Americans For A Safe Israel Launches National Campus Initiative: “Students For A Safe Israel”

ASFI | May 12, 2026

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Americans For A Safe Israel Launches National Campus Initiative: “Students For A Safe Israel”

NEW YORK — May 12, 2026—Americans For A Safe Israel (AFSI), a leader in pro-Israel advocacy since 1970, is officially launching Students For A Safe Israel (SFSI). This nationwide program is designed to empower student leaders to become unapologetic voices for Israel’s security and territorial integrity at colleges across the country.


SFSI arrives at a critical juncture for campus discourse. The initiative provides representatives with educational resources, activist training, and strategic guidance to counter misinformation and foster a robust pro-Israel presence. Unlike broader advocacy groups, SFSI specifically offers a platform for students who recognize the vital importance of the Jewish communities in Judea and Samaria.

“We are launching this effort now to ensure student activists are prepared before they step back onto campus this fall,” said Moshe Phillips, Chairman of AFSI. “AFSI has always supported students, but SFSI formalizes our commitment. We are building a network for leaders who are ready to stand firm in their identity and their support for a secure Israel.”

The program is currently seeking “unapologetically pro-Israel” students to serve as campus representatives. Interested students are encouraged to contact info@afsi.org for application details.

About Americans For A Safe Israel:

Established in 1970, Americans For A Safe Israel (AFSI) is one of the oldest and most influential pro-Israel organizations in the United States. Its advocacy and educational campaigns serve as a potent counterweight to the rising tide of anti-Israel propaganda. AFSI is not affiliated with any political party in the United States or Israel. AFSI’s website is www.afsi.org.  

May 12, 2026 | 6 Comments »

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  1. In Major Defeat, Columbia Graduate Union Abandons Anti-Israel Divestment Demand

    by Dion J. Pierre

    anti-Zionist campaign embedded in Columbia University’s graduate-student labor negotiations suffered a major defeat this week when the union withdrew a proposal aimed at forcing the school to divest from companies linked to Israel.

    Student Workers of Columbia-United Auto Workers Local 2710 withdrew its “Obligations Under International Law” contract proposal during negotiations Tuesday, abandoning one of the most politically charged demands in its sprawling bargaining platform.

    The proposal would have required Columbia to divest from and refrain from contracting with entities deemed complicit in violations of international law—a provision the university described as mandatory support for the boycott, divestment, and sanctions movement against Israel.

    The withdrawal does not necessarily eliminate every anti-Israel demand advanced by the union. Columbia previously said SWC had separately sought to prevent the university from opening its Global Center in Tel Aviv. Neither the university nor the union said Tuesday that proposal had also been withdrawn.

    SWC acknowledged that dropping the divestment proposal was a strategic concession needed to advance negotiations over wages, benefits, and protections for foreign students.

    “The Union recognizes the importance that internationalist demands have carried for membership,” SWC said. “However, after seeking input from members through working groups and GBM votes, we have determined at this time that withdrawal is strategic in terms of our broader contract campaign and was a necessary step on the way to winning a fair contract.”

    Frankie Tavares, an English and comparative literature doctoral candidate and member of SWC’s bargaining committee, similarly acknowledged that the union had been forced to narrow its agenda.

    “A lot of what has been happening at the table has been us dropping some articles, moving closer to the university, holding strong on certain demands, but ultimately moving forward in our contract campaign towards a set of demands that are narrower,” Tavares told the Columbia Spectator.

    Tavares described the retreat as “a natural part of the bargaining process,” in which unions begin with a broad slate of proposals before confronting “the realities of what the university is willing to give us.”

    SWC has now tentatively agreed to eight contract articles and withdrawn 10 proposals, according to the Spectator. The parties nevertheless remain far apart over the major economic and workplace provisions of a successor contract.

    The union’s previous contract expired on June 30, 2025. Formal bargaining did not begin until November following months of procedural disputes, including a confrontation over the participation of expelled former union president Grant Miner.

    Since then, negotiations have covered traditional labor issues—including compensation, health care, childcare, leave, and disciplinary protections—alongside demands concerning Israel, immigration enforcement, campus police, surveillance cameras, protest discipline, and Columbia’s academic operations.

    Columbia has repeatedly argued that many of those proposals concern academic or operational authority rather than student workers’ conditions of employment and are therefore outside the scope of mandatory collective bargaining. SWC disputes the university’s interpretation of the bargaining framework.

    The union authorized a strike in March, with 91.5 percent of participating members voting in favor. However, the UAW’s national leadership subsequently declined to authorize a spring walkout. SWC has not formally scheduled a fall strike, although organizers have continued preparing for the possibility if negotiations fail.

    The bargaining fight has also produced an internal revolt among graduate students who accuse SWC’s leadership of subordinating workplace concerns to a radical political agenda.

