August 2016
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Thank you for the giant leap forward that you have taken in successfully developing, articulating, and publicly releasing the policy platform of the Movement for Black Lives. We, who work for the liberation and justice of all people and see the interrelationships among struggles of all oppressed peoples, are all the better for this ambitious undertaking.
The Philadelphia Coalition for Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions against Israel (Philly BDS) endorses without reservation the policy platform from the Movement for Black Lives in its entirety.
Philly BDS recognizes that our work for liberation and justice in Israel-Palestine exists in a broader context. We embrace this clear call for Black/Palestinian solidarity. As the authors of the Platform state, “We recognize we have a shared struggle with all oppressed people; collective liberation will be a product of all of our work.”
We stand with the Black Lives Matter network and anti-racist groups in our commitment to end the undeclared but very real war on Black people, call for reparations in the form of investments in Black communities, economic justice, community control, political power and divestment from military expenditures.
We are particularly encouraged by the “Invest-Divest” section that endorses the Boycott Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement, and calls for people to “build invest/divestment campaigns that end US aid to Israel’s military industrial complex and any government with human rights violations.” The language of shared struggle is apparent in that the platform also urges people to “fight the expanding number of anti-BDS bills being passed in states around the country.”
Going forward, we welcome opportunities to work together to reimagine and actively pursue justice.
In solidarity,
The Philadelphia Coalition for Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions against Israel