Student Action at CCNY Past and Present: Bilal’s Boycott
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In response to CUNY and City College’s refusal to acknowledge the genocide of the Palestinian People, students in the Student for Justice in Palestine club at CCNY and CUNY Divest at CCNY have organized a boycott.
By Savannah Milton
As of September 2024, the alumni-run cafe in the North Academic Center was replaced by the Aladdin Food Management Services corporation. Both of Benny’s cafes now carry Starbucks and Nestle products—much to the outrage of the City College of New York (CCNY) community. Starbucks and Nestle are two corporations that have aided in the genocide of the Palestinian people in Gaza and other human rights atrocities in places like the Democratic Republic of Congo.
For many, having these large corporations on campus does not benefit the working class student population. Thus, CUNY Divest at CCNY and CCNY SJP are urging their classmates to work in solidarity by boycotting the Aladdin Cafe, Benny’s Cafe locations, Starbucks, and Dear Mama (a Columbia College cafe). The boycott’s main purpose is to make the CCNY and City University of New York’s (CUNY) administrations listen to their demands by affecting Aladdin’s revenue.
CCNY has a long history of resistance. Initially, the CUNY system was founded with the intent to “educate the children of the whole people”. This meaning at the time was only applied to white middle-class New Yorkers, however, people of color and the working class pushed the New York State government to deliver on what was promised. Through demonstrations and activism in communities like Bedstuy, Brooklyn College rescinded strict academic acceptance criteria more often used on minority students and established an open admission policy ( The policy was officially enacted in 1975). Although the policy affected all students applying, it used this grade system to ensure that students in underfunded schools would have less of an ability to be accepted.
Their activism didn’t stop there, in 1969, “Students of color across the CUNY system, inspired in part by the intensification of the civil rights struggles and urban unrest and by a wider embrace in the 1960s of Black Power, ethnic pride, and grassroots activism, mobilized during the spring term.” This activism led to the creation of the Black Studies Department and Puerto Ricans Studies Department across CUNY campuses. Activism has shown to improve the conditions of life on campus so that it meets the needs of students.
CCNY SJP guidelines to participate include abstaining from purchasing items in the Aladdin Dining Hall or either of Benny’s Cafes. On the CCNY SJP instagram, there is a pinned post showing a guide of places that are alternatives to boycotted locations which are more economically feasible for students. SJP has collaborated with businesses participating in Bilal’s Boycott to give out punch cards thus making it convenient for students to participate.
CCNY SJP leadership had this to say of the boycott when asked: “The goal of the boycott is to push for divestment from Israel's genocide in Gaza and ongoing occupation of Palestine. This is something CUNY is currently funding over $1.1 million into weapons manufacturers that go to supply the Israeli military. With this boycott we want to specifically target divestment from Nestle. They own the largest shares of an Israeli company called Osem and thus are supporting them financially, as Osem is one of the biggest corporations in Israel.”
Nestle, the corporation along with Starbucks operating out of CCNY Cafes, has an extensive track record of human rights atrocities in Palestine and around the world, such as in the Ivory Coast. CCNY SJP continues,“It’s clearly a company with a lot of blood on their hands as their headquarters sit on the ruins of a Palestinian village (Bethlehem). The company has been sued many times over their various human rights abuse violations. They are also an active participant in the ongoing colonization and genocide in Palestine.”
The CCNY SJP President encourages students “to demonstrate our political power to our institution which is complicit in genocide. We have power over how our institutions operate and can hold them accountable for how they behave. We will continue to put pressure on our administration through student action like the ongoing boycott.”
For CCNY SJP, that means they “don’t believe getting admin to divest is about sitting at the table nicely with them.”
To be involved in the CCNY SJP, leadership encourages the CCNY community to check out their instagram to keep up to date with their events. “We have a lot of community events that are currently being planned to get people into mobilizing. Check out our instagram, @CCNYSJP to find out about more of our events. Coming to events in person, and being in community with us is always a great way to get involved. We are friendly people, we invite everyone to come and show up” she says.
Overall, the boycott is meant to draw attention to the plight of the Palestinian people and attempt to force CCNY and CUNY to divest from those who profit from genocide. CCNY SJP’s strategy to achieve these goals are non-violent. For more information, you can seek out their social media.
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