The student governments at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and Colorado State University passed boycott, divestment and sanctions resolutions on Wednesday evening.
The resolution in Wisconsin, which passed 15-5 with three abstentions, calls on the university to “divest from all investments complicit in apartheid and genocide, including Israel’s genocide of Gaza.”
Following its passage, the university stated that it is “disappointed” in the Associated Students of Madison Student Council.
“Wisconsin state law prohibits state and local government agencies from adopting their own rules or policies that would involve them in a boycott of Israel,” the public school stated. “Despite the fact that ASM leadership was counseled by university attorneys on the clear illegality of that specific part of the resolution, ASM Student Council nonetheless voted to pass it.”
The university added that it is investigating reports that an antisemitic message was used during an online chat at a March 18 meeting when the resolution was introduced.
“The university condemns antisemitism in all of its forms and reiterates the importance of civil and open discourse,” it stated. “While we recognize the variety of viewpoints in our community about investment policy and disclosure, resolutions that call for actions that would violate the law do not warrant further engagement.”
Drew Wesson, press office director for the student government, told JNS that, “while ASM leadership was briefed on the legality, ultimately each representative makes their own decisions when it comes to voting.”
“ASM remains committed to ensuring that all students are able to participate in student government processes,” Wesson said. “We appreciate the wide range of perspectives that were brought forward to Student Council.”
In Colorado, the Associated Students of Colorado State University Senate passed a resolution, which JNS viewed, calling on the public school to cut ties with companies “found participating in a racially based genocide in Gaza.”
The vote was conducted via secret ballot, and the vote total was not publicly available at press time.
Tiana Kennedy, associate vice president for communications for the university, told JNS that “as a public institution, Colorado State University upholds the right to free expression, as required by the First Amendment.”
“Opinions and positions expressed by students and student groups are their own and are not university endorsements,” she said.
Shira Goodman, vice president of advocacy and head of the center to combat antisemitism in education at the Anti-Defamation League, told JNS that the ADL is “deeply concerned” by the passage of both resolutions.
“While non-binding, these measures risk fueling division on campus and contributing to environments where Jewish students, staff and faculty feel targeted because of their ethnicity and Israeli students, staff and faculty feel unwelcome because of their national origin,” Goodman said.
“Universities should be spaces for open dialogue and inclusion, not boycotts that shut down engagement,” she told JNS. “We urge campus leaders and students to focus on constructive, respectful discourse that brings communities together rather than driving them apart.”
Raeefa Shams, director of communications and programming at the Academic Engagement Network, told JNS that both resolutions “display a lack of understanding of both the facts on the ground in the Mideast and the workings of university finances.”
“More unsettling, they will also have the effect of making Jewish and Israeli students and faculty feel more isolated and excluded by their peers in a time of rapidly increasing antisemitism,” Shams said. “We are heartened to see that the administration of UW-Madison swiftly rejected their student government’s resolution and hope that Colorado State’s administration will soon follow in showing moral leadership.”
