Open in TheBrain

Quaker Am Friends SC


see gaza profiteer

see peace

pbs am exper nantucket (?) social cohesion b/c of quaker allowed whaling



---

RTX Corp | AFSC Investigate

QUAKERS

BDS SHORTLIST

The world's second-largest military company, formerly known as Raytheon Technologies. It makes missiles, bombs, components for fighter jets, and other weapon systems used by the Israeli military against Palestinian civilians. Its surveillance technology is also used to monitor the U.S.–Mexico border.

Gaza Genocide

Weapons and Military Equipment

Raytheon Technologies Corp, headquartered in Arlington County, Virginia, designs, manufactures, and sells military weapons and equipment, including combat aircraft, avionics, missiles, bombs, battlefield fighting vehicles, and cybersecurity systems. It was formed in 2020 as a merger of Raytheon Company and United Technologies Corporation. The merger made it the world's second-largest military company, with $64.4 billion in revenue as of 2022, 96% of which derives from its defense sector. Among its notable subsidiaries are Collins Aerospace Systems and aircraft engine manufacturer Pratt & Whitney.

The company has long supplied U.S. and international militaries with weapon systems and equipment. Between 2008 and 2021, it signed contracts worth $52 billion with the Department of Defense (DOD). Additionally, the company was one of the top contractors of U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) in the agency's efforts to erect a "smart/virtual" wall on the U.S.–Mexico border between 2005 and 2019 (see below for more details).

War Crimes Against Palestinian Civilians

Surveillance of the US–Mexico Border

Pain/Heat Ray Less-Lethal Weapon

Raytheon's Active Denial System (ADS), nicknamed the "pain ray," was developed for the U.S. Department of Defense for use in Afghanistan and Iraq. A less-lethal directed energy weapon, the pain ray emits targeted radiation that penetrates under the skin and causes an intense burning sensation. According to Physicians for Human Rights, use of the weapon is "disproportionate by design" and introduces "very serious concerns about prolonged exposure, the risk of cellular damage and high degree burns, and the potential for abuse." Since 2010, Raytheon has marketed the ADS, as well as a smaller mobile version called the Silent Guardian, to non-military prison, police, and security authorities.

Raytheon first sold a Silent Guardian weapon, to the Los Angeles County Jail, in 2010. According to the ACLU, introducing this weapon created "a wholly unjustified risk that detainees [would] be needlessly subjected to excessive force -- indeed, a use of force tantamount to torture." In 2013, the company was sued by a man incarcerated at the Los Angeles County Jail who suffered from serious burns and long-term health complications after sheriff's deputies shot him with a Raytheon heat ray weapon.

While there is no evidence of current use of this weapon against civilians, law enforcement has still considered it to be a viable option for use in border policing and crowd-control. In 2018, CBP officials suggested deploying it to prevent asylum seekers from crossing the U.S.–Mexico border. In 2020, a lead military police officer attempted to secure the weapon to disperse protests in Washington, DC, following the police murder of George Floyd. In both cases, the weapon was not ultimately deployed.

Other Controversies

Economic Activism Highlights

Unless specified otherwise, the information in this page is valid as of

29 October 2022

---

6 24

­C­o­m­p­a­n­i­e­s P­r­o­f­i­t­i­n­g f­r­o­m t­h­e G­a­z­a G­e­n­o­c­i­d­e

6 24

­C­o­m­p­a­n­i­e­s P­r­o­f­i­t­i­n­g f­r­o­m t­h­e G­a­z­a G­e­n­o­c­i­d­e

AEROVIRONMENT (NASDAQ: AVAV)

AGILITE

AIMPOINT

AM GENERAL

*BAE SYSTEMS (LSE: BA)

*BOEING (NYSE: BA)

*CATERPILLAR (NYSE: CAT)

*COLT (PSE: CZG)

CORSIGHT

DAY & ZIMMERMANN

DJI

*ELBIT SYSTEMS (NASDAQ & TASE: ESLT)

EMTAN

FLYER DEFENSE

FORD (NYSE: F)

*GENERAL DYNAMICS (NYSE: GD)

*GENERAL ELECTRIC (NYSE: GE)

GENERAL MOTORS (NYSE: GM)

GHOST ROBOTICS

GOOGLE/ALPHABET (NASDAQ: GOOG)

HYUNDAI (KRX: 329180)

INFINIDOME

ISRAEL AEROSPACE INDUSTRIES

JCB

*L3HARRIS TECHNOLOGIES (NYSE: LHX)

*LEONARDO (BIT: LDO)

LEUPOLD & STEVENS

*LOCKHEED MARTIN (NYSE: LMT)

MDT ARMOR

MERCEDES (FWB: MBG)

NEXTVISION

NORDIC AMMUNITION COMPANY

*NORTHROP GRUMMAN (NYSE: NOC)

OSHKOSH (NYSE: OSK)

*PALANTIR (NYSE: PLTR)

*PAZ OIL (TASE: PZOL)

PLASAN

RAFAEL

*RENK (FRA: ZAR)

RHEINMETALL (FWB: RHM)

*ROLLS-ROYCE (LSE: RR)

*RTX (NYSE: RTX)

SHIELD AI

SK GROUP

SKYDIO

SMARTSHOOTER

SPEARUAV

*TEXTRON ( NYSE: TXT)

*THYSSENKRUPP (FWB: TKA)

TOYOTA (NYSE: TM)

*VALERO (NYSE: VLO)

WOODWARD INC (NSDQ: WWD)

XTEND

AIRLINES, SHIPPING, LOGISTICS

The companies listed here have provided Israel with weapons and other military equipment used in its attacks on Gaza, the West Bank, Lebanon, and Syria since October 2023.

