Students For Justice in Palestine

The first SJP chapter was founded in 2001 at the University of California at Berkeley (UC Berkeley) by Professor Hatem Bazian, as an offshoot of the General Union of Palestine Students (GUPS) at San Francisco State University (SFSU).

Bazian has spread classic anti-Semitism, reportedly promoted religious anti-Semitism, and defended the Hamas terror group. In 2004, while the second intifada was already winding down in Israel, Bazian called for “intifada” in America.

Since the early 2000s, the term “intifada” has carried the connotation of violence.

Another reported co-founder of SJP was anti-Israel professor Snehal Shingavi, who has silenced pro-Israel students and has reportedly been arrested five times for various campus and political protests. He has been criticized for using his literature course as a vehicle for promoting anti-Israel propaganda.

In February 2002, SJP’s code of conduct said: “SJP's activities include educational events, demonstrations, civil disobedience, and a campaign demanding that the University of California divest from Israel.”

As of January 2021, NSJP listed over 200 SJP chapters at American and Canadian universities and colleges, as well as two chapters in New Zealand.

Some SJP chapters in the U.S. have used other names, such as Palestine Solidarity Committee (PSC), Students for Palestinian Equal Rights or Students United for Palestinian Equal Rights (SUPER). In Canada, SJP chapters have used the name Students Against Israeli Apartheid (SAIA), or Solidarity for Palestinian Human Rights (SPHR).

In 2010, American Muslims for Palestine (AMP) and the US Palestinian Community Network (USPCN) actively assisted SJP activists in founding National SJP as an umbrella organization to coordinate campus SJP chapters across North America.

In June 2010, USPCN organized the Palestine Program at the US Social Forum, which included [p.37]an AMP call to establish SJP National and provided AMP’s phone number as the contact. AMP also ran training for SJP at the Muslim American Society (MAS) Islamic Circle of North America (ICNA) Convention in 2010.

As of 2021, National SJP listed over 200 chapters across America and Canada.

As of January 2021, National SJP referred to the United States and Canada as “occupied Turtle Island.” The phrase “Turtle Island” is the name for the lands now known as North and Central America. It is a phrase used by some indigenous peoples and has been adopted by far-left activists seeking to delegitimize the existence of the U.S. and Canada.

National SJP has hosted a national conference every year since 2011, where student organizers attend skill-building and political development workshops and meet with fellow organizers. The National SJP Steering Committee consists of 10-20 volunteer college students and recent alumni.

National SJP has trained SJP activists to conduct and implement BDS initiatives on campuses. As of January 2021, National SJP indicated that SJP chapters launched BDS initiatives at over 20 campuses from 2013 to 2017.

The 2018 National SJP conference featured open support for terrorism and participants taking part in chants that incite violence against Jews.

In 2014, the National SJP conference, held at Tufts, was listed as “free and open to the public.” During the 2016 National SJP Conference, organizers added a new session on sheltering their anti-Israel activists from Canary Mission’s exposure. By 2018, National SJP held its conference in secrecy.

As of January 2021, National SJP listed the WESPAC Foundation as its fiscal sponsor. In 2018, WESPAC raised funds for the 2018 National SJP Conference and reportedly collected and managed funds for the 2016 National SJP Conference.

SJP activists have intimidated and harassed Jewish and pro-Israel students. SJP members have also reportedly physically assaulted Jewish students and aggressively disrupted pro-Israel events.

In March 2010, the president of SJP UC Berkeley, Husam Zakharia, reportedly rammed a female pro-Israel student with a shopping cart. She was holding a sign that said: “Israel Wants Peace.”

On February 27, 2012, SJP at the University of California Davis (UC Davis) disrupted a campus event sponsored by UC Davis’ Chabad club and the local chapter of StandWithUs (SWU), titled “Israeli Soldiers Speak Out.”

Protesters staged a walk-out and shouted [00:00:17] at the speakers, including “How many women have you raped? How many children have you raped? You are a child molester.”

