BDS Boston is a far-left group that supports the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions movement targeting Israel, which it considers an apartheid state built on white supremacy and imperialism.

BDS Boston is associated with the Mapping Project, a group that tracks pro-Israel organizations and individuals in Massachusetts.

History

According to Canary Watch, a pro-Israel group that reports on anti-Israel organizations and individuals, BDS Boston was originally known as Massachusetts Against Hewlett-Packard (MAHP) until a rebrand in 2019. ¹ MAHP encouraged a boycott against Hewlett-Packard for supplying the Israeli government with security equipment used in the Palestinian territories. ²

Positions

BDS Boston supports boycott, divestment, and sanctions against Israel as well as an end to all foreign aid to Israel. ³

BDS Boston supports the reestablishment of a Palestinian state within its historic borders and considers the Palestinian struggle against Israel to be one instance of a global conflict between indigenous people and white, European, and imperialist powers. BDS Boston asserts that Palestinians have the right to fight for independence “through whatever actions they deem to be necessary.” ⁴

BDS Boston considers Zionism to be “a form of white supremacy and a form of European colonialism.” BDS Boston condemns “racism, sexism, casteism, heterosexism, transphobia, ableism, Islamophobia, antisemitism, colonialism, imperialism, capitalism, and all forms of oppression.” ⁵

BDS Boston supports the abolition of all prisons throughout the world. ⁶

Activities

BDS Boston raises money for various pro-Palestinian causes, including the Gaza Mutual Aid Collective and 1for3.org. ⁷

BDS Boston also raises money for pro-Native American organizations, including the Massachusetts Tribe at Ponkapoag, the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe, the North American Indian Center of Boston, the United American Indians of New England, and the MA Indigenous Agenda. ⁸

In March 2022, BDS Boston co-hosted the Boston Rally to End the Deadly Exchange, a protest against cross-training between the Israeli Defense Forces and American law enforcement agencies. BDS Boston co-hosted the rally with Tufts Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP), the Palestinian Youth Movement Boston, the Muslim Justice League, Jewish Voice for Peace Boston, Northeastern SJP, and Boston University SJP. ⁹

In December 2020, BDS Boston held a protest encouraging a boycott of sportswear manufacturer Puma for sponsoring the Israel Football Association, the country’s soccer governing body. ¹⁰

Mapping Project

BDS Boston has been linked to the Mapping Project, a controversial group that lists pro-Israeli organizations and government agencies across Massachusetts. ¹¹

According to a report from the Zachor Legal Institute (ZLI), BDS Boston’s Twitter account was the first to tweet about the Mapping Project, with a reference to “our friends at the Mapping Project.” ^{12 13}

Soon after, numerous news outlets, including Iranian state-sponsored PressTV and Al Jazeera, referred to BDS Boston or member Calla Walsh as a creator or contributor to the Mapping Project. Walsh has denied any involvement in the Mapping Project. However, the ZLI asserts “it is likely that Ms. Walsh served as the organizing force behind securing the Mapping Project’s initial endorsements, publicity, and its cooperation with other entities,” though it was unlikely she was “the sole or primary architect behind the project, as there is no indication that she possesses the requisite funding, expertise, and time to produce something of the project’s magnitude.” ¹⁴

The BDS National Committee has expressed “deep concerns” over the Mapping Project and has criticized BDS Boston for supporting it, saying that the endorsement by BDS Boston “gratuitously opens the door widely for the eager Israeli lobby to intensify to unprecedented levels its legal warfare (lawfare), smears and bullying against the movement, its activists and its support base.” ¹⁵

The BDS National Committee demanded that BDS Boston “remove all forms of promotion of the Mapping Project from all BDS Boston media channels,” otherwise “we shall be compelled to ask that you remove the BDS acronym from your name, as your activities will be outside the mandate of the BDS movement.” ¹⁶

Leadership

Calla Walsh is a prominent member of BDS Boston. She is a former office manager at Massachusetts Peace Action, a freelance social media consultant, a member of the Democratic Socialists of America, and co-chair of the National Network on Cuba. ¹⁷

Lea Kayali is a member of BDS Boston. Kayali is currently a Harvard Law student. She was the chair of Claremont Colleges’ Students for Justice in Palestine, a member of the Palestinian Youth Movement, and a member of Jewish Voice for Peace. ¹⁸

John Russel is a member of BDS Boston. Russel is a food justice organizer for the Northwest Atlantic Marine Alliance. ¹⁹

