SACRAMENTO (Press Release)–The California Legislature passed a bill to ensure that the state and its range of public agencies will not contract with businesses engaging in discriminatory boycotts against minority groups, including businesses that undermine California’s relationship with Israel. The State Assembly overwhelmingly passed AB 2844, the California Combating BDS Act, with a 69-1 vote, concurring with the State Senate, which passed the legislation by a vote of 34-1 on Aug. 24.
Over the past eight months, the Israeli-American Coalition for Action (IAC for Action) has organized and mobilized the Israeli-American community, led a broad coalition of advocacy organizations and worked with a bipartisan group of legislators in support of the bill. In recent years, BDS groups have targeted, harassed and, in certain cases, physically assaulted those who support Israel or are Californians of Israeli descent, creating an unprecedented climate of intimidation and discrimination, particularly on college campuses. A wave of anti-Semitic rhetoric and anti-Israeli discriminatory activity across the state caused significant concern among lawmakers.
“Today the California legislature made clear that the state’s taxpayers should not be forced to subsidize discrimination,” said Shawn Evenhaim, Chairman of the Israeli-American Coalition for Action. “We are grateful to the bipartisan group of Assemblymembers Richard Bloom, Chad Mayes, Marc Levine and Travis Allen, as well as President pro Tempore Kevin de León, Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon, Senator Marty Block and the rest of the Jewish Caucus for their leadership on this important issue. We hope that Governor Jerry Brown will follow suit and sign this bill into law. We have been proud to rally the Israeli-American community to pass this legislation, which will protect California’s diverse communities from discrimination—now and in the future.”
In advocating for this legislation, the IAC for Action has highlighted the strong academic, business and trade relationship between California and Israel. “California and Israel work closely together in ways that benefit both states—from collaboration on stem cell research to fight cancer, to professional exchanges that advance solutions to California’s drought, to business partnerships that have created remarkable job-creating companies,” Evenhaim said. “Those who participate in the BDS movement are not only acting against America’s values and longstanding interests in the Middle East, but also threaten the long-term economic health of our state.”
The American Jewish Committee issued the following statement:
“We thank Assemblymember Bloom for his perseverance in securing the passage of this bill,” said Janna Weinstein Smith, AJC’s Los Angeles Regional Director. “The community is also grateful to Senators Marty Block and Hannah-Beth Jackson for their work in steering this bill through the State Senate. We urge Governor Brown to sign AB2844 into law.”
“The goal of the BDS movement is not a two state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, but to isolate and delegitimize Israel, our closest democratic ally in the Middle East,” continued Smith. “This bill sends the clear and unmistakable message that the state of California wants no part of the goals and tactics of this pernicious movement.”
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