On boycotts, activism, and moral standards

[Mr_Jefferson_24]

By James Brooks
Online Journal Contributing Writer

http://onlinejournal.com/artman/publish/article_916.shtml

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Boycott and divestment campaigns are grassroots efforts to publicize the extreme plight of the Palestinians and protest western nations’ support for Israel’s demands. They can become the nucleus of a growing public awareness that could eventually produce political change. In a “free market” economy, there should be no question as to the right of consumers and organizations to make and promote joint decisions about their purchases and investments.

I assume the people behind the CUPE boycott and the now-expired NATFHE action have been working against the occupation for a long time. It takes years to develop that kind of “unpopular consensus” in any large organization. And success in any endeavor brings its own raft of moral considerations.

When the Canadian government foolishly took on occupation duties for the “Coalition.” should CUPE activists have thrown up years of progress in raising awareness about Palestine in order to refocus their energies on Afghanistan? Wouldn’t that have entailed its own faulty standards and moral anguish, if not outright abdication of responsibility?

We activists are certainly not immune to the easy attractions of double standards. But if we are working for justice and peace, are we to be faulted for the issue we address? Often the issue seems to choose the person, and we become enmeshed in personal and moral obligations we never expected to face. There is no single honest answer to these individual circumstances...