CFOW Newsletter - Gaza: Starvation and Disease as Weapons of War

Concerned Families of Westchester Newsletter

December 24, 2023

Hello All – Starvation, freezing temperatures, and disease confront the people of Gaza, almost two million of whom have been driven from their homes. Food, water, medicine, and fuel are very hard to find, as Israel prevents all but a trickle of aid trucks from entering Gaza from Egypt.  This week the UN's World Food Program reported that one-quarter of Gaza's population – 576,000 people – were in imminent danger of starvation. The report stated that "there is a risk of famine occurring within the next six months if the current situation of intense conflict and restricted humanitarian access persists."

From earlier assessments, WFP food security experts had already established that Gazans have used up all their resources, livelihoods have collapsed, bakeries are destroyed, shops are empty, and families can't find food. People told WFP staff that they often go entire days without eating and that many adults go hungry so that children can eat. … An unprecedented 93% of the population in Gaza is facing crisis levels of hunger, with insufficient food and high levels of malnutrition. At least 1 in 4 households is facing "catastrophic conditions": experiencing an extreme lack of food and starvation and having resorted to selling off their possessions and other extreme measures to afford a simple meal.

Needless to say, the absence of clean water, sanitation facilities, and basic housing for tens of thousands displaced from the bombed-out homes makes inevitable the spread of contagious disease. A UN agency reports that, among Palestinian families taking shelter in UN facilities, more than 300,000 have an infectious disease.  The World Health Organization (also a UN agency) reports:

Tragically, access to health services across Gaza has plummeted as the war continues to degrade the health system. With the health system on its knees, those facing the deadly combination of hunger and disease are left with few options. The people of Gaza, who have already suffered enough, now face death from starvation and diseases that could be easily treated with a functioning health system. This must stop. Food and other aid must flow in far greater amounts. WHO reiterates its call for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire.

This week Human Rights Watch released a report stating that Israel was deliberately using starvation as a weapon in its war on Gaza.  "Israeli forces are deliberately blocking the delivery of water, food, and fuel, while willfully impeding humanitarian assistance, apparently razing agricultural areas, and depriving the civilian population of objects indispensable to their survival," the report said, quoting leading members of Israel's "war cabinet" who "have made public statements expressing their aim to deprive civilians in Gaza of food, water and fuel – statements reflecting a policy being carried out by Israeli forces."  According to the founding statutes establishing the International Criminal Court, using food and starvation in this way is a war crime.

In light of the crimes being committed by Israel against Gaza's civilian population, it is beyond tragic that the US used its influence at the UN this week to water down a Security Council draft resolution attempting to establish a humanitarian ceasefire so the food, water, and medicine could be distributed in Gaza.  But due to US objections, the ceasefire resolution was watered down to mean little.  UN relief workers in Gaza say that the failure to get a ceasefire means that little aid can be distributed. Nor have President Biden's words about avoiding civilian casualties had any effect on Israel's war making, as the death toll in Gaza tops 20,000, with about 200 people killed each day.

Featured Essay/Videos – Gazans in the Crosshairs

(Video) Visual Evidence Shows Israel Dropped Bombs Where It Ordered Gaza Civilians to Go From The New York Times [December 22, 2023]

---- A Times investigation used aerial imagery and artificial intelligence to detect bomb craters that showed that one of Israel's biggest bombs was used routinely in south Gaza. [See the Report - 9 Minutes]

(Video) Starvation as a Weapon of War: Human Rights Watch Denounces Israel for Denying Gaza Access to Food

From Democracy Now! [December 19, 2023]

---- Israel is deliberately blocking the delivery of water, food and fuel in Gaza, prompting Human Rights Watch to accuse the occupation of utilizing starvation as a weapon of war. Human Rights Watch's Israel and Palestine director, Omar Shakir, says 97% of the groundwater in Gaza is unfit for human consumption after the destruction of pipelines and treatment sources, the rejection of humanitarian aid and the collapse of the medical system under incessant bombing, leading to mass dehydration and contagious disease. Shakir calls on the international community to condemn Israel's actions and to increase pressure on U.S. support in particular [See the Program]

