Last week, the board of trustees took an important step and adopted a formal policy that AU will divest from companies that do business in the Sudan. Specifically, the university will remove investments from companies that do business in Sudan's oil and gas business by the end of the year and will report back to the university community. The university will also encourage its investment firms and other universities to follow its lead.
Community Action and Social Justice started the move for divestment last semester. The support of the Undergraduate Senate and the executives of the undergraduate, graduate and law school student governments, along with fresh faces and new priorities on the Board of Trustees helped get the resolution passed.
AU is following the lead of Brown, Harvard, the University of California and other universities. Some state governments and private companies are becoming involved with the effort as well. If the movement gains enough support worldwide, it can have a real effect. Eventually the movement can have real economic consequences and force the Sudanese government to change its ways.
Although the idea behind AU's policy is absolutely commendable, the real results that it will have are a little hazy. The wording of the e-mail sent last week can only be described as university legalese at best. It's not clear whether or not AU even has investments in Sudan right now. If the university doesn't have any investments, clearly the trustees will not have to take any action.
It will take a few months to evaluate the real effects of this policy. In the meantime, though, a more accessible description of the policy would certainly be appreciated.
