We Joined the Arizona Right to Dissent Coalition
The United Campus Workers of Arizona (UCWAZ), CWA Local 7065, officially joined Right to Dissent Arizona on Friday, May 15th following a vote from our local's Executive Committee. Right to Dissent AZ, started by the Catch Fire Movement, is a campaign by Arizona organizations fighting to protect the right to boycott under the First Amendment.
Learn More About Right to Dissent AZBackground on HB 2617
The Right to Dissent campaign specifically targets Arizona HB 2617, signed into law in 2016 by then Governor Doug Ducey, which prohibited public entities from entering into any contract with a company without the business agreeing to not be currently engaged in and agrees not to engage in a boycott of Israel. The bill literally reads:
A PUBLIC ENTITY MAY NOT ENTER INTO A CONTRACT WITH A COMPANY TO ACQUIRE OR DISPOSE OF SERVICES, SUPPLIES, INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY OR CONSTRUCTION UNLESS THE CONTRACT INCLUDES A WRITTEN CERTIFICATION THAT THE COMPANY IS NOT CURRENTLY ENGAGED IN, AND AGREES FOR THE DURATION OF THE
CONTRACT TO NOT ENGAGE IN, A BOYCOTT OF ISRAEL.
HB 2617, Proposed in 2016
A federal judge blocked the enforcement of HB 2617 in 2018 on grounds of First Amendment Violations. In 2019, the Arizona legislature amended HB 2617 with SB 1167, which added a more specific definition of who could and could not boycott Israel. SB 1167 defined those who could not boycott as:
Companies with more than 10 employees
Companies with contracts valued at more than $100,000
According to Arizona Capitol Times, “In 2022, the Legislature amended the law once more to require contractors to sign the anti-boycott statement at state universities, community colleges and employee retirement funds.” The amended law, SB 1250, reads:
INCLUDES THE UNIVERSITIES UNDER THE JURISDICTION OF THE ARIZONA
BOARD OF REGENTS AND COMMUNITY COLLEGE DISTRICTS AS DEFINED IN SECTION
15-1401.
SB 1250, Proposed in 2022
How We Can Stand Up for Free Speech and the Right to Dissent Under the First Amendment
The Arizona Right to Dissent campaign was birthed to fight back against unconstitutional laws that require our public institutions to take political positions unrelated to their work.
The government is singling out one political viewpoint for punishment, chilling constitutionally protected activity, and compelling contractors to make a political pledge. That’s fundamentally at odds with the First Amendment of the US Constitution and Article 2, Section 6 of the Arizona Constitution.
We can clearly see that free speech in Arizona, particularly around the state of Israel, has been under attack since long before the Gaza Solidarity Encampments across our campuses in the spring of 2024 when police attacked and arrested peaceful protestors, many of whom were students.
The Arizona Right to Dissent campaign is pursuing a comprehensive strategy to reclaim free speech rights, including:
- A public education campaign about the erosion of First Amendment protections in Arizona and across the country
- Public accountability efforts targeting elected officials and candidates who support laws that punish political expression
- Legal challenges reaffirming that compelling public entities to enforce political tests on our behalf violates the First Amendment rights of the residents those entities represent.
- A statewide citizen initiative to reaffirm free speech rights, including the right to engage in political boycotts
Our local continues to stand with students, campus workers, and Arizonans right to dissent.
We Joined the Arizona Right to Dissent Coalition
