The student council at the University of Wisconsin-Madison unanimously passed a provocative anti-Israel divestment resolution Wednesday that faults Israel for U.S. police violence against minorities.
In particular, the resolution blames Israel for police violence against blacks, citing American police exchange programs with Israel.
“There are exchange programs in which a small number of senior American police officials travel to Israel, but they go to learn about counter-terrorism, not community policing or crowd control,” StandWithUs said in its response to the resolution.
During the debate on the measure, anti-Israel activists demonized Jews as “oppressors” and mocked Jewish students by saying the resolution threatens their “white privilege.”
Pro-Israel students also accused student council members of violating an agreement made in March that Israel would be left out of the resolution, which was instead slated to focus on “unethical” corporations.
According to University of Wisconsin Hillel, a Jewish member of the student council claimed to have been harassed by other council members.
The university’s administration distanced itself from the resolution, saying the student council “does not control UW-Madison policies or practices” and the vote “will not result in a change” in school policy.
Meanwhile, the student senate at Montclair State University in New Jersey overwhelmingly rejected an anti-Israel BDS resolution Wednesday, with only one senator voting in favor and 11 voting against. The resolution was introduced by the school’s chapter of Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP). Prior to the vote, when SJP circulated a survey to gauge student interest in BDS, 64 percent of respondents declined to support the anti-Israel movement. (JNS.org)
{Matzav}
