On March 18, 2022, Colorado’s Public Employees’ Retirement Association (PERA) voted unanimously to put Unilever on notice regarding its boycott of Israel.
In doing so, PERA declared that it would begin divesting its 42 million dollars of investments in Unilever if the latter refused to reverse its boycott within 180 days. Per its chief investment officer, PERA has also since instituted a “moratorium on ... purchasing Unilever throughout [its] direct holdings.”
StandWithUs commends the actions of Colorado, which joins the ranks of the following states that have either taken action against Unilever and its hateful boycott against Israel or have expressed intent to do so: Arizona, Florida, Illinois, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Texas.
Other statewide initiatives deserving special mention are the actions of state attorneys general and treasurers in their contributions to confront, inquire, or express their concerns regarding Unilever’s boycott and its execution. Most notable are the letters to Unilever’s CEO spearheaded by Attorney General Eric Schmitt of Missouri and State Treasurer Kimberly Yee of Arizona, whose letters rallied the signatures of twelve total state attorneys general and seven total state treasurers, respectively.
StandWithUs further encourages the many remaining states that have anti-boycott laws and their officials to enforce their laws and to use their good offices to stand up to Unilever’s latest display of hate against the Jewish state.
About StandWithUs
StandWithUs (SWU) is an international, non-profit and non-partisan Israel education organization that works to inspire and educate people of all ages about Israel, as well as challenge misinformation and fight against antisemitism.
Through university fellowships, high school internships, middle school curricula, conferences, materials, social media, educational films and missions to Israel, StandWithUs supports people around the world who want to educate their schools and communities about Israel.
Founded in 2001 and headquartered in Los Angeles, the organization has chapters and programs on 6 continents, including the U.S., Israel, UK, Canada, South Africa, Brazil and Australia.
For the last 10 years, SWU has consistently received the highest possible ratings from Charity Navigator (4 stars) and Guidestar (Platinum).
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