Leaked e-mails show that Israeli consulate, StandWithUs tried to thwart Northwestern divestment

[R. Daneel Olivaw]

http://mondoweiss.net/2015/02/standwithus-northwestern-divestment

The Israeli consulate and other pro-Israel groups teamed up to try to thwart a divestment campaign at Northwestern University, according to e-mails obtained by Mondoweiss.

Their efforts ultimately failed, though. Last night, Northwestern University’s student government voted to recommend divestment from corporations linked to the Israeli army. The resolution passed with 24 student senators voting in favor, and 22 against.
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-Outside groups, including the Israeli consulate, are involved. In one e-mail, Michael Simon, the executive director of Northwestern’s Hillel, writes: “I want to express how grateful I am to the fantastic student leaders of the NU Coalition for Peace, to the Hillel staff, and to our wonderful community partners (including Emily Briskman at the Israel Education Center, Assaf Grumberg at Stand With Us, Stacy Rudd and Consul General Roey Gilad at the Israeli Consulate, and many others) for coming together to support our efforts to combat NU Divest’s anti-Israel activity.”

Another e-mail, from the Jewish United Fund, a communal organization in Chicago, contains an attachment to a 25-page document titled “Pro-Israel Messaging for Campus Allies.” It largely directs students to focus on messages of peace and dialogue.

[R. Daneel Olivaw]

1. Best email yet...

Yet another message is from Lynn Schusterman, a major pro-Israel philanthropist. She thanks Simon for his anti-BDS efforts, and says she will be sending a “Soda Stream starter kit” for his office.

[azurnoir]

2. Northwestern passed the divestment vote that's good news

the rest is absolutely no surprise what so ever, it's going to get really really ugly

[R. Daneel Olivaw]

3. Did you see the little ditty about the University of Toledo?

http://mondoweiss.net/2015/02/divestment-officials-federation

Closed-door debate on divestment by U of Toledo student gov’t to include officials from Jewish Federation

This is one of the craziest stories we’ve ever reported. The student government at the University of Toledo is so frightened by a debate over divestment from Israel that it is rigging the debate on the topic tonight. It will hold the debate behind closed doors and limit how many students can come to the meeting. Only five representatives from two campus organizations. And each organization has to leave the room when the other side is making its case.
Though guess what-- two officials of the Jewish Federations of Greater Toledo are invited to the debate!

“Lewis Carroll couldn’t have done any better,” says Barbara Harvey of the National Lawyers Guild. “What seems to have precipitated this Alice in Wonderland version of democracy in action was the outreach from Students for Justice in Palestine to surrounding SJP chapters, urging them and other supporters to attend the hearing.”

Let’s walk through this.

The SJP chapter at the university started up in 2011 and has been working on a divestment resolution since then. The student government advisory measure would urge the university foundation “to divest from mutual funds that invest in companies ‘which are explicitly tied to Israel’s illegal occupation of Palestinian territories,’” as the Toledo Blade reports.

[bemildred]

7. Future careers are at stake.

It is amazing for a nation which claims to be free how many things we are afraid of.

[azurnoir]

8. I found this bit ah interesting UT isn't trying to influence student government

UT spokesman Jon Strunk said an approved resolution would serve as an “advisory opinion” of the student government. It would first go to the desk of the senior vice president for student affairs and could be forwarded to the president or board of trustees. He would not say how administrators view the proposal.

“We’ll await the outcome,” he said. “We wouldn’t want to make it seem like we are influencing student government by deciding before they [decide].”

A UT police officer who routinely staffs the meeting will be present today, Mr. Strunk said.

Read more at http://www.toledoblade.com/Education/2015/02/17/UT-student-senate-to-issue-call-for-Israeli-divestment.html#QMzuDPudZs7DOf1c.99

[King_David]

4. Mondoweiss?

[R. Daneel Olivaw]

5. Thanks for the kick, dave.

[Jefferson23]

6. The irony is rich: "The coalition’s strategy is focused on saying that the BDS movement wants to

abolish Israel and that it is against a two state solution." Really? If BDS is ambiguous of their
intentions, they have plenty of company with these alleged two states supporters.They're for land swaps
that would leave the Palestinians without a viable state.