Late last week, the University of California, San Diego divested over 8.2 million dollars and passed Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS). The BDS website defines BDS as a Palestinian-led movement for freedom, justice and equality.
UC San Diego joins a list of other University of California (UC) campuses that have used their voices to prevent funds managed by their student union assemblies and student body associations from being spent on companies complicit in the occupation and genocide of Palestinians, according to BDS regulations.
UC Davis, UC Riverside, UCLA and UC Santa Cruz have also voted to divest, gaining momentum from each win at the respective universities. The divestment victories we are seeing across the UC campuses are the result of the collective hard work of various organizations such as the Students for Justice in Palestine branch at each university and UC Divest.
These divestment victories should also serve to show the impact that student voice and unity can have when a cooperative and genuine effort pays off. The actions of students involved in these achievements are inspiring and should be used as motivation? to encourage all of us to get involved in causes that we are passionate about.
Too often are we led down the spiral that change is impossible or only significant at high levels; however, these divestment victories prove that change is possible and can be attained. All victories in the name of liberation should be celebrated at every level. As students, we should not allow a fear of potential social backlash or doubts regarding its impact to deter us from taking action and making change.
