Divestment from Companies Resolution

THE STUDENT GOVERNMENT OF LOYOLA CHICAGO OF LOYOLA UNIVERSITY CHICAGO

MEASURE OF THE SENATE Divestment from Companies Profiting from the Illegal Occupation of the Palestinian Territory To ensure adherence to Loyola University Chicago’s Socially Responsible Investment Policy

______ - ______ - ______ to be filed by the Secretary

_________________________________________________________________________ Signed by the President of the Student Government of Loyola Chicago

Chiefly Sponsored By: Senator Nashiha Alam, Member of Academic Affairs Committee

Co-Sponsored By: Senator Samira Baraki, Senator Melinda Bunnage, Chair of Justice Committee Senator Israa Elhalawany Senator Lucas Fleisher Senator Ryan Sorrell Safety and Wellness Committee

Whereas,

The Student Government of Loyola Chicago, hereafter referred to as the SGLC, is committed to voicing “the concerns of the student body [and to voicing] student opinions concerning the traditions, ideas, and affairs of [Loyola University Chicago]”i, and

Whereas,

It is Loyola University Chicago’s, hereafter referred to as Loyola, Jesuit Catholic mission to “expand knowledge in the service of humanity through learning, justice and faith”ii , and

Whereas,

The Catechism of the Catholic Church establishes that “[r]espect for the human person entails respect for the rights that flow from his dignity as a creature [... and by] flouting [these rights], or refusing to recognize them in its positive legislation, a society undermines its own moral legitimacy”iii , and

Whereas,

As a result, the students, faculty, and administration of Loyola have a moral responsibility to ensure that the Loyola community ethically participates in society, and

Whereas,

The Loyola community has a long legacy of working against oppression and injustice on issues ranging from the environment to undocumented immigrants to gender equality, and

Whereas,

The West Bank, Gaza Strip, and East Jerusalem—hereafter referred to as the Occupied Palestinian Territories—is controlled through military force by the Israeli governmentiv, and

Whereas,

According to the International Court of Justice (ICJ), “the construction by Israel of a wall in the Occupied Palestinian Territory and its associated regime are contrary to international lawv”, and

Whereas,

According to the International Court of Justice (ICJ), the establishment and expansion of settlements in the West Bank and Eastern Jerusalem is illegal by international law, and

Whereas,

According to the UN General Assembly’s application of the Fourth Geneva Convention, the exploitation of natural resources in the Occupied Palestinian Territories is illegal by international lawvi, and

Whereas,

2,192 Palestinians were killed, including whole families, 20,000 housing units were destroyed, and 100,000 Palestinians were left homeless as result of the Israeli Defense Force’s 50 day “Protective Edge” mission in the Gaza Stripvii, and

Whereas,

In 2005, Palestinian civil society, consisting of over 170 nongovernmental organizations issued the call for Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS), requesting that the international community remove its investments from corporations profiting from the oppression of the Palestinian people until the Israeli government complies with international law, and

Whereas,

Students believe that the Loyola community should continue to work against oppression by implementing the asks of this resolution, and corporations profiting from human rights violations committed against the Palestinian people, and

Whereas,

Loyola students have minimal access to information regarding Loyola’s investment portfolio, making it hard for students to be knowledgeable about what their university is invested in, and

Whereas,

Loyola students are forced to scour the internet to find Loyola’s proxy voting record to determine what investments Loyola is invested in, and

Whereas,

As shown by the Loyola’s 2014 proxy votes, Loyola is directly invested in Raytheon, Caterpillar Inc., United Technologies Co., Valero Energy Coviii ., and

Whereas,

Raytheon is a company that specializes in military defense, Command, Control, Communications, Computers, Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (C4ISR) systems, cyber systems, electronic warfare, and precision weapons, and

Whereas,

According to Russia Today, an international news organization, “Israeli bombs responsible for bloodshed [in 2014] in Gaza are comprised of laser-guidance systems manufactured in Scotland, the Daily Record revealed last week. This laser-guidance technology is produced in a factory in Fife, the parent company of which is a USheadquartered arms manufacturer called Raytheon,”ix and

Whereas,

Caterpillar Inc. is an Illinois-based construction manufacturer that directly contracts business with the Israeli government,x and

Whereas,

According to Al Jazeera, an international news organization, “Israel had been buying and ‘weaponizing’ Caterpillar bulldozers then using them to demolish Palestinian homes, build settlements and the separation wall, clear land to build Jewish-only roads, uproot olive and fruit trees, and carry out military operations,”xi and

Whereas,

United Technologies Co. (or UTC) is a company that provides services and products to the aerospace industry, and

Whereas,

UTC’s subsidiary, Pratt and Whitney, produces the F-100 engine series used in Israel’s F15 and F-16 fighter aircraft, and another of its engines powers Israel’s future attack aircraft, the F-35xii , and