Half of Palestinians in Gaza are now Starving; Depriving Civilians of Food is a War Crime

By Juan Cole, Informed Comment [December 10, 2023]

---- The United Nations warned on Saturday that half the population of Gaza is now starving. The World Food Programme (WFP) had reported at the end of November that in the north of Gaza, about half of the people were suffering "severe levels of hunger." Meanwhile, nearly everyone had inadequate levels of food consumption, i.e. they were getting less than the recommended calories per day. … The Rome Statute underpinning the International Criminal Court forbids starvation as a method of warfare: Article 8(2)(b)(xxv) of the 1998 ICC Statute provides that "[i]ntentionally using starvation of civilians as a method of warfare by depriving them of objects indispensable to their survival" is a war crime in international armed conflicts. [Read More]

"The Christmas Story"

FB – The familiar Christmas story of Jesus born in Bethlehem (the West Bank) in a manger evokes comparisons with the plight of the 160 women who give birth each day in Gaza, under bombardment and with no medical facilities.  Christians spoke out last week as the National Council of Churches, encompassing 38 Christian faith groups, joined with 60 other religious bodies to call for a ceasefire in Gaza.  Quakers, Mennonites, and other historic peace religions have always spoken out against war, but an antiwar message from more mainstream religious bodies is desperately needed now.  Below are an essay by, and an interview with, an extraordinary Palestinian Lutheran pastor from Bethlehem.  Please read & share what he has to say about "the Christmas story."

(Video) Christmas Canceled in Bethlehem as Churches Mourn 20,000+ Palestinians Killed in Gaza

From Democracy Now! [December 22, 2023]

---- In "mourning and honor" of Palestinians killed in Gaza, the city of Bethlehem in the occupied West Bank, the birthplace of Jesus Christ, has announced the cancellation of traditional Christmas festivities. In Bethlehem, we're joined by the president of Dar al-Kalima University, Reverend Mitri Raheb. Reverend Raheb relates the story of Jesus, a refugee whose mother had no place to safely give birth, to the plight of displaced Gazans facing a dearth of medical care. "The Christmas story actually is a Palestinian story, par excellence," he tells us, yet "we don't hear the Christian community actually doing much about the atrocity happening in Gaza today." As the world turns its back on the ongoing genocide, Rehab says he fears this could be "the end of the Christian presence in Gaza." [See the Program]

Christmas: Then and Now

By Mitri Raheb, Mondoweiss [December 23, 2023]

---- I was born across the street from where Jesus was born on a street called, the Milk Grotto Street, in Bethlehem. My family has deep roots in the little town. We have been Christians for the last fifteen centuries, if not longer. My family name "Raheb" means "monk," connecting it to the ancient monasteries established in the wilderness around Bethlehem since the fourth century AD. My first name, "Mitri" refers to a Greek-Orthodox saint, St. Demetrious, a fourth-century martyr in the Roman empire. My earliest childhood memories go back to the year 1967, when Israel occupied our town. [Read More]

CFOW Nuts & Bolts

Please consider getting involved with Concerned Families of Westchester.  Weather permitting we meet for a protest/rally each Saturday in Hastings, at 12 noon at the VFW Plaza (Warburton and Spring St.)  A "Black Lives Matter/Say Their Names" vigil is held in Yonkers on the first Monday of the month (e.g. January 1) from 5:30 to 6:00 pm at the intersection of Warburton Ave. and Odell. Our newsletter is archived at https://cfow.blogspot.com/; and news of interest and coming events is posted on our CFOW Facebook page.  Another Facebook page focuses on the climate crisis. If you would like to join one of our Zoom meetings, each Tuesday and Thursday at noon, please send a return email for the link. If you would like to support our work by making a contribution, please send your check to CFOW, PO Box 364, Hastings-on-Hudson, NY 10706. Thanks!

Rewards!

Musical funny man and astute political critic Roy Zimmerman is a CFOW favorite. His musical satire over the past decade+ has touched on many topics, but Donald Trump brings out something extra. His latest, just out this week, is "Lock Him Away."  I think you will also like an early classic, "Vote Him Away."  A sing-along for the whole family.  Enjoy!

