Texas comptroller may blacklist Ben & Jerry’s over decision to stop selling ice cream in Palestine - The Dallas Morning News

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The Texas Comptroller’s office says it will investigate whether ice cream giant Ben & Jerry’s should be blacklisted by the state for announcing it will no longer do business in the Palestinian territories.

The announcement by Texas Comptroller Glenn Hegar’s office comes two days after Ben & Jerry’s released a statement saying it will no longer sell ice cream in “Occupied Palestinian Territory” — using the United Nations-recognized term to describe territories, including the West Bank and Gaza Strip, that have been occupied by Israel since 1967.

Ben & Jerry’s, which is well-known for championing progressive causes, said in its statement that selling ice cream in those territories was “inconsistent with our values.” The statement was posted several weeks after a conflict left more than 200 people dead — most of them civilians in the territories occupied by Israel.

Hegar said he has directed his staff to determine whether Ben & Jerry’s statement would violate Chapter 808 of the Texas Government Code, which prohibits the state from giving contracts to companies that support a boycott of Israel or an “Israeli-controlled territory.”

“Texans have made it very clear that they stand with Israel and its people. We are against all those wishing to undermine Israel’s economy and its people,” Hegar said.

Ben & Jerry’s said in its statement that while it will no longer sell ice cream in territories occupied by Israel, it will stay in Israel itself through “a different arrangement.”

Chapter 808, which was passed signed into law by Gov. Greg Abbott in 2017, was meant to counter the Boycott, Divest and Sanction movement, or BDS movement, which encouraged companies to boycott Israel in an effort to change its policies and attitudes toward Palestinians.

Nine companies were listed under Chapter 808 as of this June, according to a list kept by the Comptroller’s Office.

In 2019, Texas blacklisted short-term rental site Airbnb after the company announced it would not longer allow Israeli-owned rentals in the West Bank. Airbnb later backtracked from its decision.

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Texas comptroller may blacklist Ben & Jerry’s over decision to stop selling ice cream in Palestine - The Dallas Morning News
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