On October 6, 2013, SJP Rutgers NB members slid hundreds of mock eviction notices under Rutgers dorm and apartment doors. The notices stated that students’ suites were “scheduled for demolition in the next three days” and if the residents did not vacate the premises within that time, the organization “reserved the right to destroy all remaining belongings.”

On September 9, 2014, members of SJP at Loyola University, Chicago (Loyola) reportedly verbally assaulted Jewish students who were staffing a table with literature for a Birthright Israel trip. SJP Loyola members surrounded the table, blocking the Jewish students’ movement and preventing others from approaching.

On August 20, 2014, a person staffing a Temple SJP information booth reportedly hit a Jewish student. The SJP activist allegedly struck the student in the face, as the student was reportedly called “Zionist,” "Kike," “Racist,” "Baby Killer," and other anti-Semitic names and slurs. He subsequently turned himself in to the police.

On May 18, 2016, SJP at the University of California, Irvine (UCI) disrupted a film screening about the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) hosted by a pro-Israel student group at UCI. Approximately fifty anti-Israel activists laid siege to attendees, yelled obscenities, physically blocked students, and attempted to force their way into the event venue.

One Jewish student was reportedly physically prevented from entering the event by SJP protesters and was followed by protesters until she hid in a room for safety, where she called the police. Event attendees had to be safely escorted from the room by police.

On September 16, 2016, New York City SJP members repeatedly disrupted an NYC City Council meeting discussing anti-BDS legislation, prompting the organizers to call security.

On May 1, 2017, twenty Cornell University (Cornell) SJP members disrupted an Israeli Independence Day event with a "die-in" and a large banner that read, "Celebrating 69 Years of Genocide." Cornell SJP protesters reportedly gained access to the event after they promised police and organizers that they would not disrupt the event.

On May 10, 2017, forty SJP UCI and Muslim Student Union (MSU) student activists at UCI shut down a panel event that featured IDF reservists by interrupting [00:08:20] the panelists, yelling [00:04:05] at the attendees and chanting [00:05:01] over speakers [00:01:42].

When campus police were called to escort speakers and event attendees from the venue, the protesters filed out of the room. The protesters remained [00:00:20] outside in the hall, blocking the main exit and chanting [00:02:47]: “From the River to the Sea, Palestine will be Free,” and [00:02:53] “Intifada, Intifada, long live the Intifada.”

On May 17, 2018, SJP activists at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) disrupted [00:00:47] an event hosted by Students Supporting Israel (SSI) on the UCLA campus. The event provided a forum for Jewish, Kurdish, and Armenian indigenous communities “to share the stories of their people.”

SJP at UCLA members and Antifa activists invaded [00:41:16] the forum, tore the Armenian flag off the wall and chanted [00:43:01]“From the River to the Sea, Palestine will be Free!” and [00:45:08] “1,2,3,4 Open up the prison doors; 5,6,7,8 Israel is a terror state!!”

After being escorted out of the event, protesters screamed [00:33:15] obscenities, used [00:14:27] a megaphone and physically blocked [00:13:52] the door of the venue from being closed.

On April 27, 2018, NYU SJP organized a protest against the annual “Rave in the Park” celebration of Israel’s Independence Day, during which two activists were reportedly arrested and charged with reckless endangerment and assault after grabbing [00:00:41] a microphone and an Israeli flag out of the hands of a student singing the Israeli national anthem.

On October 10, 2019, during a conference hosted by Bard College on "Racism and Antisemitism," Bard SJP protested a panel on anti-Semitism with anti-Israel signs held near the stage, including one that said, "Zionism is Racism." Bard SJP reportedly interrupted the conference with chanting and were eventually escorted out of the venue.

