I think they phrased it that way, though certainly much came after the boycotts, to make a very clear connection that others may be making when they fear BDS. All the rest of the horror did in fact start with boycotts.
Of course, the major difference here is equating boycotting an ethnic group to persecute them vs. boycotting a political entity on the grounds of its actions in an attempt to get it to change those actions. The Palestinians are the Jews in this scenario, only far past boycotts.