Last updated on May 28, 2024

Companies marked with () are included in our divestment list.* The list below is not intended to be used as either a divestment list or a boycott list, as it includes many privately-owned companies as well as companies with a very minor or one-time involvement.


https://www.alternet.org/human-rights/israel-bars-bds-activists-entering-country

...The ministry plans to begin enforcing the list in March.

Local media outlets have reported that the list includes organizations based in Africa, Europe, and the Americas, including Jewish Voices for Peace, a prominent left-leaning advocacy group based in the United States with over 200,000 online members and dozens of chapters across the globe. The group has historically been critical of Israel's treatment of Palestinians in the West Bank and the country's expansionist policies. 

Other American groups on the 'BDS blacklist' include American Friends Service Committee, American Muslims for Palestine, US Campaign for Palestinian Rights, National Students for Justice in Palestine, and Code Pink.

During Sunday's announcement, Erdan said barring the activists from entering Israel was a matter of public safety.

"We have shifted from defense to offense. The boycott organizations need to know that the State of Israel will act against them and not allow [them] to enter its territory to harm its citizens," Erdan said, according to  Haaretz."No country would have allowed critics coming to harm the country to entry it."

Interior Minister Arye Dery, whose ministry is responsible for implementing the list, added: "These people are trying to exploit the law and our hospitality to act against Israel and to defame the country. I will act against this by every means."

The BDS movement is a years-long effort from international organizations to put economic and social pressure on Israel to cease its occupation of land where Palestinians have historically resided in, as well as acknowledge Palestinians' "right to return" to lands currently under Israeli control.

The BDS movement has been the subject of routine criticism by Zionists and other supporters of Israel. 

The announcement of the list comes a week after Israel approved $72 million for a public campaign against BDS movement. The plan calls for setting up a non-profit organization managed by a board made up of both government officials and private donors from Israel and abroad. 

Hadashot News, the Israel Television News Company,  reported Saturday night that Jewish Voices for Peace would be included in Israel's list of blacklisted groups.

...

==

==

Bowing to pressure from Quaker environmentalists, PNC Bank announced yesterday that it will be restricting financing of mountaintop removal coal mining in Appalachia. The shift outlined in its 2015 Corporate Responsibility Report means PNC Bank will effectively cease its investment in this controversial practice.

In 2012, PNC Bank financed Alpha Natural Resources, Arch Coal, CONSOL Energy and Patriot Coal, which together were responsible for nearly half (44.97 percent) of Appalachian mountaintop removal production. PNC’s total investment was $687.5 million for that year.

The grassroots group leading the charge for PNC’s new policy, Earth Quaker Action Team, hails the change as a major shift by the seventh largest U.S. bank. “When we initiated our campaign in 2010, PNC attempted to placate us with a hollow policy. It’s good to see that PNC Bank is now taking meaningful steps,” says Matthew Armstead, staff coordinator for EQAT. “Since this shift happened because of external pressure, it should be a wake-up call for everyone that the power of change lies with regular citizen activists.”

According to EQAT’s analysis, PNC’s changes in investment will sever ties with the two largest companies (Alpha and Arch). Given Patriot Coal’s bankruptcy and CONSOL Energy’s imminent shifting out of mountaintop removal, PNC Bank will be left without any major investments in mountaintop removal.

Mountaintop removal has long been criticized for its negative environmental and health impacts. This process of getting coal from a mountain involves blowing up the top of the mountain and dumping the remains into rivers and valleys. The contaminants from the dynamite hang in the air and the sludge and residue from this process poisons water. Scientists note the impact of burning dirty coal is speeding up global climate change.

Released yesterday, PNC’s 2015 Corporate Responsibility Report began their new policy by admitting they were “driven by environmental and health concerns.”

Rainforest Action Network (RAN), a watchdog expert on the energy sector, issued a statement:

“We see today’s news as indicative of a broader trend within the financial sector. Banks no longer want to be associated with a dangerous, abhorrent practice like mountaintop removal; there is an emerging financial industry consensus that these practices are unacceptable. Concretely, this means mountaintop removal companies will have a harder time securing financing to operate and expand in the future.”

PNC follows in the footsteps of other banks pressured to adopt policies cutting ties with firms specializing in mountaintop removal: JPMorgan Chase, Wells Fargo, RBS, BNP Paribas and UBS.

Dustin White, an 11th-generation native Appalachian with Ohio Valley Environmental Coalition, lauded the tiny Quaker environmentalist organization for making this change. He said, “PNC’s new policy is a step in the right direction, and we applaud our friends at EQAT for their success in moving this big bank to do the right thing. For over 150 years, Big Coal has endangered our health, our heritage, and our homes.”

For members of Earth Quaker Action Team this is a major victory from a long campaign. “In our early encounters with PNC, they didn’t take us or this issue seriously. We showed them evidence, delivered them Appalachian water poisoned by mountaintop removal, and brought them face-to-face with residents hurt by this practice,” says George Lakey, a retired teacher who was arrested twice during the campaign. “We had to take direct action for them to see the light.”

==