A group of Washington State public employees recently protested at the Washington State Investment Board to demand the divestment of pension funds from defense and surveillance firms. These workers argue that state retirement savings should not support companies linked to human rights violations.
The $204 Million Stake in Lockheed Martin
The core of the protest centers on the Washington State Investment Board's significant financial ties to the defense industry. According to the report, the board maintains a $204 million stake in Lockheed Martin, a defense contractor responsible for the F-35 fighter jet. This investment is part of a much larger $230 billion pool that provides retirement security for over 600,000 Washington state workers.
Beyond weaponry, the protesters highlighted a $73 million investment in Palantir, a data-surveillance firm. the report says that Palantir's technology is utilized by U.S. border enforcement agencies and contributes to a global surveillance state, leading workers—including a union-founding bus driver and a teacher—to demand a shift toward more humane stewardship of their funds.
Khan Younis and the Human Cost of F-35 Jets
The demand for divestment is not merely theoretical but is tied to specific military actions. The protesters pointed to events in the sppring of 2024, when F-35 jets dropped 2,000-pound bombs on a designated "safe zone" in Khan Younis. This specific strike resulted in the deaths of 90 Palestinians, creating a direct link between the Washington State Investment Board's portfolio and civilian casualties in Gaza.
For the public servants involved, the knowledge that their retirement savings facilitate such violence is untenable. The driver who testified before the board emphasized that public funds should not be used to finance policies that result in mass deportation, climate devastation, or genocide.
From Anti-Apartheid Roots to New York City Pension Wins
This movement in Washington is part of a broader, national trend where public-sector employees are leveraging their status as beneficiaries to force ethical shifts. As the report notes , pension workers in New York City, as well as teachers in Baltimore and pensioners in Maine, have already successfully pushed their funds to divest from weapons manufacturers and Israel bonds .
This strategy echoes the historical precedent set during the anti-apartheid movement. During that era, U.S. state workers coordinated with major unions, including the SEIU and the UAW, to withdraw capital from corporations doing business with South Africa. The current push by Washington workers represents a modern iteration of this financial activism, treating the pension fund as a tool for geopolitical influence.
Will the Washington State Investment Board Prove Ethical Returns?
A critical point of contention remains the financial viability of divestment. The protesting workers have challenged the Washington State Investment Board to prove that ethical investing can match or exceed the returns generated by "war-profiteers." However,the soure does not provide a respone from the board members regardding this specific challenge or their current criteria for "sound ethical practice."
It remains unclear whether the Washington State Investment Board intends to review its holdings in Lockheed Martin and Palantir or if it will maintain its current investment strategy. Furthermore, the report only presents the perspective of the protesters; the board's official justification for these holdings—typically framed as a fiduciary duty to maximize returns—was not detailed in the testimony provided.
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