On November 14, 2019, SJP at Vassar College (Vassar) disrupted a talk given by Hen Mazzig, hosted by a pro-Israel student group at Vassar, recounting his experiences as an Israeli queer Jewish person of color. Demonstrators yelled [00:00:04]: “From the river to the seas, Palestine will be Free!” One protestor held a sign that read [00:00:09] “Resistance is not Terrorism.”

On November 20, 2019, SJP at the University of California, Santa Barbara (UCSB) held a “Vigil For Gaza” and a die-in “in honor of the victims who lost their lives this past week due to Israeli bombings of Gaza.” An activist with SJP UCSB led [00:00:25] demonstrators in chanting “Long live the Intifada [violent uprising].”

SJP took on an official role in glorifying and defending terrorist Rasmea Odeh while she was investigated and tried for immigration fraud from 2014 to 2017. SJP chapters fundraised for Odeh’s legal fees, hosted Odeh at speaking engagements, and organized rallies to support Odeh.

Odeh, with the terrorist group the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), was a key military operative [00:02:08] and, in 1969, masterminded a PFLP bombing in a Jerusalem supermarket that killed two college students. Odeh also attempted to bomb the British consulate.

She was convicted of immigration fraud in 2014 because she did not disclose her prior conviction and life sentence on her immigration application. She was sentenced to 18 months in prison in 2015, stripped of her U.S. citizenship in 2017, and deported to Jordan.

Even after she was found guilty of immigration fraud and deported, SJP continued to honor Odeh.

On March 8, 2020, National SJP tweeted photos glorifying “a few of the many women who have demonstrated fortitude in the face of oppression” in honor of International Women’s Day. The tweet included a photo of Odeh.

In November 2018, National SJP hosted Hatem Abudayyeh, the Rasmea Defense Committee spokesperson, as a keynote speaker at the 2018 National SJP Conference.

Abudayyeh said that he was asked [00:08:45] to talk about Odeh’s case, and praised [00:08:55] SJP and SDS students who organized [00:09:15] “absolutely valuable” events on behalf [00:9:11] of Odeh, “as she was fighting to stay in the U.S.”

On September 29, 2017, SJP DePaul shared a group photo on Instagram of SJP activists posing with Odeh.

SJP DePaul wrote on the post: “The other day we said goodbye (or see you soon) to Rasmea Odeh. Thank you for being an inspiration, a mother, and always smiling with your fist up high. Reminding us that wherever we land in life we should continue to resist & fight for justice in Palestine!”

On February 14, 2017, SJP at UCLA posted about Odeh on their Facebook page, calling her an “icon of the Palestine liberation movement” and “an example for the millions of Palestinians who have not given up organizing for their rights.” The post concluded: “#Justice4Rasmea #FreePalestine.”

On May 15, 2017, SJP at Northwestern University (Northwestern) invited Odeh to speak on campus for an event titled: "When you come for Rasmea you come for all of us." During the event, Odeh reportedly told audience members, "Aside from Israel, this is the main front in the battle for Palestinian rights. You must continue to fight American Zionism."

On June 10, 2016, NYC SJP helped organize a “Rally for Rasmea” and march in NYC, calling for a new trial.

On October 11, 2015, the 2015 National SJP Conference at San Diego State University (SDSU) featured Odeh as a speaker.

On October 14, 2015, Tufts University (Tufts) SJP requested donations to support Odeh’s legal fund on Facebook. In their Facebook post, Tufts SJP described Odeh as “an incredible Palestinian activist” and a “community icon.”

On February 3, 2015, SJP Chicago hosted a fundraiser for Odeh’s legal defense fund at DePaul University (DePaul).

In November 2014, SJP National Ad-Hoc Steering Committee called on all SJP chapters to organize actions in support of Odeh on their respective campuses on November 14, 2014.

SJP chapters have consistently promoted the terrorist group Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), as well as its members.

The PFLP is a designated terrorist organization by the United States, Canada, Israel, and the European Union.

