee (PEC). The full ASPC spring 2021 budget was $216,700. 

The Claremont SJP and Claremont JVP resolution also said [p.2] that ASPC’s “end goal” would be to lead other 5C student governments to pass similar BDS resolutions.

On April 22, 2021, the ASPC Senate passed the resolution with a vote of 10-0-0. Five senators were not present, representing one third of ASPC Senate’s 15 seats.

On the same day, Claremont SJP issued a press release calling the resolution’s passage “an important first step in reducing our complicity with a country that maintains an illegal military occupation and regularly commits crimes against humanity against the indigenous Palestinian population.”

On April 23, 2021, following criticism of the resolution reportedly among campus and national Jewish groups, Pomona President G. Gabrielle Starr sent an email to the student body opposing the resolution. Starr said that requiring student clubs to boycott Israel was “deeply concerning.” He said that since the vote “was held without representation from any student opposition,” the ASPC Senate should “reverse course and allow for full discussion.” 
 
On April 29, 2021, the ASPC Senate held a Zoom meeting that included a “comment period” for student senators and student guest speakers to express their feedback on the resolution. 

On April 30, 2021, the ASPC Senate reportedly decided to “table the resolution” for further discussion on the resolution’s call to deny funding to student clubs that failed to adhere to BDS.

On May 6, 2021, the ASPC Senate reportedly passed a modified resolution that omitted the original clause forcing student clubs funded by ASPC to comply with BDS.

Supporting BDS at Pitzer

On February 8, 2018, Afaneh shared to Facebook a petition in support of an anti-Israel boycott campaign at Pitzer College (Pitzer) led by Claremont SJP.

In March 2019, Afaneh signed a Claremont SJP petition condemning Pitzer’s president for refusing to implement a College Council recommendation to end Pitzer’s study-abroad program with the University of Haifa.

In 2018 and 2019, Afaneh posted support on Facebook for the same BDS campaign multiple times.  On November 8, 2018, Pitzer College faculty reportedly voted for a motion to suspend Pitzer’s Haifa program, which Pitzer had run since 2007. Professor Daniel Segal, the Claremont SJP and Claremont JVP faculty advisor, led the boycott campaign. 

The faculty motion was a non-binding recommendation to Pitzer President Melvin L. Oliver. The motion called for the “suspension of the College’s exchange with Haifa University, until (a) the Israeli state ends its restrictions on entry to Israel based on ancestry and/or political speech and (b) the Israeli state adopts policies granting visas for exchanges to Palestinian universities on a fully equal basis as it does to Israeli universities.”

After the faculty vote, the motion was sent to the Pitzer College Council (PCC), Pitzer’s “primary legislative body,” which “votes on policy recommendations forwarded by the faculty as well as committees.” The PCC includes faculty and student senators who issue recommendations to the Pitzer president. The president is then free to approve or disapprove the recommendations.

On November 18, 2018, Claremont SJP issued a statement supporting the pro-BDS faculty vote, saying that it was “imperative” to end the “deeply problematic” Haifa program. Claremont SJP also circulated a petition to the public titled, “No Academic Freedom Under Occupation,” which accused Israel of having “increasingly draconian policies” and employing a “systemic practice of racial discrimination.”

On November 29, 2018, President Oliver responded to the faculty recommendation, opposing it and calling it a “repudiation of our educational mission… an anathema to Pitzer’s core values.” Oliver also questioned the faculty in singling out Israel for special scrutiny among foreign countries like China and Nepal where Pitzer also has study abroad programs.

On March 14, 2019, the PCC passed an amended motion to end the Haifa program. Segal co-sponsored the motion along with Pitzer Professor Claudia Strauss, who served as the Chair of the Pitzer Faculty Executive Committee (FEC). Their motion was a non-binding recommendation for Oliver and it passed with 68 voting in favor, 25 against and eight abstentions.

The amended motion outlined a “uniform policy” ending study abroad programs in countries that “restrict entry on the basis of either (a) legally protected political speech or (b) race or ancestry (as distinct from citizenship).” The motion claimed that the Haifa program violated the “uniform policy” and would be suspended immediately.

