UCLA student government votes against divestment from Israel
After a meeting that lasted until dawn Wednesday, the UCLA undergraduate student government voted against a measure that would have urged the UC system to sell off stocks of companies that do business with the Israeli military and profit from Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territories.
The highly emotional issue attracted more than 500 people to the UCLA meeting and the public comment lasted nearly nine hours, according to the Daily Bruin, the campus newspaper. The council moved to a secret ballot and then voted 7-5 against the divestment measure.
Similar resolutions have been debated around the UC system over the past two years with various results. UC Riverside’s student government first voted for divestment and then reversed itself and rescinded its recommendation last spring. Student government panels at UC’s Irvine, Berkeley and San Diego campuses have approved pro-divestment resolutions.
However, those advisory resolutions have no power over UC finances. The UC regents and other administrators have said they have no intention of any divestments focused on Israel.
Twitter: @larrygordonlat
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