PFLP is most notably known for the capture of an Air France plane in 1976. The hijackers flew the plane to Entebbe, Uganda, where they separated nearly 100 Jewish passengers from the others and threatened to execute one Jew per hour. Israel, however, launched a successful commando raid to rescue the hostages.

The PFLP also claimed “credit” for the November 18, 2014, Har Nof Synagogue massacre, where PFLP operatives murdered six people with a gun, axes, and a butcher knife during morning prayers.

In November 2020, SJP at Northeastern University (Northeastern) stated (sixth slide) on Instagram that they read “the first 25 pages of the PFLP’s 1969 ‘Strategy for Liberation of Palestine’” at a book club event. NU SJP’s post advertising the event was removed by Instagram for violating Community Guidelines.

On July 8, 2020, Southern Cross University (SCU) SJP shared a video of Ghassan Kanafani on Instagram.

Kanafani was a leading member and spokesperson for the PFLP during its formative years. Kanafani was also involved in the Lod Airport Massacre near Tel Aviv, for which the PFLP took responsibility.

On November 20, 2019, SJP Butler held a protest for Gaza that was attended by members of the Party for Socialism and Liberation (PSL) Indianapolis. One protester was photographed and videoed waving the PFLP flag.

On March 26, 2019, Swarthmore University (Swarthmore) SJP posted to Facebook, celebrating Khalida Jarrar in honor of Women’s History Month.

Khalida Jarrar was sentenced in 2015 by an Israeli military court to 15 months in prison for calling to kidnap Israeli soldiers.

A senior member of the PFLP, Jarrar was arrested again by Israel in 2017 “on suspicion of involvement with terrorist activities and violent public disturbances.” In 2019, Jarrar, with other PFLP operatives, was arrested by Israel after a 2018 bombing attack that targeted an Israeli family.

On March 24, 2019, Swarthmore SJP posted to Facebook celebrating Leila Khaled in honor of Women’s History Month.

Khaled participated in the hijacking of TWA Flight 840 in 1969 and El Al Flight 219 in 1970. She was a leading member of the PFLP.

On June 29, 2018, University of South Carolina (UofSC) SJP shared on Facebook a link to an article about Khaled and added: “‘Khaled’s most famous military operations obtained their intended goal and made her a hero in the Middle East and elsewhere.’”

On July 27, 2018, the University of California, Santa Barbara (UCSB) SJP posted to Facebook: “‘Where there is occupation there is resistance. Nobody can change this. This is basic; its natural; you cannot change the sun and make it rise from the west. This is the truth; it is natural. When you are under oppression you resist.’ -Leila Khaled #freepalestine #فلسطين [#Palestine].”

On October 20, 2017, SJP at the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities (UMN), shared a graphic that featured a Palestinian woman carrying an assault rifle on Instagram. The graphic was based on a poster originally published by the PFLP in 1980. The image was captioned: “Glory to the Women of the Intifada.”

On November 1, 2017, Students Allied for Freedom and Equality (SAFE) at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor (UM Ann Arbor) posted a photo on Facebook of a mock Israeli security barrier alongside an image of Khaled. SAFE’s university’s web page states that SAFE is UM Ann Arbor’s chapter of SJP.

Israel’s security barrier, 97% of which is a low chain-link barrier, was built as a deterrent to Palestinian terror attacks. The concrete portions of the fence were built in response to Palestinian sniper attacks.

In November 2016, National SJP sold T-shirts featuring Khaled holding a rifle and the phrase “Resistance is not Terrorism” during their annual conference.

On March 17, 2016, SJP Loyola promoted a Palestinian Youth Movement (PYM)-USA writing scholarship on Facebook named after Kanafani, which referred to him as a “Palestinian Novelist” and “Iconic National Hero.”

On October 14, 2015, SJP at Indiana University–Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) posted a graphic of Khaled to Facebook, with text that said: “Resistance is not Terrorism.”

On March 8, 2015, SJP at the University of Florida (UF) posted multiple posters on Facebook to mark International Women's Day, including two signs attributed to and published by the PFLP.

