Sac State anti-Israel students claim victory, says school 'agreed to all student demands'
Though the school told Campus Reform that the ‘updated policy is not aimed at a specific country or conflict,’ the school’s SJP claimed victory in its fight for divestment.
The school president also claimed that ‘we have no direct investments in any of the companies about which many of our students have concerns.’
California State University, Sacramento (CSUS) seemingly agreed to the demands of anti-Israel protesters on May 7, when the university updated its investment policies.
The university’s Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP), which was reportedly involved in setting up an anti-Israel encampment at the school on April 29, had demanded the university divest from Israel.
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CSUS’s policy, revised on May 7, now states that the school “directs its auxiliaries . . . to investigate socially responsible investment strategies which include not having direct investments in corporations and funds that profit from genocide, ethnic cleansing, and activities that violate fundamental human rights.”
“Currently, [CSUS] does not have any direct investments in these areas,” it adds.
The policy update does not mention Israel by name, though the CSUS SJP claimed on May 8 that “Sacramento State has agreed to all student demands,” and the protesters ended the encampment following the update.
A CSUS official told Campus Reform that the school’s “updated policy is not aimed at a specific country or conflict.”
University president Luke Wood insisted that the school had not made a deal with the anti-Israel protesters: “I want to be clear about one thing we did not do: We did not sign a treaty or agreement with students to close the encampment. You sign a treaty with your enemies, not with your students. We are proud that our students expressed their concerns peacefully and in accordance with our policies. The encampment didn’t disperse because the protestors saw our policies; they left because they saw our hearts.”
Wood also claimed that “we have no direct investments in any of the companies about which many of our students have concerns. Our new policy on socially responsible investment formalizes the informal and moves from practice to policy.”
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President Wood also announced “recruitment plans specifically focused on recruiting students who identify as Palestinian and students who identify as Jewish.”
Campus Reform has reached out to the SJP for comment. This article will be updated accordingly.
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