VERIFY: What we know about calls for USF to divest from Israel

TAMPA, Fla. — Pro-Palestinian protests over the Israel-Hamas war are sweeping college campuses across the U.S. and here in the Tampa Bay area.

On Tuesday, multiple people were arrested after law enforcement deployed tear gas in a clash with pro-Palestinian protesters at the University of South Florida. 

USF said around 75-100 protesters, including some not affiliated with the university, arrived at the Tampa campus in the morning with items like wooden shields, umbrellas and tents.

Protestors are demanding the university condemn Israel's assault on Gaza and divest from companies they believe are pro-Israel. 

10 Tampa Bay is VERIFYING claims about the demonstrations, demands and the university’s response.

THE SOURCES

• Florida statute
• Fl House Bill 3 (2023)
• USF Chronology
• Althea Johnson, spokesperson University of South Florida

THE QUESTION

Has USF previously divested in companies after calls from students?

THE ANSWER

Yes, USF previously divested in companies after calls from students.

WHAT WE FOUND

Some posts on social media claim USF has previously divested from companies operating in other countries.

Research compiled by USF Librarian Andrew Huse chronicles how the university faced similar calls to divest from companies operating in South Africa during apartheid in the 1980s.

USF’s student government demanded the divestments. After initial resistance, the USF Foundation did agree to divest from some companies.  

THE QUESTION

Is there a state law limiting how universities can invest?

THE ANSWER

Yes, state law has recently changed to limit how public entities, like universities, make investment decisions.

WHAT WE FOUND

Florida law has been changed since those decisions in the 1980s to now require investments by public universities to be based on assessments of returns and risks — not social, political or ideological issues.

A statement posted by USF said the university has faced campaigns to divest funds from companies with ties to Israel for more than a decade. 

“USF’s consistent position on this issue has been, and continues to be, that the university will not divest,” the statement reads. “USF will continue to make summary information about investments public, consistent with the university’s investment policy and legal requirements.”

The university said it does not directly invest in any company or stock.

THE QUESTION

Does USF’s endowment fund include investments in companies named by protestors?

THE ANSWER

USF has not disclosed its portfolio.

WHAT WE FOUND

In addition to calls for the university to divest from companies tied to Israel, the USF Divest Coalition is also demanding it disclose all investment information.

In social media posts, the group says the university must cut ties with specific companies including Boeing, Caterpillar, Hewlett Packard, and Lockheed Martin.

But VERIFY cannot confirm if any funds in the university’s endowment are invested in these companies because the university has not disclosed its portfolio and isn’t required to do so.