October 2015 saw a wave of stabbings, known as the “Knife Intifada,” where young Palestinians throughout Israel were stabbing and attempting to stab Israeli civilians. The upsurge in violence across Israel was incited by Palestinian political and religious leaders. The attacks were sparked and fueled by Palestinian leaders propagating the libel that Israel intended to desecrate the Al Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem.

On October 13, 2015, Loyola SJP posted on Facebook a list of 30 Palestinians “who died in the past weeks of escalation of violence.” Two of those on the list were Fadi Aloon and Mohanad Halabi.

Fadi Aloon posted on Facebook “Either martyrdom or victory” hours before he stabbed a 15-year-old Israeli boy. Aloon was shot by Israeli security forces after the attack.

Mohanad Halabi, a member of the terror group Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ), murdered two Israeli rabbis in a stabbing attack in Jerusalem’s Old City on October 3, 2015. Old City resident Nehemia Lavi, 41, and Aharon Banita-Bennett, 22, were killed. Banita-Bennett’s wife and child were also injured.

Loyola SJP added: “We mourn the deaths of all of these Palestinian martyrs; no matter their age, no matter their gender, no matter their associations.”

On October 14, 2015, SJP UMN held a “die-in” in support of Palestinians who were conducting a wave of stabbing attacks on Israelis.” SJP UMN activists lay on the ground, while Motaz Nashawaty, an SJP UMN activist, declared: [00:00:41] “We will pay respects to the Palestinian martyrs executed by Israeli forces.”

Nashawaty then recited [00:01:57] the names of terrorists, and then described [00:02:07] them as “young Palestinians whose lives were unjustly taken away from them by Israeli security forces.” Nashawaty also stated [00:02:43] “our people are dying in streets now in Palestine, but they are not helpless - they are resisting.”

On October 18, 2015, Pace University Pleasantville Campus (Pace PLV) SJP promoted on Facebook an event titled: “SOLIDARITY WITH THE PALESTINIAN UPRISING.” Pace PLV SJP’s event was called to counter a “Jewish Lives Matter” rally that memorialized victims of the Knife Intifada.

Pace PLV SJP’s Facebook post promoting its event said: “We stand against 'Israels [sic] right to defend' itself against innocent children and civilians who clearly pose no threat…Join us loudly in proclaiming that Resistance is not Terrorism.”

On October 20, 2015, SJP at the University of Maryland (UMD) hosted an event titled: “Palestine Under Attack.” The event’s Facebook description read: “In light of Israel's escalation of violence against the Palestinians, SJP is holding an emergency forum.”

The event’s Facebook description also went on to say: “...dozens were killed by the Israeli police, soldiers and settler lynch mobs. The Israeli military has also been occupying Al-Aqsa. Come and take action in support of the Palestinian people!”

On October 26, 2015, SJP FSU shared to Facebook a “PALESTINIAN YOUTH INTERNATIONAL CALL TO SUPPORT THE INTIFADA.” The declaration called for an “international mobilization” of Palestinian youth in exile and their allies to “support the resistance” and glorified the Knife Intifada terrorists as “heroic.”

In 2017, SJP chapters across North America participated in the “Saltwater Challenge” in solidarity with Palestinian inmates who were on a hunger strike in Israeli prisons.

The “Saltwater Challenge” was held in solidarity with over 1,000 Palestinian prisoners who were hunger-striking in Israeli prisons — most of whom were convicted for acts of terrorism.

The strike was initiated by Marwan Barghouti, who was serving five consecutive life sentences for his role in suicide bombings and shooting attacks during the second intifada. Barghouti led the Palestinian Authority (PA) terrorist Tanzim force and founded the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades.

Barghouti also financed the guitar-case bomb used in the Sbarro Cafe massacre, where 15 civilians were killed and 130 were injured.

On May 12, 2017, student activists with SJP at George Washington University (GWU) participated in a “Saltwater Challenge,” in solidarity with Palestinian prisoners who were then hunger striking in Israeli prisons.

