Rays of hope from Glasgow campus and Oxford council

JVL Introduction

Amidst the relentlessly grim reports streaming out of Palestine, it is heartening to see solidarity in action from opposite ends of the UK.

Here we publish news of a unanimous decision by Oxford city council to pass a boycott and divestment motion citing the ICJ rulings on Palestine, and a new student encampment in Glasgow protesting their universities investments in arms companies such as BAE Systems.

One of the Oxford councillors, Dr Hosnieh Djafari-Marbini, posted on X, “This is a first step in divesting from settler colonial genocide, occupation and apartheid in pensions, investments and procurement inc in banking with Barclays.

“The council heard powerful speeches including from Dr Nick Maynard on bearing witness to Israeli war crimes on his visits to Gaza. This motion is the culmination of many months of pro Palestinian campaigning in Oxford by residents, students, trade unionists and health workers.”

The text of the motion appears below the report from Glasgow. Both actions are inspiring examples of solidarity that we can all try to emulate.

NWI

This article was originally published by The Nation on Mon 24 Mar 2025. Read the original here.