Best Wishes,

Frank Brodhead

For CFOW

CFOW Weekly Reader

The War on Gaza

(Video) "This Is a Colonial War": Historian Rashid Khalidi on Israel, Gaza & the Future of Palestine

From Democracy Now! [December 20, 2023]

---- Historian Rashid Khalidi discusses the pending United Nations Security Council vote on suspending fighting in Gaza to allow the entry of humanitarian aid, and the future of Palestine. The Biden administration reportedly delayed the U.N. vote and pushed other countries to water down the language. "The situation in Gaza is unspeakable," says Khalidi, the Edward Said professor of modern Arab studies at Columbia University. "We are talking about traumatic events that are going to scar generations to come." He also discusses how the Gaza war risks sparking a regional conflict, ways to pressure Israel, and how U.S. leaders are prompting anger from "whole generations" in the Arab world and beyond.  [Read More]  Also of interest by Rashid Khalidi is "Open letter to the Columbia administration," in which he replies to a new diktat by 18 Columbia University deans proscribing some pro-Palestinian speech. [Link].

What are the Motivations behind Israel's Genocide in Gaza, and what is the Way Forward?

By Yoav Litvin, Informed Comment [December 24, 2023]

---- For Zionists to break their addiction to aggression, they would need to go through a process of deprogramming and decolonisation. This would require them to embrace the truth about the history and nature of Zionism, commit to sincere accountability, recognise the humanity of Palestinians, and empathise with their suffering and plight. … Liberation, reconciliation and an end to Israel's genocidal violence can only be achieved within a steadfast and unwavering anti-Zionist framework that aligns with wider leftist, antiracist, anticolonial values. [Read More]

(Video) "The Hostages Weren't Our Top Priority": Israel's "Bombing Frenzy" Endangered Hostages Held in Gaza

From Democracy Now! [December 21, 2023]

---- A new investigation reveals Israel launched its military campaign of relentless airstrikes, which has killed nearly 1% of the population of Gaza, with little intelligence about where hostages taken by Hamas were being held. Jerusalem-based journalist Yuval Abraham reports the military decided hostages were "just not a priority," their safety "relegated in favor of carrying out this bombing campaign." The revelation comes as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu faces increasing pressure to secure the release of the hostages after Israeli forces shot dead three Israeli hostages who managed to escape captivity in northern Gaza. [See the Program].

Israel Killed Thousands of Children in Gaza. How Can So Many Israelis Remain Indifferent?

By Amira Hass, Haaretz [Israel] [December 18, 2023]

--- For decades we've been brought up believing that only military force can ensure the state's survival, while denying rights to the Palestinians. That's just one of many sad answers to the question. … What enables most of the Jews not to gasp in horror at the crowding of 1.8 million or 1.9 million people into about 120 square kilometers (46 square miles), a "safe area" that's constantly being bombed? What's preventing those Jewish Israelis from screaming when they hear about the thirst and hunger of 2.2 million Palestinian civilians and the diseases spreading due to the crowding, the water shortage and the out-of-action hospitals? What enables this erasure and the slaying of children with both our active and passive participation? Here are some answers: [Read More] Also of interest by Amira Hass is "Dozens of Israeli Citizens and Residents Left Gaza During the War, Under the Radar," Haaretz [Israel] [Deember 17, 2023] ["71 women, men and children have left the Strip in the past month for Israel. They told Haaretz about what they went through and their concerns for those left behind."] [Link]

The War at Home

From NYC to Palestine: Grassroots Movements Speak Out on Israel-Gaza War

By Rebecca Chowdhury, The Indypendent (NYC) [December 18, 2023]

---- On a cloudy day in the Bronx, a group of high-school students marched down Fordham Road chanting, "Congress, Congress, you can't hide! You're supporting genocide!" As they walked under the train station, commuters stopped in their tracks to watch approximately 70 high-school students who walked out of class donning keffiyehs and posters with Palestinian flags. Some onlookers in this working-class Black and brown community even joined the march while others chanted in solidarity. … Working-class New Yorkers who normally lead protests and organize around local New York City issues are now joining the movement to free Palestine. They are drawing connections between their struggles and forging solidarity with Palestinians that face bombardment in Gaza and settler violence in the Occupied Territories. [Read More]