On May 5, 2017, SJP at the University of California, Riverside (UCR), posted a Facebook video participating in the “#SaltWaterChallenge.” The post added: “This campaign is intended to raise awareness about the plight of Palestinian hunger strikers in the Israeli prison system in occupied Palestine.”

On May 9, 2017, Tufts SJP promoted on Facebook a May 11, 2017 event titled: “Emergency Standout for Palestinian Prisoners on Hunger Strike” and commented: “Support the hunger strikers!!”

On May 22, 2017, SJP UC Davis held a hunger strike in solidarity with Palestinian inmates who were hunger-striking in Israeli prisons. Activists taped their mouths and sat in the middle of the campus quad, in “solidarity with 1600 Palestinian political prisoners."

SJP chapters and members have extensively participated in and endorsed behavior designed [02:05:39] to compare Israel to Nazi Germany.

On October 25, 2019, SJP at Benedictine College (Benedictine) released a statement defending then-SJP Benedictine President Ayah Ali’s harassing Dr. Harold Kasimow, a Holocaust survivor, who was invited to talk about his experience in the Holocaust.

Ali asked [00:00:28] Kasimow: “do you condemn, the establishment of the Zionist Israeli state, and whether it’s OK to exile and completely, the complete ethnic cleansing of the Palestinian people, the way that the Jewish people were exiled and ethnically cleansed?”

In October 2017, SAFE at UM Ann Arbor launched a BDS campaign, #UMDivest, to pass a BDS resolution on campus.

On November 7, 2017, UM Ann Arbor’s Central Student Government (CSG) held a meeting on the resolution. At the meeting, Sabry Wazwaz — a BDS activist from Minnesota who is unaffiliated with UM — spoke [2:02:43] in support of #UMDivest.

Wazwaz said [2:05:30]: “Just like I say ‘condemn them,’ what’s wrong with saying we’re against the racist policies of the state of Israel? … Just like what happened to the Jewish people in the Holocaust was a tragedy, why should the Palestinians also suffer a tragedy?” These comments drew cheering and applause from #UMDivest supporters.

Wazwaz has a history of tweeting anti-Jewish imagery, various anti-Israel conspiracy theories, and imagery that equates Israel with Nazi Germany. Less than three months before the meeting, he tweeted: “#ZionismIsNazism.” At the meeting, Wazwaz compared [2:05:40] Palestinians in Israel to Jews killed by the Nazi regime.

On November 29, 2016, the Ryerson University (Ryerson) chapters of SJP and Muslim Students Association (MSA) reportedly led a nearly 100-student walkout to prevent a student government vote on holding a Holocaust Education Week on campus.

SJP Ryerson vice president Omar Said initially endorsed an amendment to derail the resolution, stating [00:01:27] that “it shouldn’t be a week-long” and [00:01:45] that “this week should include the ‘Palestinian Holocaust and shouldn’t just be toward the Jewish Holocaust’.”

On October 21, 2015, SJP IUPUI shared a photo on Facebook that compared Hamas’s construction of tunnels in Gaza to Jews digging tunnels out of the Warsaw ghetto to escape the Holocaust.

In May 2014, SJP Vassar reportedly “attempted to tar pro-Israel advocates” by posting an anti-semitic Nazi propaganda poster to their Tumblr account, which they subsequently removed.

The cartoon reportedly showed: “ a monster stomping on a European city while wearing a Star of David, holding a money bag clutched by a long-nosed man, bearing a U.S. flag and cloaked in a Ku Klux Klan hood.”

On April 5, 2020, SJP at the University of Massachusetts (UMass) posted to Instagram a “Statement On Rejecting Normalization & Expressing Our Solidarity On Campus.” The statement was in response to a UMass Mishelanu and UMass Black Student Union (BSU) co-sponsored event titled: "A Talk with An Ethiopian Israeli,” that featured Ethiopian-Israeli, Waga Brok, talking about her experience being a black, African and Jewish woman.

