Part I: Why should public health professionals support Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions Movements?

The history of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict began in 1948, when the state of Israel was established after the depopulation of hundreds of thousands of indigenous Palestinians.  For almost seven decades, the conflict has been characterized by an imbalance in power between Israel, a state that enjoys full U.S. military support, and a colonized indigenous Palestinian population.  The 2014 Israeli attack on Gaza is the third in a series since 2008 where Palestinians paid a disproportionate price in civilian deaths and injuries, and witnessed the almost complete destruction of their health infrastructure.  As the U.S. continues to provide Israel with unfettered political and financial backing, American public health professionals can opt for a responsible and peaceful approach to end Israeli violence against Palestinians – the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) movement. We advance arguments for BDS as a proactive strategy whose goals parallel the classic public health goals of addressing the root causes of injustice that lead to poor health and violence. Parallels will be drawn between the South African and the Palestinian case. The main tenets of the Palestinian BDS movement will be delineated, highlighting the movement’s focus on equal rights, justice, and international law.  We will discuss the deleterious effects of Israeli violence on the health and the health infrastructure in Palestine. Public health professionals can adopt a BDS position as a professional public health responsibility.  We will conclude with suggestions on how to organize on the BDS front following the lead of other U.S. professional organizations.