Tala Berro is a member of BDS Boston. Berro is an adjunct assistant professor in the Genetic Counseling Department of the Massachusetts General Hospital’s Institute of Health Professions. ^{20 21}

1. “Jon Russel.” BDS Boston. Accessed September 22, 2023. https://canarymission.org/individual/Jon_Russell.
2. “Why HP?” Massachusetts Against Hewlett-Packard. Accessed September 22, 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20160823160745/http://www.massagainsthp.org/#letter.
3. ^[1] “BDS Boston Principles of Unity.” Cryptpad. Accessed September 22, 2023. https://cryptpad.fr/pad/#/2/pad/view/8jV9IwBK0wJGQP5FUBJPfCqAMPr9BKkyn+w8imoXor8/.
4. “BDS Boston Principles of Unity.” Cryptpad. Accessed September 22, 2023. https://cryptpad.fr/pad/#/2/pad/view/8jV9IwBK0wJGQP5FUBJPfCqAMPr9BKkyn+w8imoXor8/.
5. “BDS Boston Principles of Unity.” Cryptpad. Accessed September 22, 2023. https://cryptpad.fr/pad/#/2/pad/view/8jV9IwBK0wJGQP5FUBJPfCqAMPr9BKkyn+w8imoXor8/.
6. “BDS Boston Principles of Unity.” Cryptpad. Accessed September 22, 2023. https://cryptpad.fr/pad/#/2/pad/view/8jV9IwBK0wJGQP5FUBJPfCqAMPr9BKkyn+w8imoXor8/.
7. “@bdsboston.” BDS Boston. Accessed September 22, 2023. https://linktr.ee/bdsboston.
8. “@bdsboston.” BDS Boston. Accessed September 22, 2023. https://linktr.ee/bdsboston.
9. ^[1] “About.” Facebook. Accessed September 22, 2023. https://www.facebook.com/events/996986014348827.
10. “Jon Russel.” BDS Boston. Accessed September 22, 2023. https://canarymission.org/individual/Jon_Russell.
11. “The Unseen Threat of the Mapping Project.” Zachor Legal Institute. February 2023. Accessed September 22, 2023. https://zachorlegal.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Mapping-Project-Special-Brief.pdf.
12. “The Unseen Threat of the Mapping Project.” Zachor Legal Institute. February 2023. Accessed September 22, 2023. https://zachorlegal.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Mapping-Project-Special-Brief.pdf.
13. “BDS Boston.” X. June 2, 2023. Accessed September 22, 2023. https://twitter.com/BDSBoston/status/1532693582607396864.
14. “The Unseen Threat of the Mapping Project.” Zachor Legal Institute. February 2023. Accessed September 22, 2023. https://zachorlegal.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Mapping-Project-Special-Brief.pdf.
15. Bandler, Aaron. “International BDS Org Calls on BDS Boston to Take Down Mapping Project Or “Remove the BDS Acronym from Your Name.” Jewish Journal. June 22, 2022. Accessed September 22, 2023. https://jewishjournal.com/news/worldwide/349564/international-bds-org-calls-on-bds-boston-to-take-down-mapping-project-or-remove-the-bds-acronym-from-your-name/.
16. Bandler, Aaron. “International BDS Org Calls on BDS Boston to Take Down Mapping Project Or “Remove the BDS Acronym from Your Name.” Jewish Journal. June 22, 2022. Accessed September 22, 2023. https://jewishjournal.com/news/worldwide/349564/international-bds-org-calls-on-bds-boston-to-take-down-mapping-project-or-remove-the-bds-acronym-from-your-name/.
17. “The Unseen Threat of the Mapping Project.” Zachor Legal Institute. February 2023. Accessed September 22, 2023. https://zachorlegal.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Mapping-Project-Special-Brief.pdf.
18. “Lea Kayali.” Canary Mission. Accessed September 22, 2023. https://canarymission.org/individual/Lea_Kayali.
19. “Jon Russel.” BDS Boston. Accessed September 22, 2023. https://canarymission.org/individual/Jon_Russell.
20. McShane, Julianne. “For this 24-year-old, fighting for Palestinian rights is ‘the most core part of my identity’.” The Lily. May 25, 2021. Accessed September 22, 2023. https://www.thelily.com/for-this-24-year-old-fighting-for-palestinian-rights-is-the-most-core-part-of-my-identity/.
21. “Tala Berro.” Canary Mission. Accessed September 22, 2023. https://canarymission.org/professor/Tala_Berro.