UMass SJP’s statement read (third slide): “The anti-normalization policy necessitates that we do not participate in collaborative events with Zionist groups.” UMass SJP’s Instagram statement post also said: "As SJP, we unequivocally reject any effort to normalize the Israeli state as anything other than a settler-colonial project."

On April 29, 2019, the SJP chapter at Columbia University (Columbia) rejected an invitation to co-host an event with Columbia’s Student Supporting Israel (SSI) and called on all Columbia clubs and organizations to boycott pro-Israel advocacy groups on campus, and to deplatform Columbia SSI.

On April 9, 2018, NYU SJP and NYU JVP coordinated a resolution signed by 51 student groups to boycott Israel and two pro-Israel campus organizations.

In October 2019, SJP at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC) members and student senators pushed a motion through the student senate, denying any link between anti-Zionism and anti-Semitism by a vote of 29-4, with four abstentions.

SJP UIUC members and student senators introduced the resolution on October 16, 2019, and fast-tracked the bill to be voted on during the Jewish holiday of Sukkot.

On April 6, 2017, the Tufts Community Union Senate (TCU Senate) announced that an anti-Israel divestment resolution — authored by Tufts SJP — would be voted on at the TCU Senate’s Sunday, April 9, 2017, meeting. Many Jewish students who had plans to spend the weekend with their families in anticipation of the Passover holiday, which began on April 10, were unable to attend the vote.

The divestment resolution passed with 17 in favor, six opposed, and eight abstentions.

In 2017, two SJP members at the University of Wisconsin-Madison (UW-Madison) co-authored and sponsored a divestment resolution for “UWDivest,” a divestment campaign initiated by SJP UW-Madison. The proposal ultimately passed the first round of voting during an ASM meeting held on the day of Passover, April 10, 2017.

In 2001, SJP launched its first BDS campaign at UC Berkeley.

Since 2001, SJP chapters have led long-term efforts to push BDS on university campuses. SJP chapters use multiple strategies including divestment resolutions, referendums, circulating petitions and adding by-law amendments at the level of student government. The resolutions frequently accuse Israel of apartheid and human rights violations. Below are just a few examples.

On September 29, 2020, Columbia University (Columbia)’s student body voted in favor of a referendum that called for divestment from companies that “profit off Israeli apartheid and human rights abuses against Palestinians."

The referendum was the culmination of a four-year effort by Columbia University Apartheid Divest (CUAD), which was launched by Columbia SJP and Columbia/Barnard JVP in February 2016.

On September 23, 2019, UIUC’s student government voted to pass SJP UIUC’s BDS resolution, to divest from companies that fund the American/Israeli military, prisons and police forces. SJP UIUC worked on passing BDS at UIUC for five years.

In March 2019, Swarthmore College (Swarthmore) Student Government Organization (SGO) passed SJP Swarthmore’s divestment resolution via referendum.

SJP Swarthmore launched its BDS initiative in October 2018 via petition, calling on Swarthmore “to divest from seven companies invested in the illegal military occupation of Palestine and the legal system of apartheid that exists within the Israeli state.”

On March 23, 2018, student groups at GWU launched the second BDS campaign in two years. Both were titled “#DivestThisTime.” Activists with SJP at GWU led both campaigns.

At least 18 SJP at GWU activists and affiliates addressed [01:07:50] the Student Association (SA) Senate in defense of the resolution, where it passed [00:21:53] via [00:11:14] a secret ballot with 18 votes for, six against, and six abstentions.

On March 5-7, 2018, SJP UMN ran a campus-wide referendum to push their BDS Initiative, “UMN Divest.” SJP UMN claimed that UMN had investments in companies “that violate human rights” and called on UMN to divest from G4S, Boeing, and Raytheon for being “complicit in Israeli violations of Palestinian human rights.”