Also on March 14, 2019, Oliver released a statement declining to implement the PCC motion, where he said: “By singling out Israel, the recommendation itself is prejudiced.” 

In the statement, Oliver also said: “Although some claim that this is not an academic boycott of Israel, I disagree. The recommendation puts in place a form of academic boycott of Israel and, in the process, sets us on a path away from the free exchange of ideas, a direction which ultimately destroys the academy’s ability to fulfill our educational mission.”

On the same day, Pitzer’s student newspaper, The Student Life, reported: “In advance of the Haifa vote, the organization [Claremont SJP] has focused on outreach to Pitzer faculty and student senators, and on building a coalition of other campus groups.”

On March 15, 2019, Claremont SJP posted on Facebook that they would “continue to organize to suspend Haifa and demand that President Oliver reverse his decision.” Claremont SJP also posted an online petition demanding Oliver rescind his veto of the PCC motion and included the hashtag “#ProApartheidOliver.”

On March 25, 2019, Claremont SJP posted a Facebook event page for its “Palestine Freedom Weeks,” scheduled for March 25 to April 7, 2019. The event page promoted the BDS campaign against the Haifa program and used the hashtags “#SuspendPitzerHaifa” and “#MelvinWontListen.”

On March 31, 2019, the Pitzer College Student Senate, the student government,introduced two resolutions at an “Emergency Meeting” called to address the Haifa program boycott campaign.

Claremont SJP members Shay Lari-Hosain and Jorj Chisam-Majid were among the co-sponsors for the first resolution, which said: “The Pitzer College Student Senate votes no confidence in President Melvin Oliver and, if President Oliver does not retract his anti-democratic decision by the end of the day on April 11, 2019, call for his immediate resignation or removal from office.” 

Pitzer Senate president Shivani Kavuluru and vice presidents Kamyab Mashian and Dawson Reckers were among the co-sponsors for the second resolution. Their resolution censured Oliver for keeping the Haifa program and demanded that Oliver reverse his veto. 

On April 7, 2019, the Pitzer Senate reportedly voted down the resolution of no confidence with 12 for and 20 against. The resolution censuring Oliver passed 29-0.

Claremont SJP - Overview  

Claremont SJP has expressed support for terrorists, called for Israel’s destruction and rejected dialogue. The group has also demonized Israel, promoted anti-Israel agitators and campaigned for the BDS movement.

Claremont SJP - Supporting Terrorists 2020-2021  

As of July 2021, Claremont SJP had signed a petition called the “Palestinian Students Solidarity Campaign” that was launched by the anti-Israel NGO Samidoun: Palestinian Prisoner Solidarity Network (Samidoun).

The petition supported Palestinian students detained or incarcerated by Israel for participating in terror-related activities and direct terror activity. Among them was Mays Abu Ghosh, Bir Zeit University student who was arrested by Israel for activism in the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) terror group.

Samidoun advocates for the release of all Palestinian prisoners, many of whom are members of Hamas or other terror groups like the PFLP. Multiple Samidoun activists have been identified as PFLP members, including Mohammed Khatib, Samidoun’s European Coordinator.

Claremont SJP - Calling for Israel’s Destruction 2020-2021

As of May 2021, Claremont SJP’s platform referred to Israel as an “apartheid state... that can only be dismantled through Palestinian national liberation.” 

As of the same date, Claremont SJP’s Instagram bio read: “Fighting for Palestinian liberation, from the river to the sea.” The same quote reportedly appeared in the Instagram bio as early as February 2020.

Claremont SJP - Rejecting Dialogue 2020-2021

As of May 2021, Claremont SJP’s platform read: “We reject any and all collaboration, dialogue, and coalition work with Zionist organizations through a strict policy of anti-normalization and encourage our comrades in other organizations to do the same.”

Claremont SJP - Promoting Anti-Israel Agitators 2019-2020

On November 14, 2019, Claremont SJP hosted a film screening event featuring anti-Israel activists Abby Martin and Mike Prysner, where Martin reportedly “defended Hamas and placed sole blame on Israel for the lack of peace between both states.” 

Hamas has been designated aterrorist organizationby the European Union, Canada, Australia, the United States and Israel.