Whereas,

Valero Energy Corporation is a fuel company with dozens of refineries that supplies the Israeli military with millions of dollars worth of fuel and dieselxiii , and

Whereas,

Valero provides fuel to power AH-64 attack helicopters, EN590 diesel for jeeps and other military equipment, and Israel’s F-15 and F-16 fighter jets,xiv, and

Whereas,

F-16 jets, in particular, have been used unlawfully against Palestinian civilians in air strikes over densely-populated areas, and

Whereas,

Loyola follows the National Jesuit Committee on Investment Responsibility (NJCIR)xv, but has dissolved its Shareholder Advocacy Committee, and

Whereas,

Loyola students are concerned that Loyola invests in, and thereby profits from, corporations which have an active role in the human rights abuse and the institutionalized structural violence against the Palestinian people, and

Whereas,

Loyola students have minimal access to information regarding the corporations Loyola is invested in, making it hard for students to be knowledgeable about what their university is funding, and

Whereas,

Due to Loyola’s lack of transparency in its investments, there is no definitive confirmation that Loyola is invested in other companies/corporations that aid and abet human rights violations, and

Whereas,

This resolution aims neither to target a people, a community, nor determine a political solution, but to remove Loyola’s complicity from humans rights violations being committed against the Palestinian people, and

Therefore,

Be it further resolved the SGLC strongly urges the Loyola Board of Trustees to divest all of its direct holdings from Raytheon, United Technologies Co., Caterpillar Inc., Valero Energy Co., before 2025, and

Therefore,

Be it further resolved the SGLC strongly urges that in the future Loyola not invest in corporations that, A. Profit from, assist with, and/or provide products or services that contribute to violent acts that target Palestinian civilians; a. Group 4 Securicor (G4S) provides equipment for Israeli prisons that hold Palestinian political prisoners and for Israeli military checkpointsxvi b. Boeing is a major supplier of the F15 Eagle and the AH64 Apache attack helicopter to Israel. Boeing makes missile systems, F15 software, Apache Helicopters, and Joint Direct Attack Munitions (JDAM), a guided air-to-surface weapon.xvii c. Hewlett-Packard Company provides biometric monitoring of checkpoints, including four built inside the West Bank in violation of international law.xviii d. General Electric supplies the propulsion systems for Israel’s AH 64 Apache Assault Helicopters and possesses contracts with Israel to sell engines for a variety of military aircraft.xix B. Profit from, assist with, and/or provide products or services that contribute to the maintenance of the Israeli military occupation of Gaza and the West Bank, including East Jerusalem; a. Elbit Systems, supplies electronic detection fence for the separation wall in the occupied West Bank, supplies the LORROS surveillance cameras in the Ariel and A-ram sections of the separation wall, and provides UAVs (Unmanned Aerial Vehicles) to the Israeli armyxx

C. Profit from, assist with, and/or provide products or services that contribute to the maintenance and expansion of Israeli settlements in the Occupied Palestinian Territories; and Therefore,

Be it further resolved that the SGLC strongly urges Loyola’s Chief Investment Officer, in collaboration with students, faculty, and staff, to create and enforce a publicly available socially responsible investment policy and reinstate Shareholder Advocacy Committee that will ensure that Loyola is upholding its Jesuit Catholic mission and Jesuit values in regard to investments, and

Therefore,

Be it further resolved that the SGLC shall work to achieve greater transparency in university investments, and

Therefore,

Be it finally resolved that the SGLC calls upon Loyola to divest from groups or companies that further promote systematic prejudiced oppression, whether this applies to social, environmental, or other issues.

i

SGLC Articles of Governance http://www.luc.edu/mission/mission_vision.shtml iii Catechism of the Catholic Church, 5th ed., 1930. iv United Nations Security Council Resolution 242, 1967, Article 13 v International Court of Justice, Legal Consequences Of the Construction of a Wall in the Palestinian Territories vi UN General Assembly, GA/EF/3379 vii United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, Gaza Situation Report viii Loyola University Chicago, Proxy Vote History, 2014, Q2 ix Russia Today, Article, Business as usual: UK arms factories 'profit' from Palestinian bloodshed x Caterpillar Website xi Al Jazeera xii Israel: U.S. Foreign Assistance, http://1.usa.gov/1wNdOS3 xiii Amnesty International, https://www.amnesty.org/en/articles/news/2014/08/stop-us-shipment-fuelisraels-armed-forces-evidence-gaza-war-crimes-mounts/ xiv American Friends Service Committee http://investigate.afsc.org/company/valero-energy-corporation xv http://www.luc.edu/sac/resources/jesuit_sri.shtml xvi The Guardian http://bit.ly/SwEfrL xvii Boeing, http://investigate.afsc.org/company/boeing-company xviii American Friends Service Committee http://investigate.afsc.org/company/hewlett-packard-company xix American Friends Service Committee http://investigate.afsc.org/company/general-electric xx WhoProfits, http://www.whoprofits.org/company/elbit-systems ii