A Georgia judge has confirmed what everyone already knew.
A Georgia law created to discourage the anti-Israel BDS (Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions) movement has been ruled as “unconstitutional,” in a move that activists are celebrating as a “major victory.”The ruling stems from a lawsuit filed on behalf of journalist Abby Martin – formerly the host of Breaking the Set on RT. Martin refused to sign a contract pledging that she would refrain from boycotts against Israel ahead of a planned speaking engagement at Georgia Southern University in February 2020.When Martin refused to comply, her appearance was canceled and she later filed a lawsuit with the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) and the Partnership for Civil Justice Fund (PCJF).Judge Mark Cohen wrote in his ruling that Georgia’s law “prohibits inherently expressive conduct protected by the First Amendment.”
Anti-BDS laws are unconstitutional, anti-American, and ridiculously counterproductive. I refuse to boycott Israel myself, and I will certainly continue to publish Israeli authors, but I absolutely support the right of every American, and everyone else on the planet, to do so if they see fit, because the alternative is literal economic slavery that is far more offensive to American sensibilities than any swastika or offensive free speech.
Every anti-BDS law should be and will be struck down. There is absolutely no excuse or justification for them, especially if you happen to support the right of Israel to exist as a Jewish nation-state.