Decision Concerning Formal Divestment Resolutions
June 24, 2024
Dear Students, Faculty, Staff, and Alumni,
We write today on behalf of the Board of Trustees to communicate our decision concerning formal divestment resolutions put forward by the faculty and the Association of Amherst Students (AAS)—and related requests from a coalition of students who met with several members of the Board of Trustees in May and a group of alumni who published a letter in the Amherst Student.
While these faculty, students, and alumni requested actions that vary in nature and scope, they shared a common call for divestment from companies supplying military equipment used by the State of Israel in the current campaign in Gaza. The Board therefore decided to consider this specific action, which has the broadest support across those interested groups.
We recognize that the request for divestment reflects a deep concern for the human suffering, death, and destruction being endured by Palestinians in Gaza, and that those who support divestment perceive it as a clear moral statement about the actions of a foreign state, Israel. The trustees also appreciate that the faculty and student resolutions were considered through respectful, deliberative processes. At the same time, there are dissenting opinions, also strongly held, among a large number of students, faculty, staff, and alumni.