Who We Are
We are a grassroots movement of Essex residents demanding that our public bodies and representatives immediately divest all public funds from companies complicit in human rights abuses, environmental destruction, and genocide.
Our Story & Why We Started
Essex Divest for Palestine was formed by a group of activists from across Essex that wanted to change away from the norm of shouting on a Saturday in a city or town centre as the ineffectiveness of these events were clear to see. We wanted to make real impactful change and hit these people where it hurts the most, in their pockets.
Our founding members became aware of Waltham Forest’s Divestment campaign and started to enquire if our own County Council could also be actively involved in enabling Genocide. We were fortunate that the Waltham Forest campaign gave us invaluable knowledge and resources to be able to transfer to where we live and we started to apply that. We contacted Essex County Council in July 2025 for the first time. The following is a rundown of everything that has happened so far until March 2026. You will see that not only is our County Council complicit, they are failing their fiduciary duty and one of the basic reasons the pension fund exists. This isn’t just complicity, it’s active enabling and we won’t have it.
Our Principles
Grassroots-Led
Decisions are made collectively, with no top-down leadership.
Nonviolent
We are committed to peaceful protest and civil disobedience.
Intersectional
Climate justice, racial justice, and social justice are inseparable.
Our Demands
We call on Essex County Council to:
- Immediately divest from all companies complicit in human rights abuses
- Provide full transparency of all pension fund investments
- Redirect funds into ethical, sustainable alternatives