Yesterday afternoon, NCEJN joined UE Local 150 and JVP triangle and other NC organizations for an event organized by the Break the Bonds NC Coalition. A petition was delivered to the state treasurer’s office, signed by thousands of North Carolinians demanding that our State Pension Fund divest from Israeli apartheid and invest that money back into our communities. NCEJN is a signatory on this petition. Today, our multifaceted intern Katie Boatner shares her speech from the event.
My name is Katie Boatner. I am a Co-Chair of the NC State University Campus Workers Chapter of UE Local 150, the NC Public Service Workers Union. UE Local 150 is a proud endorsing organization of the Break the Bonds NC Campaign. The vast majority of UE Local 150 members are state and city workers throughout North Carolina – for example housekeepers, groundskeepers and graduate workers in the UNC System; nursing assistants, RNs and social workers in the Department of Health and Human Services; and utility, sanitation and water system workers in our cities. Our State and City governments only work because our members do.
The vast majority of our members are NC State pension holders and we believe that people everywhere deserve to live in safety and dignity, without fear that they will be hurt or discriminated against simply because of who they are. We are outraged and embarrassed that State Treasurer Briner would invest even a penny – let alone millions of dollars – of OUR pension funds in Israeli Bonds. These bonds are used to support the Genocide of the Palestinian people—bombing hospitals, schools, and refugee camps, indiscriminately killing over 68,000 people (and counting as more bodies are being recovered from under the rubble). 2.3 million people have been displaced multiple times over the past two years. In 2024, the international Court of Justice ruled that the Israeli occupation of the Gaza Strip and the West Bank violates international law,Amnesty International concluded that Israel is committing ongoing genocide, and Human Rights Watch found Israel responsible for apartheid. Even now, during a supposed ceasefire, Israel continues to severely limit access to food, water, and medical supplies while continuing to attack Palestinians.
As if that wasn’t bad enough, Israel’s economy is so bad that its credit rating has been downgraded and Israel’s long-term economic outlook is unstable. Investing in these bonds is not a prudent financial decision, let alone not a morally defensible one. The bonds in question have an annual return of 2.75% and 3.25%, this is lower than the return of a high yield savings account. These returns hurt our Pension Fund!
The funds currently in Israeli Bonds should be invested to help fund schools, parks, affordable housing, transportation infrastructure and other life-affirming alternatives here. On behalf of state and city workers throughout NC, we demand that the Treasurer DIVEST from these Israeli Bonds IMMEDIATELY and INVEST these funds in positive ways in the communities of North Carolina.
