In the Name of God, Most Gracious, Most Merciful

November 16, 2014 - The Muslim Student Association at the University of California, Los Angeles is
honored to co-sponsor the forthcoming resolution, A Resolution to Divest from Companies Engaged in
Violence Against Palestinians, presented to the Undergraduate Students Association Council by Students
for Justice in Palestine and twelve co-sponsoring organizations.
The University of California is currently invested in corporations that enable and profit from ongoing and
internationally recognized human rights violations against Palestinians. The resolution makes a simple call:
the UC should discontinue those investments, as they make us complicit in those violations. Transcending
the ethno-religious identities and political stances at hand, we believe in the protection of fundamental
human rights. Indeed, though many of the realities are out of our purview, it is well within our purview to
demand that our university should not profit at the expense of human rights.
Looking towards other statements of support, we have seen that other organizations are able to connect
the Palestinian cause to their own community. It is difficult to do the same without feeding into
misconceptions that the issue at hand is a conflict between Muslims and Jews. Nevertheless, we note that
there is a clear connection that we, as Muslims, feel with the Palestinian cause. At the most fundamental
level, we are commanded in the Quran to stand out firmly for justice, as witnesses to God, even against
yourselves, or your parents, or your kin, and whether it be (against) rich or poor. [Quran 4:135] We thus
find it critical to constantly challenge our own involvement in injustice. Furthermore, one of Islams holiest
sites, Masjid al-Aqsa, is in Jerusalem and the continued occupation of Palestinian territories, violence
against Palestinians and restrictions of movement placed on worshippers limit Muslim access to this holy
place. The profiling of Palestinians and restrictions on movement are made possible through HPs
biometric technology. In addition, much of the violence this past summer, which was enabled by
companies the UC is invested in, included attacks on mosques as well. So while the Palestinian cause is
indeed a human issue that we believe everyone can support, we also stress the ways in which some of the
violence directly affects our Muslim brothers and sisters.
Informed by principles of social justice, mercy and compassion in our religion, we cannot stand behind the
oppression of any people, no matter their background. MSA at UCLA has a legacy of commitment to
social justice on this campus and we are honored to be joining so many communities from all walks of life
in this call. Indeed, supporting human rights is a point of unity on this campus.
We therefore urge our student government to call upon the University of California Regents to divest from
the violence and occupation. UC students have a moral obligation to end their complicity in such heinous
violations of what we all understand to be basic human rights.
In struggle and solidarity with Palestinians and all oppressed communities everywhere,

The Muslim Student Association | UCLA

146 Kerckhoff Hall
308 Westwood Plaza
Los Angeles, CA 90095