Student Association Congress at Binghamton U. Rescinds BDS Resolution From the Spring

Student Association Congress at Binghamton U. Rescinds BDS Resolution From the Spring

It looks like Jewish students organized to make this happen. Good for them.

The BU Pipedream reports:

SA Congress rescinds BDS resolution

One day after the first anniversary of the Oct. 7 attack, the Student Association Congress has rescinded last semester’s resolution expressing support for Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions. It passed with 22 votes in favor, three against and three abstentions.

Shortly after the meeting began, Saul Hakim, an off-campus representative and the senior advisor for the Binghamton University Zionist Organization, moved to amend the agenda to add two main motions.

The motions and six subsequently introduced resolutions were notably not on the public meeting agenda disseminated Monday evening by Kristina Donders, the speaker of Congress and a junior double-majoring in mathematics and political science.

“There is a review period for legislation before it can be added to the agenda,” read a written statement signed by the SA’s E-Board and the speaker. “With the legislation being received over break, there was a constrained time frame to undergo the review. The authors decided to move forward with bringing the legislation to the floor. Congress motioned to add the resolutions to the agenda, and so the meeting proceeded.”

The E-Board and speaker did not immediately respond to further questions about the review period for new legislation.

Before the meeting began, the Partnership of Bing Jews — a new organization — and BUZO posted on Instagram, saying that “tonight, the SA Congress plans to overturn the BDS resolution passed last semester” and calling “any and all Zionist students and allies” to attend the meeting.

The SA’s leadership, they said, was mandated to send a copy of the divestment resolution to a handful of elected officials and University administrators, but chose to do so on Oct. 7, the first anniversary of the Hamas attack.

“We were planning on keeping this upcoming vote on the down low to preserve campus climate, but after this provocation, we decided to be loud and proud,” the post read.

Hakim told Pipe Dream he submitted his resolutions “well in advance” of Tuesday’s meeting.

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