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[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 246 Engrossed in House (EH)]

<DOC>
H. Res. 246

                In the House of Representatives, U. S.,

                                                         July 23, 2019.
Whereas the democratic, Jewish State of Israel is a key ally and strategic 
        partner of the United States;
Whereas since Israel's founding in 1948, Congress has repeatedly expressed our 
        Nation's unwavering commitment to the security of Israel as a Jewish and 
        democratic state;
Whereas it is a hallmark of American democracy for citizens to petition the 
        United States Government in favor of or against United States foreign 
        policy;
Whereas the United States Constitution protects the rights of United States 
        citizens to articulate political views, including with respect to the 
        policies of the United States or foreign governments;
Whereas American policy has long sought to bring peace to the Middle East and 
        recognized that both the Israeli and Palestinian people should be able 
        to live in safe and sovereign states, free from fear and violence, with 
        mutual recognition;
Whereas support for peace between the Israelis and Palestinians has long-
        standing bipartisan support in Congress;
Whereas it is the long-standing policy of the United States that a peaceful 
        resolution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict should come through 
        direct negotiations between the Government of Israel and the Palestinian 
        Authority, with the support of countries in the region and around the 
        world;
Whereas cooperation between Israel and the United States is of great importance, 
        especially in the context of rising anti-Semitism, authoritarianism and 
        security problems in Europe, the Middle East, and North Africa;
Whereas the Global Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions Movement (BDS Movement) 
        targeting Israel is a campaign that does not favor a two-state solution 
        and that seeks to exclude the State of Israel and the Israeli people 
        from the economic, cultural, and academic life of the rest of the world;
Whereas the Global Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions Movement is one of several 
        recent political movements that undermines the possibility for a 
        negotiated solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict by demanding 
        concessions of one party alone and encouraging the Palestinians to 
        reject negotiations in favor of international pressure;
Whereas the founder of the Global BDS Movement, Omar Barghouti, has denied the 
        right of the Jewish people in their homeland, saying, ``We oppose a 
        Jewish state in any part of Palestine. No Palestinian, rational 
        Palestinian, not a sell-out Palestinian, will ever accept a Jewish state 
        in Palestine.'';
Whereas the Global BDS Movement targets not only the Israeli government but also 
        Israeli academic, cultural, and civil society institutions, as well as 
        individual Israeli citizens of all political persuasions, religions, and 
        ethnicities, and in some cases even Jews of other nationalities who 
        support Israel;
Whereas the Global BDS Movement does not recognize, and many of its supporters 
        explicitly deny, the right of the Jewish people to national self-
        determination;
Whereas university-based Global BDS efforts violate the core goals of the 
        university and global cultural development, which thrive on free and 
        open exchange and debate, and in some cases, leads to the intimidation 
        and harassment of Jewish students and others who support Israel;
Whereas the Global BDS Movement promotes principles of collective guilt, mass 
        punishment, and group isolation, which are destructive of prospects for 
        progress towards peace and a two-state solution;
Whereas boycotts and similar tools aimed at promoting racial justice and social 
        change have been used effectively in the United States, South Africa, 
        and other parts of the world; and
Whereas in contrast to protest movements that have sought racial justice and 
        social change, the Global Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions Movement 
        targeting Israel is not about promoting coexistence, civil rights, and 
        political reconciliation but about questioning and undermining the very 
        legitimacy of the country and its people: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
            (1) opposes the Global Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions Movement 
        (BDS Movement) targeting Israel, including efforts to target United 
        States companies that are engaged in commercial activities that are 
        legal under United States law, and all efforts to delegitimize the State 
        of Israel;
            (2) urges Israelis and Palestinians to return to direct negotiations 
        as the only way to achieve an end to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict;
            (3) affirms the Constitutional right of United States citizens to 
        free speech, including the right to protest or criticize the policies of 
        the United States or foreign governments;
            (4) supports the full implementation of the United States-Israel 
        Strategic Partnership Act of 2014 (Public Law 113-296; 128 Stat. 4075) 
        and new efforts to enhance government-wide, coordinated United States-
        Israel scientific and technological cooperation in civilian areas, such 
        as with respect to energy, water, agriculture, alternative fuel 
        technology, civilian space technology, and security, in order to counter 
        the effects of actions to boycott, divest from, or sanction Israel; and
            (5) reaffirms its strong support for a negotiated solution to the 
        Israeli-Palestinian conflict resulting in two states--a democratic 
        Jewish State of Israel, and a viable, democratic Palestinian state--
        living side-by-side in peace, security, and mutual recognition.
            Attest:

                                                                          Clerk.
```