Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker Signs anti-BDS Bill into Law

On April 3, Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker signed Assembly Bill 553 into law. This anti-discrimination measure, which makes Wisconsin the 25th state to enact anti-BDS legislation, prohibits any state agency or governmental unit from entering into a contract with those who boycott Israelis with the intent of inflicting harm on Israel.

Passed on February 22 in the House Assembly and on March 20 in the Senate, this act is indicative of Wisconsin’s commitment to the State of Israel. Governor Walker, who has long been an ally of Israel, has been a vocal opponent of the anti-Semitic BDS movement. In October of 2017, he signed an anti-BDS measure, Executive Order 261, into law, which prohibited much of the same discriminatory activity as the recently signed act. However, the newly enacted statute goes further to prohibit any state agency or government entity from adopting a rule, ordinance, policy, or procedure that would involve the entity in a boycott of Israel.  In another show of support towards Israel, Governor Walker recently stated, “We are committed to maintaining and strengthening our relationship with Israel. We stand firmly against discrimination in any form, and we are making clear that our state government will not engage with those who boycott Israel.”

Wisconsin’s recently signed anti-BDS law represents a crucial victory in the fight against anti-Semitism. With 25 states already having enacted anti-BDS measures and 12 others with pending legislation, the future of this anti-Semitic movement looks bleak.