    Graduate Researchers Against Discrimination and Suppression, an anonymous organization known as Columbia GRADS, filed an unfair labor practice charge against SWC with the National Labor Relations Board in September 2025 and amended it in April.

    The group alleged that the union had bargained in bad faith by devoting excessive attention to nonemployment issues, including divestment from Israel, closing Columbia’s Tel Aviv programs, restricting cooperation with law enforcement, removing security cameras, and establishing “sanctuary” protections for undocumented immigrants.

    Columbia GRADS further alleged that the UAW had instructed the local to withdraw some of the proposals and refused to authorize a strike over issues outside mandatory collective bargaining. Those allegations remain claims made by the complainants and have not been adjudicated by the NLRB.

    The Columbia retreat comes as anti-Israel activists make gains elsewhere in organized labor.

    Delegates at the UAW’s constitutional convention in Detroit voted 321-287 in June to divest the union from all Israel bonds, ending a decades-old investment that once symbolized organized labor’s support for the Jewish state. The union reportedly holds approximately $400,000 in the bonds.

    Meanwhile, the US Department of Education is investigating the New York City public-school system over allegations involving NYC Educators for Palestine, a group of teachers that organized seminars on “Palestine, Zionism, and Resistance.”

    Federal officials said complaints alleged that educators taught children that Zionists are “genocidal white supremacists” and promoted support for Hamas terrorists as “martyrs.” The investigation concerns the city Education Department’s potential failure to prevent a hostile environment for Jewish students; it is not formally an investigation of the United Federation of Teachers.

    Follow Dion J. Pierre @DionJPierre.

    https://www.algemeiner.com/2026/07/30/anti-zionist-graduate-workers-at-columbia-university-fakes-major-concession-to-prepare-for-strike/

    My comment: Bravo! Bringing the NLRB into this is long past due. And President Trump should put his foot on the scale. Remember when President Reagan disbanded the Air Traffic Controllers Union?

    .”the nlrb is appointed by the president”

    ” +3 Yes, the National Labor Relations Board members and General Counsel are appointed by the President with the advice and consent of the Senate.Appointment DetailsBoard Members: Five members appointed to staggered, five-year terms.General Counsel: One independent officer appointed to a four-year term to investigate and prosecute cases.Senate Confirmation: Every appointment requires formal consent from the U.S. Senate.If you want, I can share:The names of the current board membersMore details on how cases move from the General Counsel to the BoardLet me know what you would like to explore next.”

    Correction:

    reagan disbanded the air traffic controllers union

    +5 President Ronald Reagan did not directly disband the union, but his administration broke the Professional Air Traffic Controllers Organization (PATCO) by firing 11,345 striking workers, issuing a lifetime federal rehiring ban, and leading the Federal Labor Relations Authority to officially decertify the union.The 1981 Strike and ResponseThe Strike: On August 3, 1981, roughly 13,000 members of PATCO walked off the job demanding a $10,000 annual pay raise and a 32-hour workweek, violating federal law prohibiting strikes by government employees.The Ultimatum: President Reagan declared the strike illegal and gave workers a 48-hour deadline to return to work or face termination.The Firings: On August 5, 1981, after the deadline passed, Reagan proceeded to fire the 11,345 controllers who refused to comply.Decertification: On October 22, 1981, the Federal Labor Relations Authority officially decertified (dissolved) the PATCO union.

    • incidentally:

      the socialist led the fight against Communism in the Unions in the 1940s and 50s +7 The prominent socialist who led the anti-communist fight inside the American labor movement was Walter Reuther of the United Automobile Workers (UAW). Raised by a German socialist father, he used his progressive and socialist background to out-maneuver and purge communist factions.The Fight in the UnionsElected President: Won leadership of the UAW in March 1946 after a narrow victory.Consolidating Power: Defeated the communist-aligned faction at conventions in 1946 and 1947 to secure total control of the union apparatus.Broader Purges: Pushed the Congress of Industrial Organizations (CIO) to expel left-led and communist-affiliated unions by 1950.Shift in IdeologyReforming Capitalism: Abandoned early sympathy for the Soviet model to pursue a reformist path within American capitalism.Social Unionism: Focused on collective bargaining for major benefits—like pensions and cost-of-living adjustments—alongside civil rights advocacy.