Also of interest – "How US residents are funding illegal settlements in the West Bank," by Jason Wilson, The Guardian [UK] [December 23, 2023] [Link]; "Who Is Funding Canary Mission? Inside the Doxxing Operation Targeting Anti-Zionist Students and Professors," by James Bamford, The Nation [December 22, 2023] [Link]; and "Some Facts for the Unconvinced: Why We Need a Gaza Ceasefire Now," by Phyllis Bennis, Foreign Policy in Focus [December 18, 2023] [Link].

War with China?

The US and China at Year's End: Still Treading on the Precipice

By Michael T. Klare, Tomdispatch [December 22, 2023]

---- This hasn't exactly been a year of good news when it comes to our war-torn, beleaguered planet, but on November 15^th, U.S. President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping took one small step back from the precipice. Until they talked in a mansion near San Francisco, it seemed as if their countries were locked in a downward spiral of taunts and provocations that might, many experts feared, result in a full-blown crisis, even a war — even, god save us all, the world's first nuclear war. Thanks to that encounter, though, such dangers appear to have receded. Still, the looming question facing both countries is whether that retreat from disaster — what the Chinese are now calling the "San Francisco vision" — will last through 2024. [Read More]

The Climate Crisis

2023's extreme storms, heat and wildfires broke records – a scientist explains how global warming fuels climate disastersBy Shuang-Ye Wu, The Conversation [December 19, 2023]

---- Globally, 2023 was the warmest year on record, and it wreaked havoc around the world. El Niño played a role, but global warming is at the root of the world's increasing extreme weather. So, how exactly is global warming linked to fires, storms and other disasters? I am an atmospheric scientist who studies the changing climate. Here's what you need to know. … In sum, a warmer world is a more violent world, with the additional heat fueling increasingly more extreme weather events. [Read More]

2023 was the year governments looked at the climate crisis – and decided to persecute the activists

By Owen Jones, The Guardian [UK] [December 22, 2023]

---- This year has seen a global onslaught against people agitating for more action to mitigate the worst effects of the climate crisis. Courts can issue stern judgments, but so can history, and you have to wonder its future verdict on how the persecution and silencing of those raising the alarm only escalated when the scientific evidence had become so cast-iron, and when extreme weather events hammered home the imminent danger facing the human species. Here in Britain, a government which is reneging on its climate commitments – not least by expanding oil and gas licences – is simultaneously introducing repressive legislation to silence those holding them to account. [Read More]

The State of the Union

We're Beginning to Learn How the War on Terror Shaped a Generation

By Suzy Hansen, New York Times [December 21, 2023]

---- Many Americans, marooned in the condition of future thinking, fear what could come next in the Middle East. They fear that one day Israel, aided by the United States, will destroy Gaza entirely. They fear that the devastation will set off another horrifying cascade of crises, an unfathomable loss of life. And they know that someday Americans will question what madness overcame them in 2023, why they once again allowed the killing of so many people, and what happened to them long ago that made them this way. [Read More]

Pro-Israel Billionaires Are Spending Big to Oust Socialists From Office

By Liza Featherstone, Jacobin Magazine [December 2023]

---- Socialists in elected office are standing up for Palestinian rights and demanding a cease-fire in Gaza. A handful of billionaires, rejecting this progressive and popular agenda, are trying hard to take down these antiwar lawmakers. … Perhaps most worrisome is the animus against Representative Jamaal Bowman of New York. Bowman's seat may now be the most imperiled of any Squad member, as AIPAC has recruited Westchester County executive George Latimer to run against him, and Latimer may tap into considerable pro-war sentiment in the district. … The lawmakers presently targeted by AIPAC and the pro-Netanyahu billionaires are indispensable leaders on the Left, and it would be a travesty to lose any of them as political representatives. [Read More]

