Anti-BDS Laws Pass the Constitutional Test

In recent years, questions regarding what constitutes antisemitism have reached the forefront of our politics. This discourse is no longer confined to academia and the offices of the Anti-Defamation League. The debate has reached the halls of Congress — and, at the state level, lawmakers have pushed legislation aimed at curbing the influence of the boycott, divestment, and sanctions (BDS) movement, which singles out Israel for reproach and condemnation.

BDS, a cause célèbre of the far Left, seeks to delegitimize the Jewish state. The stated goal of the movement, which frames the Israeli presence in the West Bank as an occupation illegal under international law, is to pressure Israel to withdraw from those lands; in reality, it aims to punish Israel for policies often pursued in self-defense, isolate it from the international community, and undermine its security. In 2015, Tennessee became the first state to pass an anti-BDS law, calling the movement “one of the main vehicles for spreading anti-Semitism and advocating the elimination of the Jewish state”; the law described BDS as “deeply damaging to the causes of peace, justice, equality, democracy and human rights for all the peoples in the Middle East.” By 2021, 35 states had passed laws and resolutions or issued executive orders that ban public entities (such as state pension funds) in those states from doing business with companies that boycott Israel or that simply condemn the movement.

About the Author

Bobby Miller

Bobby Miller is an ISI Fellow at National Review and a graduate student at Georgetown University.

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In recent years, questions regarding what constitutes antisemitism have reached the forefront of our politics. This discourse is no longer confined to academia and the offices of the Anti-Defamation League. The debate has reached the halls of Congress — and, at the state level, lawmakers have pushed legislation aimed at curbing the influence of the boycott, divestment, and sanctions (BDS) movement, which singles out Israel for reproach and condemnation.

BDS, a cause célèbre of the far Left, seeks to delegitimize the Jewish state. The stated goal of the movement, which frames the Israeli presence in the West Bank as an occupation illegal under international law, is to pressure Israel to withdraw from those lands; in reality, it aims to punish Israel for policies often pursued in self-defense, isolate it from the international community, and undermine its security. In 2015, Tennessee became the first state to pass an anti-BDS law, calling the movement “one of the main vehicles for spreading anti-Semitism and advocating the elimination of the Jewish state”; the law described BDS as “deeply damaging to the causes of peace, justice, equality, democracy and human rights for all the peoples in the Middle East.” By 2021, 35 states had passed laws and resolutions or issued executive orders that ban public entities (such as state pension funds) in those states from doing business with companies that boycott Israel or that simply condemn the movement.