St. Louis Divestment Resolution Sends ‘Dangerous’ Message to City’s Jewish Community, CAM Says

After an acrimonious debate, the St. Louis (Missouri) City Board of Alderman passed an “Ethical Divestment of Funds” resolution last Friday that had been promoted by anti-Israel activist groups.

The text of the resolution — approved by a 10-1 vote, with three abstentions — says:

“Now therefore be it resolved, that the Board of Aldermen of the City of St. Louis calls on the Board of Trustees of the Employees Retirement System of the City of St. Louis, to ensure that all of the city resources entrusted to their stewardship, including stock holdings, bond investments, and pension funds are not invested in companies that are complicit in perpetuating violence against people within our city or abroad according to the guidelines established by the American Friends Service Committee.”

The primary sponsor of the resolution was Alderman Rasheen Aldridge. Co-sponsors included Alderman Shane Cohn, Alderwoman Alisha Sonnier, Alderwoman Shameem Clark Hubbard, and Board of Aldermen President Megan Green.

The one dissenting vote came from Alderman Matt Devoti.

In response to the resolution’s passage, Combat Antisemitism Movement (CAM) Chief Government Affairs Officer Lisa Katz — who leads CAM’s municipal initiatives with mayors across the United States and is a former town supervisor of New Castle (New York) — stated, “I am deeply concerned by the St. Louis City Board of Aldermen’s recent passage of an ‘Ethical Divestment of Funds’ resolution, which anti-Israel activists are publicly celebrating as a victory for the BDS (boycott, divestment, and sanctions) movement. Whatever the stated intent of the resolution, that framing tells Jewish St. Louisans their city is aligning with a global boycott campaign widely understood to single out and delegitimize the world’s only Jewish state. In a time of surging antisemitism around the world, this is a dangerous message that cannot be ignored or downplayed.”

“When cities pass symbolic measures that echo international boycott initiatives, they import a foreign conflict into city hall and make Jewish residents feel isolated in their own communities,” she added. “As a former mayor, I know local leaders must keep their focus where it belongs: protecting constituents, strengthening trust, and guaranteeing every person in your city feels safe and welcome.”

Katz concluded, “I urge Mayor Cara Spencer and the Board of Aldermen to stand firmly against antisemitism in St. Louis, commit to protect the security, dignity, and belonging of its Jewish community, and ensure the city’s actions are not guided by divisive, politicized agendas. Through the Combat Antisemitism Movement’s work with mayors across North America, I’ve seen how principled city leadership can unite communities and turn the tide against rising antisemitism, and this can be the case in St. Louis as well.”

CAM engages with municipal and law enforcement authorities daily to help secure and nurture Jewish life in cities across the globe. 

Next month, on Dec. 2-4, hundreds of city leaders will convene in New Orleans, Louisiana, for the 2025 North American Mayors Summit Against Antisemitism, the largest forum of its kind dedicated to equipping mayors with the tools, strategies, and partnerships to combat antisemitism at the local level.