Lawmakers in a Massachusetts city have voted to pass a historic ordinance divesting from companies that contribute to human rights violations, including Israel’s ongoing destruction of Gaza.
The Medford City Council passed the Values-Aligned Local Investments Ordinance on Tuesday evening, making Massachusetts the third state — after Michigan and Maine — where a municipality has barred investments in companies that profit from a conflict many experts have now labeled a genocide.
“We are in a new era where taxpayers are not just concerned with the services they receive as part of a city and town, but also how city and town resources are impacting global issues,” Council President Zac Bears, the ordinance’s sponsor, said on Monday.
“It’s heartening to see Medford take this one,” he continued. “We hope this proactive approach to ensure that municipal resources contribute to the public good and not to major forms of harm will become a trend.”
Since Israel’s offensive in Gaza began in 2023, many Americans have called on companies, governments and academic institutions to divest their public funds from companies that send money and weapons to the Israeli military.
