Associated Student Government Senate passed a Northwestern Divest-sponsored resolution early Thursday morning asking the University to divest from six corporations the resolution’s sponsors say violate Palestinians’ human rights.
The resolution passed with 24 votes in favor and 22 votes against, with three abstentions. The vote, cast through a secret ballot, came after more than five hours of debate, during which senators, students and alumni alternated speaking for and against the resolution.
Attendees filled 400 seats in Norris University Center’s Louis Room to watch or contribute to the debate. An NUDivest supporter also live-streamed the meeting online. The video attracted about 300 viewers throughout the night, and the meeting caught the attention of activists around the country on social media.
Although Thursday’s vote represents a significant victory for NUDivest, the resolution is a recommendation to NU officials, not a University policy change.
Nevertheless, the passage is important for NUDivest, which has been campaigning since its launch last month for students to support divestment from Boeing, Lockheed Martin, Hewlett-Packard, G4S, Caterpillar and Elbit Systems. Divestment supporters say these companies’ products are used by Israel in human rights violations in Palestine.
Originally posted at The Daily Northwestern
photo via @nbn_tweets