Texas right to refuse anti-Israel businesses
As Americans, we are each guaranteed the freedom of speech. Nothing is more sacrosanct — or more American — than exercising that freedom. As free speech advocates, we don’t have to like what others might say, but we respect their right to say it.
The Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions campaign against Israel is complicated even for those paying attention; simply put, the voices promoting it in this country want to believe a diplomatic and economic boycott against Israel will force its hand at the negotiating table, helping manifest a two-state solution to the long-lingering stalemate with its Palestinian neighbors.
However, campaign cofounder Omar Barghouti has said, “We oppose a Jewish state in any part of Palestine. No Palestinian, rational Palestinian, not a sell-out Palestinian, will ever accept a Jewish state in Palestine.”
By preaching this kind of antisemitism and the delegitimization of Israel, Barghouti makes peace less likely.
Does this movement have the right to boycott Israel? Yes.
Do I have the right to oppose their boycott and fight it? Absolutely.
And so does the state of Texas.
While Texas cannot dictate to citizens what they can or cannot say, or what policy positions they can or cannot take, it is their prerogative to decide whether or not the government should do business with those who seek to undermine our democratic ally, Israel.
A 2017 state law aimed at supporting Israel has garnered criticism, including in a recent op-ed, that claims Texas was restricting an individual’s right to free speech by setting guidelines and boundaries for the state’s commercial dealings. The law requires companies entering a contract with the state to affirm that they do not boycott Israel.
The criticism of the law tries to link Israel to the debates and boycotts over firearms, fossil fuels or Russia’s unjust war against Ukraine, and attempts to bring a moral equivalence to a discussion about a movement that has openly sought to destroy an open and democratic nation like Israel.
In 1977, President Jimmy Carter signed a law protecting Israel from economic boycotts being coordinated by countries seeking Israel’s destruction — many of whom have now signed peace agreements with their former enemy. Forty-five years later, the new sponsors of these boycotts are corporations and non-government organizations that believe that the greatest human rights abuses are happening in Israel, a liberal democracy, and not places like China, Syria, North Korea or Iran.
Israel is not a perfect place, but in a world in which Israel, an open and democratic society with a strong judicial system, is targeted by those who seek its destruction, we’re proud of our state legislators for recognizing the real voices behind the campaign and for making clear Texas’ refusal to reward those who discriminate against the only Jewish state in the world. In addition to many rabbinic colleagues, we know that many Jewish and non-Jewish Texans join us in advocating for Israel’s sovereignty and purpose as an unequivocal ally of the United States.