    • the socialists the fight against Communism in the Unions in the 1940s and 50s

      +6 Democratic socialists, social democrats, and non-communist leftists played a major role in purging Communists from Western labor unions during the 1940s and 1950s. Key figures and groups included Walter Reuther and the Congress of Industrial Organizations (CIO) leadership, anti-communist socialist intellectuals, and rival labor factions. This campaign permanently reshaped the political landscape of organized labor during the early Cold War.Motivations and Left-Wing Anti-CommunismIdeological opposition: Democratic socialists and social democrats rejected Soviet-style communism for its totalitarian and anti-democratic nature.Autonomy of labor: Socialists argued that Communist-led unions prioritized Soviet foreign policy and party dictates over the actual economic and democratic needs of workers.Protecting the labor movement: Non-communist leftists believed that keeping Communists in prominent union roles made the entire labor movement vulnerable to total destruction by conservative legislators.Key Actions and Legislative ShiftsThe Taft-Hartley Act (1947): Passed by the U.S. Congress, this law required all union officers to sign non-communist affidavits swearing they had no affiliation with the Communist Party to use the protections of the National Labor Relations Board.Internal Union Purges: Anti-communist labor leaders—frequently supported by democratic socialist and liberal factions within the United Auto Workers and the CIO—actively unseated and expelled left-wing officials.Expulsion of Affiliates (1949–1950): The CIO formally expelled 11 left-led and communist-influenced unions representing roughly one million workers, chartering rival organizations (such as the International Union of Electrical Workers) to raid and absorb their memberships.Long-Term ImpactShift toward business unionism: The removal of radical and militant elements helped transition the CIO away from broad social reform movements and toward more conservative, bureaucratized collective bargaining.Bipartisan Cold War consensus: Organized labor fully integrated into the mainstream U.S. political establishment, aligning itself closely with the Democratic Party and official foreign policy objectives.

  3. How Black Lives Matter is indoctrinating your kids — and what you can do about it
    New York Post
    February 7, 2026

    “…But though the coalition says its goal is to transform US classrooms into “incubators for inclusivity, equity, and justice,” a glance at the curriculum resources it provides teachers gratis makes clear some instead degrade, discriminate and defame certain groups of people as a means of elevating others…

    A prime example: the offerings in the “Black+Palestinian Solidarity” section of BLMAS’ Curriculum Resource Guide 2.0. They demonize Zionists and supporters of Israel with anti-Israel propaganda and anti-Jewish tropes, encouraging students to become boycott, divestment and sanctions activists against the Jewish state.

    Examples of its resources include:

    A statement by a group called Critical Resistance shunning Jewish groups and calling for their disqualification from criminal-justice-reform platforms because of their support for a Jewish state.
    An anti-Semitic campaign based on stoking political and racial tensions within America to blame Jews for what it calls “racist policing in the U.S.” Singling out exchange programs between American police, the FBI, Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Israeli law-enforcement agencies (and not similar programs with Mexico, Europe and other countries), the campaign falsely claims Americans are being schooled in “extrajudicial executions, shoot to kill tactics, police murder, and attacking human rights defenders.” The so-called “Deadly Exchange” campaign uses anti-Semitic tropes in its condemnation of mainstream American Jewish organizations it accuses of being “complicit” in programs that allegedly pervert non-Jewish Americans.
    Articles and videos promoting the anti-Zionist views of militant black-power organizations and leaders like Malcolm X, who promoted the fraudulent anti-Semitic “Protocols of the Elders of Zion”and coined the slur “Zionist-Dollarism”; Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee under the leadership of Stokely Carmichael, who notoriously declared, “The only good Zionist is a dead Zionist”; the Black Panthers, whose co-founder Huey Newton the material quotes: “Israel was created by Western imperialism and is maintained by Western firepower.”

    Various petitions calling on black American institutions and affiliated groups to join the BDS campaign against the Jewish state and push to end US military funding to Israel. These petitions vilify and delegitimize Israel with outrageous falsehoods like Israeli soldiers “routinely maim” and “systematically target” disabled Palestinians for murder.
    These materials reflect BLM’s long affiliation with the anti-Zionist and anti-Semitic BDS movement. Many of these resources were contributed by Brian Ford, a teacher, anti-Zionist propagandist, BDS supporter and Democratic Socialists of America activist. With BLMAS’ open channel allowing anyone to post resources for the curriculum, there is little doubt similarly motivated activists will continue to use it as a platform for agitprop and hate rhetoric.

    New York City’s BLMAS chapter’s website offers additional resources to develop a curriculum based on BLM’s ideology and mission. It advances its agenda through local councils governed by the city Department of Education. Each school district has its own Community Education Council composed of elected volunteer parents and community leaders tasked with “promoting student achievement, advising and commenting on educational policies, and providing input to the chancellor and the Panel for Educational Policy.” BLMAS is encouraging these councils to distribute its materials to classrooms during its Week of Action.

    Concerned parents can run in the upcoming elections for their district’s CEC and provide oversight over the re-education of their children. (The application period closes Feb. 13.)

    https://camera-edu.org/media-appearance/how-black-lives-matter-is-indoctrinating-your-kids-and-what-you-can-do-about-it/