Martin was a former anchor for Russian state news agency RT and Venezuelan state news agency Telasur. She has compared [00:00:13] Israel to Nazi Germany and spread anti-Israel propaganda. Martin’s husband, Michael Prysner has defended terrorism and has referred to the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) as the “Apartheid Defense Forces.”At the Claremont SJP event, Martin reportedly accused a Jewish student journalist of being “associated with ‘white nationalists.’” Prysner also called Israel an “attack dog” of the United States.

At the same event, Claremont SJP screened the film “Gaza Fights for Freedom,” which Prysner and Martin directed and produced. The film’s website said: “Gaza’s protest movement like you’ve never seen before. Filmed during the height of the Great March Of Return protests, it features exclusive footage of demonstrations where 200 unarmed civilians have been killed by Israeli snipers since March 30, 2018.”

On March 30, 2018, some 30,000 Palestinians in Gaza approached Israel’s border to take part in “Land Day Protests” or the “March of Return.” The March of Return was organized and funded by Hamas as a campaign of violent protests along Israel’s border to spotlight the demand of Palestinians to “return” to Israel. 

The “right of return” is a Palestinian demand discredited as a means to eliminate Israel.

March participants declared their intention to harm Jews across the border under the pretext of “peaceful resistance.” Participants also attempted to breach the border fence, which caused the Israeli Defense Forces to respond with live fire.

Pomona BDS Resolution 2021  

On April 15, 2021, Claremont SJP and 5C JVP introduced their resolution to the ASPC Senate that mandated ASPC compliance with BDS. 

The resolution was titled [p.1], “Banning the Use of ASPC Funding to Support the Occupation of Palestine” and it required [p.2] that ASPC “internal spending” could not be used on products or services from companies that “knowingly support the Israeli occupation of Palestine.” 

The Claremont SJP and 5C JVP resolution cited [p.2] a list of mostly Israeli companies compiled by the United Nations Human Rights Council as a guide for which companies to boycott. ASPC internal spending includes multiple items such as funding 5C student clubs and student-run events. 

The resolution created [p.2] an oversight role for Claremont SJP over the ASPC-run Coop Store and the Coop Fountain restaurant. ASPC would “work in tandem with members of SJP, and other pertinent parties, to perform an annual check on the ASPC’s businesses to ensure all goods sold adhere to the guidelines outlined in this resolution.”

The resolution also said [p.2]: “Clubs that fail to divest and/or refrain from such uses of funding would face the loss of all Claremont Colleges Student Government Association funds.” This clause effectively mandated BDS compliance even for pro-Israel and Jewish student organizations like Claremont Hillel and Claremont Chabad.

Claremont Colleges pool mandatory student activity fees and distribute the money to the 5C student governments. ASPC provides almost 47% of the funding for all 5C clubs, although each 5C student government can fund 5C clubs. 

In spring 2021, ASPC gave more than $10,000 to 5C clubs. It also gave $30,000 for student-run events at Pomona that were coordinated through the ASPC’s Pomona Events Committee (PEC). The full ASPC spring 2021 budget was $216,700. 

The Claremont SJP and Claremont JVP resolution also said [p.2] that ASPC’s “end goal” would be to lead other 5C student governments to pass similar BDS resolutions.

On April 22, 2021, the ASPC Senate passed the resolution with a vote of 10-0-0. Five senators were not present, representing one third of ASPC Senate’s 15 seats.

On the same day, Claremont SJP issued a press release calling the resolution’s passage “an important first step in reducing our complicity with a country that maintains an illegal military occupation and regularly commits crimes against humanity against the indigenous Palestinian population.”

On April 23, 2021, following criticism of the resolution reportedly among campus and national Jewish groups, Pomona President G. Gabrielle Starr sent an email to the student body opposing the resolution. Starr said that requiring student clubs to boycott Israel was “deeply concerning.” He said that since the vote “was held without representation from any student opposition,” the ASPC Senate should “reverse course and allow for full discussion.” 
 
On April 29, 2021, the ASPC Senate held a Zoom meeting that included a “comment period” for student senators and student guest speakers to express their feedback on the resolution. 

On April 30, 2021, the ASPC Senate reportedly decided to “table the resolution” for further discussion on the resolution’s call to deny funding to student clubs that failed to adhere to BDS.

