Monday, May 10, 2010

Divestment movement roars ahead at University of New Mexico


"Activist groups:
"No funds for Israel"

By Andrew Beale | DAILY LOBO

University of New Mexico (UNM)

May 10, 2010



A group of students at UNM is following the University of California Berkeley’s trend by starting a “Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions” campaign against Israel.


This means the removal of school funds from groups that make a profit in Israel, said Nada Noor, a spokeswoman for UNM’s Coalition for Peace and Justice in the Middle East.


“Our aim is not to target Israel for the sake of targeting Israel but rather target companies engaging in and profiting from illegal, destructive and inhumane behavior,” she said.


“Unfortunately, this will take a lot more than a Google search to locate.”


UC Berkeley and UC San Diego students recently brought motions to their student senates, but both were ultimately shot down, Noor said.


“A senate vote in favor of a divestment resolution would be nice, but a silent vote in favor is less significant than a prolonged debate. If you think about it, that’s why UC Berkeley’s campaign was still a great success,” she said.


The group is working to investigate which companies that have contracts with UNM are profiting from illegal activities in Israel, Noor said. She said the wave of student movements from the campaign is similar to student movements against the South African apartheid.


“As we know, the BDS campaigns against South Africa’s apartheid system began with students at universities around the country,” she said...


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