I often wonder at what point writing about continued anti-Jewish discrimination within the allied mental health professions will become unnecessary. Unfortunately, however, this thought does not last long, as new incidents continue to arise that reinforce how normalized these concerns have become within the profession. Recent months alone have demonstrated additional examples across the allied mental health professions that reflect this ongoing and troubling pattern.

In January 2026, Counselors for Social Justice, a division of the American Counseling Association, released a statement and call to action titled “Abolish ICE: Counselors’ Demand for Justice and Human Rights.” The statement focused on “state sanctioned violence” and ways in which the agency has upheld “pillars of White supremacy.” It also indicated that “staying silent is violence” and that “apathy and neutrality only upholds [sic] oppression.” Among the suggested ways to engage in communal connection and become involved “in the resistance” was participation in the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) movement. The statement, which provided hyperlinked resources as a means of “boycotting companies in support of the current Administration,” directed counselors to a solidarity statement with anti-ICE protesters, titled “From Palestine to Mexico, All the Walls Have Got to Go! Palestinians Stand in Solidarity with Anti-ICE Protestors” on the BDS Movement website.

It is notable that BDS is a Palestinian-led movement that calls for economic and political pressure on Israel through boycotts, divestment, and government-level sanctions. While concerns regarding its exclusionary and indiscriminate impacts have been documented across academic, cultural, economic, and professional contexts, including impacts on both Israelis and Palestinians, its inclusion in a counseling association’s call to action raises concern about the scope of political advocacy within professional spaces—particularly in a document that frames silence as “violence.” It also highlights how well-intended counselors seeking to learn more about communal engagement and advocacy may be directed toward politically charged, discriminatory, and harmful campaigns such as BDS.

These developments are not limited to the counseling profession. Similar anti-Israel sentiment and ideological exclusion have become more firmly embedded across the allied mental health professions as well as the medical field. Within the field of social work, for example, the International Federation of Social Workers (IFSW) censured the Israeli Union of Social Workers (IUSW) in January 2025, citing members “serving in active combat roles under mandatory........

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