On May 6, 2021, the ASPC Senate reportedly passed a modified resolution that omitted the original clause forcing student clubs funded by ASPC to comply with BDS.

SJP

SJP is a student organization engaged in anti-Israel activity on North American college and university campuses.

The first chapter of SJP was founded in 2001 at the University of California at Berkeley by Professor Hatem Bazian. Bazian has spread classic anti-Semitism, reportedly promoted religious anti-Semitism and defended the Hamas terror group. In 2004, Bazian called for “intifada” in America.

SJP organizes anti-Israel campaigns, including running annual Israel Apartheid Weeks, often in collaboration with Jewish Voice for Peace (JVP) and Muslim Students Association (MSA) campus chapters.

SJP has been a major force in pushing the anti-Semitic Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) movement on campuses. Chapters have initiated dozens of BDS resolutions in student governments, which have been proposed on or around Jewish holidays, a time when many Jewish students are off-campus.

SJP activists have reportedly physically assaulted, intimidated and harassed Jewish students, disrupted pro-Israel campus events and demonized pro-Israel campus organizations.

Chapters have often endorsed and campaigned for numerous terrorists and whitewashed terrorism.

CAIR

CAIR describes itself as a “grassroots civil rights and advocacy group” and “America's largest Muslim civil liberties organization, with regional offices nationwide.” Its official mission is “enhance understanding of Islam, protect civil rights, promote justice, and empower American Muslims.”

CAIR reportedly has “significant ties” to the Muslim Brotherhood, as well as Hamas. A number of former CAIR employees have been convicted on fraud and terrorism-related charges that resulted monetary fines, jail terms and, sometimes, deportation.

CAIR was founded in 1994 and opened its first office in Washington, DC, with the help of a $5,000 donation from the Holy Land Foundation for Relief and Development (HLF), a charity founded by Mousa Abu Marzook.

Marzook, who was listed as a "Specially Designated Terrorist" by the U.S. Treasury Department in 1995, is reportedly a senior member of Hamas.

In May 2007, CAIR was listed as an “unindicted co-conspirator” in a U.S.-filed action against the HLF for providing funds to Hamas.

CAIR was also listed  as a terrorist entity by the United Arab Emirates, in 2014.  

BDS

The Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) movement was founded by Omar Barghouti in 2005 to challenge “international support for Israeli apartheid and settler-colonialism.” BDS is an allegedly “Palestinian-led movement,” although leading BDS activists have admitted [00:01:01] this is not true. 

One of the demands of BDS includes [point 3] what is generally known as the “right of return,” a demand discredited as a way to eliminate Israel. Barghouti said the “right of return” is a means to “end Israel’s existence as a Jewish state.”  

Barghouti has said that BDS “aims to turn Israel into a pariah state, as South Africa once was.”

In his activism, Barghouti has also said [00:05:55] regarding Israel: “Definitely, most definitely, we oppose a Jewish state in any part of Palestine. No…rational Palestinian, not a sellout Palestinian, will ever accept a Jewish state in Palestine.”

The movement has been linked to numerous terrorist organizations and received a public endorsement from Hamas in 2017.

BDS initiatives include calling on institutions and individuals to divest from Israeli-affiliated companies, promoting academic and cultural boycotts of Israel, and organizing anti-Israel rallies, protests and campaigns.

The movement’s most notable achievement has been the infiltration of university campuses through lobbying for “BDS resolutions.” In these cases, student governments and student groups, backed by their own anti-Israel members and affiliates, have proposed resolutions on some form of boycott of, or divestment from, Israel and Israeli-affiliated entities.

Boycott resolutions, although non-binding, have been passed by student governments on numerous North American campuses.

BDS activity is often aggressive and disruptive. It has been noted that universities that pass BDS resolutions see a marked increase in anti-Semitic incidents on campus. On one campus, when the student government debated a BDS resolution, reports emerged of violent threats against those opposing it.

Social Media and Weblinks

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/havpotter1

Facebook 2: https://www.facebook.com/rosiethehijabi

Facebook 3: https://www.facebook.com/sasha.tay.75 [Deleted]

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