Free Them All: BDS movement for the right to return, self-determination
The Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) movement has made significant gains for the Palestine solidarity movement by boosting political awareness about Palestine, influencing public discourse and discussion, and infiltrating municipal and federal lobbying.
The plan and strategies of the international BDS movement are now known in solidarity with Palestine. BDS is based on the simple concept that Palestinians have the same rights as the rest of humanity. This is an anti-racist, inclusive human rights movement that opposes all forms of discrimination, including anti-Semitism and Islamophobia, on principle.
The BDS Movement fully supports administrative detainees' boycott of Israeli courts. In all cases involving the policy of administrative detention, the Palestinian BDS National Committee (BNC) demands a boycott of apartheid "Israel's" complicit court system. "Israel's" ruthless mistreatment of Palestinian political detainees has recently worsened, including physical attacks and denial of their basic, internationally recognized rights. Moreover, 520 administrative prisoners have banded together to protest "Israel's" unconstitutional administrative detention regime, which denies detainees their freedom without due process, including the filing of charges against them. Palestinians in exile, who make up almost half of the Palestinian population, are an integral part of Palestinian resistance to "Israel's" authority.
Moreover, "Israel" colonizes Palestinian land and denies Palestinian refugees the right to return to their homes. The BDS movement calls for action to put pressure on "Israel" to follow international law. BDS has grown into a thriving global movement including unions, academic associations, and grassroots movements all over the world. BDS has had a significant influence since its inception in 2005, effectively undermining international support for Israeli apartheid and settler colonization. "Israel" has denied Palestinians their fundamental rights and refused to comply with international law for nearly seventy years.
Importantly, 170 Palestinian unions, refugee networks, women's organizations, professional associations, popular resistance committees, and other Palestinian civil society organizations launched the BDS movement. The international community tries to support the Palestinian cause with the honor of the Palestinian people demonstrating through mass demonstrations, as well as human rights organizations to help the Palestinian cause.
Many of the participants in the organization are students of different universities and colleges as well as professors and activists supporting the Palestinian cause. The coalition that the organization tried to form made the participation of the students and professors on the platform in creating the worldwide community to be involved in the confrontation against the Israelis.
BDS campaigns around the world are attempting to persuade "Israel's" apartheid, settler colonialism, and occupation regime to end its policy of administrative detention and release all Palestinian political prisoners. As they call it. “We will continue to fight for our inherent rights to freedom, return, and self-determination, no matter how difficult our journey ahead may be.” The BDS movement urges worldwide civil society to engage in a boycott of "Israel" until it ends its military occupation of the West Bank and Gaza Strip, dismantles settlements, and removes the separation wall.
By raising political awareness about Palestine, altering public discourse, and making inroads into lobbying, the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) movement has won huge advances for the Palestine solidarity movement. BDS has promoted solidarity with the Palestinian fight for justice and self-determination by providing a unified set of tactics and demands. BDS attempts to force companies, institutions, and governments to modify their practices in response to Israeli abuses of international law. "Israel" will find it more difficult to oppress Palestinians as Israeli corporations and organizations become more isolated.
Significantly, BDS has been the major approach for supporting the Palestinian struggle for justice and freedom; it is one technique of solidarity among several aimed at strengthening Palestinians' skills to be active participants in the fight for their rights and return to their homeland. Although, the objectives of the BDS movement include self-determination, liberation from occupation, equality for Palestinians, and the right of return cover all Palestinian rights under international law. BDS has never claimed to be the exclusive tactic for achieving full Palestinian rights under international law. It's also unrealistic to expect it to deliver Palestinian rights on its own.
Significantly, "Israel" openly exploits culture to justify its occupation, settler-colonialism, and apartheid regimes against the Palestinian people. These institutions are involved in supporting and justifying "Israel's" occupation and systematic denial of Palestinian rights, whether by silence or direct participation. When international artists play in Israeli cultural institutions, they contribute to the mistaken idea that "Israel" is normal like any other country. Therefore, the cultural boycott of "Israel" has been approved by the majority of Palestinian writers, artists, and cultural centers, while an increasing number of anti-colonial Israelis are supporting BDS, including the cultural boycott of "Israel."
The Palestinian BDS National Committee (BNC) simply mobilizes moral pressure to expose normalization activities to undermine normalization. Countering normalization initiatives is critical since they are a fundamental tactic employed by "Israel" against the movement and the Palestinian cause for rights.
Hence, the BDS movement's growth and success send a clear message to Palestinians and governments of the world that people around the world are increasingly reluctant to accept "Israel's" persecution of Palestinians. The Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) movement has made significant gains for the Palestine solidarity movement by boosting political awareness about Palestine, influencing public discourse and discussion, and infiltrating municipal and federal lobbying. In addition to BDS initiatives, further methods to help Palestinian movement-building and restore broad, participatory Palestinian leadership must be employed.