The Palestine Solidarity Working Group of UAW Local 2320 (NOLSW) is proud to have confirmed that the financial institution in which our union deposits its funds, Lending Club, does not invest in companies that enable or profit from Israel’s oppression of the Palestinian people. We now urge our siblings within the labor movement to join us in supporting Palestinian liberation through divestment. We also call upon our fellow locals within the UAW International to join us in demanding that our international divest the Israel bonds it holds.
Our working group formed in February 2024 after our local overwhelmingly resolved to endorse the BDS movement and the Palestinian General Federation of Trade Unions’ (PGFTU) October 2023 call to action as well as to demand an end to U.S. aid to Israel. One of our working group’s first objectives was to “divest from all Israel bonds and investments in entities with direct ties to Israel.” We therefore commenced an investigation into the investment practices of Lending Club.
Lending Club ultimately confirmed that neither its own nor its customers’ deposits, assets, or funds – including those of NOLSW – are invested in bonds issued by any foreign state OR in the companies that are BDS movement divestment and sanctions targets. Accordingly, we believe that our NOLSW financial account already is divested from all Israel bonds and investments in entities with direct ties to Israel. We will continue to stay vigilant, and we will take appropriate action if we learn otherwise.
On September 11, 2024, PGFTU again called on unions to show solidarity with Palestinian workers and civilians by “follow[ing] the lead of the International Union of Painters and Allied Trades (IUPAT) in the U.S. by adopting resolutions supporting the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) movement and demanding that the Biden administration end all military aid to Israel.” We echo PGFTU’s call and invite our sibling locals to heed their call!
Please join us in divesting from the oppression of the Palestinian people. We would happy to serve as a resource to you as you embark upon the process we did. Free Palestine.
