New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, an outspoken supporter of Israel, issued an executive order this week demanding that all government agencies under his control stop doing business with companies and organizations who support the BDS (Boycott Divestment Sanctions) campaign against Israel.
On June 5th, Governor Cuomo tweeted:
I am signing an Executive Order that says very clearly we are against the BDS movement. If you boycott Israel, New York will boycott you.
— Andrew Cuomo (@NYGovCuomo) June 5, 2016
Cuomo formally announced his plans in a speech that he delivered to local Jewish leaders and lawmakers at the Manhattan Harvard Club. In his speech, Cuomo called the BDS campaign an “economic attack” against Israel which “we cannot allow to happen.”
Cuomo’s executive order requires New York’s Office of General Services to compile a comprehensive list of companies and organizations which participate in “boycott, divestment or sanctions activity targeting Israel, either directly or through a parent or subsidiary” and submit it to the governor within six months. Any person or organization on the list will then have the opportunity to appeal being on the list before it is finalized.
According to the governor’s council, Alphonso David, the list will be quite substantial. Once the list is finalized, Cuomo’s order will then require all New York government agencies to divest public funds from any company or individual on the list. According to Mr. David, governor Cuomo’s executive action is meant to send the clear message that “the BDS movement is deplorable”.
In his speech outlining his executive order, Cuomo said:
New York stands in solidarity with Israel today and always. This state will not stand for the politics of discrimination in any form, and we will continue to demonstrate our unwavering support for the people of Israel in the fight for freedom, liberty and democracy…I’m proud to sign this nation’s leading executive order, which will help protect Israel from the threat of divestment.
Pointing out the fact that he is the first governor to sign an executive order in support of Israel, Cuomo said he hoped that other governors would follow suit. After delivering his speech on Sunday, the governor promptly went on to march in the annual Celebrate Israel parade. Before marching Cuomo told reporters:
It is very important that Israel is strong, not just for the sake of Israel, but for the sake of all democracies. Israel is an important strategic ally of the U.S. And we have to keep that relationship strong. And even in this difficult time of turmoil, I want Israel to know New York stands with them.