The resolution reportedly passed by 217 votes, with a total of 3,392 "yes" votes and 3,175 "no" votes on divestment. The “yes” votes represented 6.18% of the eligible voters.

On November 5, 2017, Leila Moumouni-Tchouassi — a member of Students for Palestinian Human Rights (SPHR) at the University of Ottawa (UOttawa)’s Facebook group and Vice-President of Equity with the Students Federation at the University of Ottawa (SFUO) — proposed [00:02:45] a BDS resolution during an SFUO Board of Administration (SFUO BOA) meeting.

The resolution sought to amend the SFUO policy handbook to explicitly adopt and promote BDS. Students were notified of the upcoming resolution vote only two days prior, on a Friday, hours before the onset of the Jewish Sabbath. The BOA rejected the amendment.

In March 2018, SPHR UOttawa pushed the same motion on two separate occasions, but it failed to pass both times.

In the spring of 2017, SJP members at California State University Long Beach (CSULB), in conjunction with MSA members, formed CSULB Divest to lead anti-Israel divestment efforts on CSULB’s campus.

On April 19, 2017, CSULB Divest leaders introduced an anti-Israel divestment resolution at CSULB’s Senate of the Associated Students Inc. (ASI). The legislation was passed on March 9, 2016. Neither the text of the anti-Israel resolution nor the minutes of the ASI meeting were made available on the ASI Senate website.

Many SJP chapters host annual Israel Apartheid Week (IAW) on campuses, presented as “an international series of events that seek to raise awareness of Israel’s settler-colonial project and apartheid system over the Palestinian people.”

IAW events promote BDS and feature an “apartheid wall” on campus in an attempt to present Israel’s security barrier as racist.

On many campuses, SJP has re-named IAW Palestine Awareness Week (PAW).

On April 3, 2020, during the coronavirus pandemic, UMass SJP posted on Facebook regarding their participation in the online “Israeli Apartheid Week 2020: United Against Racism,” held March 16-21, 2020.

In their Facebook post, UMass SJP accused Israel of “medical apartheid,” writing: “Palestinians have been killed by their occupiers through being denied access to adequate medical care since the founding of the state of Israel.”

During IAW 2019 held on April 8-12, 2019, SJP at Occidental College (Oxy) erected a mock Israeli security barrier on campus. Text on one panel read: “Israeli restrictions make it difficult or impossible for Palestinian Muslims and Christians to worship freely” and ”Imagine segregation where the color of your license plate dictates which road you can drive on.”

On April 12, 2018, SJP at the University of Houston (UH) uploaded to Facebook from one of SJP UH’s organized IAW events that featured a mock apartheid wall erected on campus.

In one photo posted on Facebook by SJP UH, SJP activist Omar Hussein was featured holding a sign that read: “The IDF is a terrorist organization.” SJP UH activists also held signs that read: “Zionism is Racism” and one activist held a sign that read: “IT’S NOT WAR IT’S GENOCIDE.”

From March 8-10, 2016, SJP UC Berkeley ran a series of PAW events. One event featured a wall erected blocking off part of a passageway on the university's campus. Students dressed as IDF soldiers manned the wall, interrogated and carried out mock detainments.

On April 17, 2015, GUPS at SFSU hosted IAW at SFSU under the banner: “Together We Rise Against Colonialism” and included the erection of a mock “apartheid wall.”

The event’s Facebook description said the event would include a “demonstration of what occurs to Palestinians regularly at any one of the hundreds of checkpoints that exist throughout the West Bank.”

On March 18, 2014, during IAW held by SJP at the University of Toledo (UT), UT SJP performed a play which demonized [00:08:12] Israeli checkpoints and soldiers as irrational, [00:05:20] cruel and [00:10:24, 00:36:21] threatening and violent.

One character in the play labeled [00:39.25] Israel a “brutal racist system” while another character claimed [00:37:13] that Israel locks Palestinian children in cages outdoors.