[Congressional Record Volume 165, Number 35 (Tuesday, February 26, 2019)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1490-S1491]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        PETITIONS AND MEMORIALS

  The following petition or memorial was laid before the Senate and was 
referred or ordered to lie on the table as indicated:

       POM-6. A concurrent resolution adopted by the General 
     Assembly of the State of Ohio condemning the Boycott, 
     Divestment, and Sanctions movement and the increasing 
     incidences of anti-Semitism; to the Committee on Foreign 
     Relations.

                   House Concurrent Resolution No. 10

       Whereas, the citizens of the State of Ohio have a history 
     of standing against bigotry, oppression, discrimination, and 
     injustice; and
       Whereas, Ohio and Israel have a long history of friendship 
     and are great allies in support of each other's interests; 
     and
       Whereas, the State of Israel, the only democracy in the 
     Middle East, is the greatest friend and ally of the United 
     States in the Middle East; and
       Whereas, Ohio is committed to increasing the ties and 
     interactions in business, government, the arts, culture, and 
     education between the State of Ohio and the State of Israel, 
     further strengthening the historic ties between our State and 
     that country; and
       Whereas, ties between Ohio's and Israel's academic, 
     research, business, and nonprofit communities are both robust 
     and longstanding; and
       Whereas, the elected representatives of Ohio recognize the 
     importance of expressing their unabridged support for the 
     Jewish people and the State of Israel's right to exist and 
     thrive, and their unabridged support for Israel's right of 
     self-defense; and
       Whereas, there are increasing incidents of anti-Semitism 
     around the world, including across the United States and in 
     Ohio, including desecration of Jewish religious sites; and
       Whereas, the international Boycott, Divestment, and 
     Sanctions movement is one of the main vehicles for 
     legitimizing anti-Semitism on campus and advocating the 
     elimination of the Jewish State; and
       Whereas, anti-Israel activities and activities promoting 
     the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions movement against 
     Israel are widespread in the State of Ohio, including on 
     several university campuses and in other Ohio communities, 
     and contribute to anti-Semitic and anti-Zionistic propaganda 
     and threats to both American and Israeli Jewish students, and 
     result in deliberate interference with the learning 
     environment of all students; and
       Whereas, the dramatic increase in Boycott, Divestment, and 
     Sanctions campaign activities on college campuses around the 
     country has resulted in increased animosity and intimidation 
     against Jewish students, negatively impacting student 
     programming of vital importance to all American students 
     related to the State of Israel and politics in the Middle 
     East; and
       Whereas, leaders of the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions 
     movement say their goal is to eliminate Israel as the home of 
     the Jewish people, and signs and messaging at anti-Israel 
     rallies have adopted the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions 
     movement's theme slogan, ``Palestine forever, Israel Never 
     Ever'' meaning that the State of Israel would cease to exist, 
     falsely denying the Jewish people's and Israel's historical 
     connection to its ancient home in the Land of Israel, 
     including the present day State of Israel, and Jerusalem, 
     Judea, and Samaria, which were the heartland of the ancient 
     nations of Israel and Judah; and
       Whereas, Ohio's elected representatives who defend the 
     inalienable right to free speech understand that the goals 
     and activities of Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions 
     campaigns in Ohio are harmful to the State's relationships 
     with Ohio's Jewish citizens, with Ohio's non-Jewish citizens 
     who support the State of Israel and the Jewish people, and 
     with the Jewish homeland, Israel, and have a deleterious 
     impact on the educational environment; and
       Whereas, the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions campaign's 
     call for academic boycotts has been condemned by many of our 
     nation's largest academic associations, over two hundred 
     fifty university presidents, and many other leading scholars 
     as a violation of the bedrock principle of academic freedom; 
     and
       Whereas, the members of the General Assembly condemn all 
     groups, including white nationalist, neo-Nazi, and national 
     socialist groups, that promote hatred, religious persecution, 
     or violence towards others; Now therefore be it
       Resolved, That the members of the General Assembly condemn 
     the international Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions movement 
     and its activities in Ohio for legitimizing anti-Semitism and 
     for seeking to undermine the Jewish people's right to self-
     determination, which they are fulfilling in the State of 
     Israel; and be it further
       Resolved, That the members of the General Assembly condemn 
     activities that contribute directly or indirectly to the 
     denial, violation, or delegitimization of any people's 
     academic freedom, including, but not limited to, promotion of 
     academic boycotts by the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions 
     movement against Israel; and be it further
       Resolved, That the members of the General Assembly consider 
     the international Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions movement 
     and its agenda inherently antithetical and deeply damaging to 
     the causes of peace, justice, equality, democracy, and human 
     rights for all peoples in the Middle East and in the United 
     States; and be it further
       Resolved, That we, the members of the 132nd General 
     Assembly of the State of Ohio, reaffirm our support for the 
     State of Israel, recognize that the Jewish people are 
     indigenous to the land of Israel, condemn all attacks on the 
     people of Israel, support Israel's right to engage in lawful 
     acts of self-defense, and oppose all attempts to deny the 
     legitimacy of Israel as a sovereign state; and be it further
       Resolved, That we, the members of the 132nd General 
     Assembly of the State of Ohio, reaffirm our position that the 
     trustees, administrators, and educators at all levels in our 
     universities in Ohio, must take an active stand against all 
     anti-Semitic actions and intimidation taken against Jewish 
     students on their campuses, whereby all students may feel 
     safe, and be safe, from harm due to these pernicious 
     activities; and be it further

[[Page S1491]]

       Resolved, That the members of the General Assembly 
     encourage and support the exercise of free speech and civil 
     debate, particularly on college campuses, and further 
     encourage university and college administrations to curb any 
     impediments to free speech and any abridgment of free speech 
     on campus by any individuals or groups, and urge them to take 
     disciplinary action against all students, faculty, and 
     administrators who engage in actions that abridge free speech 
     on campus in violation of the First Amendment to the 
     Constitution of the United States; and be it further
       Resolved, That the Clerk of the House of Representatives 
     transmit duly authenticated copies of this resolution to the 
     President of the United States, the Speaker and Clerk of the 
     United States House of Representatives, the President and 
     Secretary of the United States Senate, the Chancellor of 
     Higher Education and each of the nine members of the Ohio 
     Board of Regents, the provosts and chairpersons of the boards 
     of trustees of all Ohio public and private colleges and 
     universities, and the Israeli Embassy in Washington, D.C., 
     for transmission to the proper authorities in the State of 
     Israel.

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