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As we’ve witnessed Israel’s live-streamed genocide of Palestinians over the last three years, thousands of residents have called on Somerville to cut our support for Israel’s crimes. What began as a grassroots campaign to boycott and divest from companies complicit in the oppression of Palestinians is now a week away from becoming City law.

Last week, the City Council Legislative Matters Committee approved the proposed Ethical Procurement Ordinance to move to the full council, with a final vote scheduled for November 12. Councilor Mbah voiced his support, “I believe that we in Somerville can make a difference by leading [with this ordinance,] so this is not our impact alone, and any further delay would be outright disrespectful to the residents who voted for this measure [last November] and who expect their elected representatives, us, to take their voices seriously.”

Somerville for Palestine fully supports this ordinance. We believe it is true to Palestinian civil society calls for boycott and divestment because it names Israel and Palestine, and employs reputable databases of companies complicit in Israel’s violent oppression of Palestinians. Naming Israel as the oppressor echoes our historic boycotts calling out South Africa and Northern Ireland, and promotes clarity and accountability when enacting policy. It is vital that the ordinance language focuses on companies complicit in Israel’s apartheid, genocide and illegal occupation of Palestine, as over 11,600 voters mandated last year.

This proposed ordinance is practicable, clear, and legal with a self-attestation component that requires companies to confirm they are not conducting human rights abuses outlined in the ordinance. Somerville already utilizes self-attestation forms to ensure compliance with local laws, such as ensuring a living wage to employees, during the procurement process. As Councilor Ewen-Campen explained, “We have been asked by voters to try to screen for companies that are involved in very extreme crimes and, to me, this is of the same lineage in our city to things like the prison labor ordinance, the living wage ordinance, and the history of other cities that did similar things [during] South African apartheid where we don’t want our money to support these companies.”

The Finance Department can rely on the American Friends Services Committee’s (AFSC) BDS Divestment Shortlist and the United Nations (UN) Database of Business Enterprises Pursuant to UN Human Rights Council Resolutions 31/36 and 53/25, both developed and maintained using rigorous methodologies, to define which companies are complicit. It would also have the discretion to employ exemptions when needed to avoid significant financial burden on the city.

Two companies identified in these databases are Axon Enterprise Inc and Palantir Technologies Inc. Axon produces TASERS used by Israeli police to physically torture Palestinians. Their TASERs are also used by the U.S. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE), with which Axon maintains a multi-million dollar contract. Palantir proudly supports Israel’s genocidal campaign and provides AI analytics for Israel to track and murder Palestinians. Palantir is also extensively employed by ICE to surveil and detain immigrants in the U.S. By boycotting and divesting from these companies, we are standing up not only for Palestinians, but for our immigrant neighbors here as well.

Our city has achieved this Boycott and Divestment Ordinance through massive grassroots mobilization. The public campaign began in Spring of 2025, when over 300 volunteers spent 6 months collecting over 10,000 signatures to place the Palestine Solidarity Question on the ballot. Our team knocked on thousands of doors in Somerville and over 30 local organizations endorsed the ballot question, including the Somerville Educators Union, Union Square Neighborhood Council, and Somerville Jewish Caucus.

When the Palestine Solidarity Ballot Question overwhelmingly won, Palestinians in Somerville celebrated their city’s solidarity. Hala Jadallah, a lifelong Somerville resident and Palestinian-American, reflected, “I have been working to boycott and divest in Somerville since 2006 when we tried for the first time to put a question on the ballot. To finally see my community embrace me and stand with my family, the emotions were overwhelming. Somerville finally loves me.”

Just weeks after the 2025 election, the City Council resolved “to work toward passing an ordinance within a year that implements the will of the majority of Somerville voters.” That deadline is November 25, 2026.

When this ordinance passes the full City Council, Somerville will join a growing list of cities that have shown the courage and moral clarity to act against the genocide in Gaza and the systemic oppression of Palestinians. This ordinance has earned the endorsement from local groups like Medford for Palestine, human rights groups such as Massachusetts Peace Action, and faith groups such as Connexion Church. As Pastor Jordan Harris of Connexion says, “My faith teaches me that we must claim the freedom and power granted to us to resist evil and injustice wherever they appear, including in our own city’s investment portfolio. Divestment is one way Somerville can stop profiting from harm and to stand for the dignity and safety of every person, including Palestinians surviving the ongoing genocide and apartheid.”

Somerville has a history of making policies to reinforce our values. As Israel continues to bomb Gaza, as Israeli settlers continue to attack Palestinians harvesting their olives in the West Bank, and as an independent UN commission has concluded Israel has continued to commit genocide

since the October 2025 ceasefire, now is the time for Somerville to pass this ordinance to end our city’s business ties with companies profiting off of the death and displacement of Palestinians. As Jewish community member Sam Geheren explains, “I feel an urgent responsibility to ensure that neither my identity nor tax dollars are used to buttress the brutal genocide against Palestinians. The Ethical Procurement Ordinance is a small but meaningful step to think globally, act locally in the face of such atrocity. Passing it would bring me pride, comfort, and a sense of relief.” We urge our Somerville neighbors to call on our city council to pass the Ethical Procurement Ordinance in solidarity with Palestine.

— Somerville For Palestine