Brown University rejects demands from pro-Palestinian students to divest from Israel

Trustees of Brown University They voted against a controversial proposal To cut financial ties with companies that do business with Israel – rejecting a request made by pro-Palestinian student protesters.

“Brown University will not divest from 10 companies described in the student-led divestment proposal as facilitating the ‘Israeli occupation of Palestinian territories,’” Ivy League university He said in a statement on Wednesday.

The Brown Foundation — the group that manages the school’s $7.2 billion endowment and is chaired by Bank of America CEO Brian Moynihan — cast its vote Tuesday on an issue that has vexed the campus in Providence, Rhode Island, since the Oct. 7 massacre in Israel by Hamas terrorists. .

Brown University administrators pledged a formal vote on divestment as a concession to the pro-Palestinian group last spring in exchange for students voluntarily removing tent encampments in the days and weeks before graduation ceremonies.

Divestment is a tactic promoted by the BDS movement, whose acronym stands for “Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions” against Israel over its policies in the Palestinian West Bank and Gaza Strip.

Israel supporters say the movement, which has taken root on college campuses across the country, is anti-Semitic.

Several high-powered Brown University alumni have opposed the vote, including hedge fund tycoon Joseph Edelman and real estate investor Barry Sternlicht. Last month, Edelman, CEO of Perceptive Advisors, resigned from the 54-member board in protest.

There were also twenty prosecutors to caution Brown could face financial penalties if the trustees vote in favor of divestment, according to Bloomberg.

The ten companies targeted for liquidation are Volvo, Airbus, Boeing, General Dynamics, General Electric, Motorola, Northrop Grumman, RTX Corporation, Textron, and Safariland.

In their statement issued Wednesday, the trustees noted that Brown’s “exposure to the 10 companies identified in the divestment proposal is critical.” minimumAnd Brown “does not have direct investments in any of the companies targeted for divestment.”

“Any indirect exposure to Brown at these companies is so small that it cannot be directly responsible for social harm,” the university added.

Last week, Brown said his endowment saw an 11.3% return on its investment for the fiscal year ending in June.

The good returns allowed Brown to allocate $281 million to its operating budget, a record.

Moynihan — whose decision to voluntarily take on the position as Brown’s chancellor raised eyebrows — and Brown President Christina Paxson also stressed that the university’s “mission does not include resolving or adjudicating global conflict.

“If the company decides to divest, it will signal to our students and scholars that there are ‘approved’ views that community members are expected to adhere to.”

The pro-Palestinian student group was angry after losing the vote.

“This decision is a moral and ethical failure of unimaginable magnitude, exacerbated by the opaque, undemocratic and frankly shameful way in which the establishment voted in secret.” The Brown Divest Alliance told Bloomberg News.

The Washington Post requested comment from Brown University Students for Justice in Palestine.