Brown votes against student proposal to divest from companies allegedly connected to war in Gaza

Brown University announced Thursday it will not divest from companies that pro-Palestinian students say contribute to Israel’s war efforts in Gaza.  

The Corporation of Brown University decided against the measure Tuesday after agreeing in the spring to listen to a student proposal on divestment and take a vote on it in exchange for the activists’ encampment coming down.  

The board voted in support of Brown’s Advisory Committee on University Resources Management’s (ACURM) recommendation against divestment. 

“In particular, Corporation members noted ACURM’s finding that Brown’s exposure to the 10 companies identified in the divestment proposal is de minimis, that Brown has no direct investments in any of the companies targeted for divestment and that any indirect exposure for Brown in these companies is so small that it could not be directly responsible for social harm, as defined in ACURM’s charge,” University Chancellor Brian Moynihan and President Christina Paxson said in a letter to campus. 

“These findings alone are sufficient reason to support ACURM’s recommendation,” they added.  

The corporation also discussed whether a vote to divest would send a political message to the university that would squander free thought.  

“The Corporation reaffirmed that Brown’s mission is to discover, communicate and preserve knowledge. It is not to adjudicate or resolve global conflicts,” the letter reads.  

The move is a major disappointment for the Brown Divest Coalition group after the school had been one of the few to negotiate successfully with its student activists.  

In an Instagram post, Brown Divest Coalition posted a picture of the letter from the school officials with red letters over it that say, “F‑‑‑ YOU CPAX. F‑‑‑ YOU BROWN CORP. FREE PALESTINE.” 

“BROWN’S CORPORATION BOARD OF COWARDS VOTED IN SECRET TO REJECT DIVESTMENT. ALL SETTLER COLONIAL INSTITUTIONS WILL FALL,” the caption reads.