CalSTRS DIVEST

About this campaign

CalSTRS Divest is a grassroots, educator-led campaign in California. Members of teachers unions in California discovered that CalSTRS, an educators-only state pension fund worth over $341 billion, has over $1.1 billion dollars invested in entities that uphold the illegal occupation of Palestine and the ongoing Gaza genocide, including companies that develop bombs, munitions, military aircraft, and surveillance technologies, as well as Israeli bonds and Israeli banks located in illegal settlements. We are building grassroots power to pressure CalSTRS adhere to their existing ethical investment policy framework (the ESG policy) and immediately withdraw our monies from companies that enable and facilitate illegal military occupation, apartheid, ethnic cleansing and genocide. 

Since October 2023, over 18,000 children have been killed, over 17,000 have been orphaned or separated from their families, and more than 1,000 have lost one or both legs. Furthermore, about 90% of schools and all universities in Gaza have been destroyed in a gross act of scholasticide, depriving children of their right to education. CalSTRS' investments enable the oppression and mass murder of Palestinian children and civilians, perpetuating a humanitarian crisis that demands immediate action. 

As educators, we are committed to ensuring that our actions and investments reflect our values. We urgently demand that CalSTRS divest from companies that support the Israeli military and contribute to the ongoing occupation and human rights violations in Palestine. These investments stand in stark contrast to our values as educators committed to freedom, justice and equality for children around the world. Educators must not allow their pensions to fund the ongoing violence and destruction that is robbing Palestinian children of life and freedom.