Our History

The Christmas Truce of 1914

---- On Christmas Day in 1914, after four months of horrible war, the remarkable "Christmas Truce" broke out along the lines of contact between British and German soldiers.  As the story is told in folksinger John McCutcheon's song – "Christmas in the Trenches – soldiers from both armies met in No Man's Land, sang Christmas carols, shared smokes, and played games.  And when the day ended, the soldiers returned to their respective trenches, and next day the war resumed.  Millions would be killed in the next four years.  The military leadership was horrified at this display of humanitarian fellowship and solidarity, and ensured that such a thing never happened again.  For more of the story, and its relation to the War on Gaza, read "The Christmas Truce of 1914 and the Demand for a Cease-Fire in Gaza," by peace stalwart Phyllis Bennis. [Link].

Invitation to the Concerned Families of Westchester Pizza Party for Peace - December 30, 2023

You're invited to the

Concerned Families of Westchester

Pizza Party for Peace

 

Concerned Families of Westchester invites all peace-loving people to join us in Hastings on Saturday, December 30th, from 2 to 4 pm for our annual holiday party.

Our holiday get-together will be an occasion to see old friends and make new ones.  Pizza and beverages will be provided, we hope to have some live music, and we will have an "open mic" -- a "virtual soapbox" -- to speak about our hopes, plans, and dreams for peace in the coming year.

To help us make sure we have enough pizza, an RSVP is requested; and the location of the event will then be sent to you.  Please RSVP to fbrodhead@aol.com by Friday, December 29th.

CFOW Newsletter - Can Israel's War on Gaza Be Stopped?

Concerned Families of Westchester Newsletter

December 17, 2023

Hello All – Last week President Biden stated that Israel's war on Gaza included "indiscriminate bombing."  That is, Israel was committing war crimes.  But he has not taken effective action to stop Israel. At the UN last week, 153 nations voted for a ceasefire.  Only 10 were opposed, including the US.  The US is almost alone in supporting further killing in Gaza, which has claimed the lives of at least 19,000 people, with thousands more buried under the rubble of bombed buildings.

The push back – indeed, international abhorrence – of the refusal of the Biden administration's unwillingness to take effective action to stop Israel's onslaught may be beginning to take effect. Today, according to The New York Times, "Defense Secretary Lloyd J. Austin III will visit Israel and two Persian Gulf nations this week, as Biden administration officials push Israel to end its large-scale ground and air campaign in the Gaza Strip within weeks and transition to a more focused phase in its war against Hamas." Of course, this is less than half-a-loaf: each week of "a few weeks" means Israel will kill another thousand Palestinians, and we must ask if the "transition" to a "more focused phase" of Israel's killing in Gaza will be only less deadly. Also of interest is that the UK and Germany, faithful supporters of the US "no ceasefire" position, echoed the US demand, while going further to call for a "sustainable cesefire."

Are these statements from Israel's main supporters in NATO first steps in bringing Israel's war to an end?  If, as we would expect, Israel refuses to comply with NATO orders for a lower-intensity war, will there be any consequences?  Of course we cannot know, but even this rhetorical nuance reflects the pressure of millions of voices raised against Israel's war, demanding "ceasefire now." Here are three reasons (there are many more) to keep the pressure on Biden and Congress to support a ceasefire:

The massacre in Gaza is unacceptable.

Whatever right Israel has to defend itself, it does not have the right to commit war crimes or genocide. Some 20,000 Palestinians have been killed, more than one million are homeless, and most hospitals destroyed. Some 400,000 people, suffering in the cold without housing or medical care, have contagious diseases.  This slaughter has nothing to do with "self-defense." It has become a massive war crime, and lawyers are splitting hairs on whether it has moved from "ethnic cleansing" to "genocide."

The USA is complicit in Israel's crimes.

Our government gives Israel $3.8 billion in military assistance each year - $10 million per day. We have sent vast amounts of military equipment to Israel, now being used (illegally) to kill civilians. Senator Sanders, in his letter to President Biden last Tuesday, listed many of the weapons and types of ammunition sent to Israel since October 7^th, stating "These munitions were provided with the full knowledge they would likely be used in Gaza, a densely populated urban area with a large civilian presence."  In doing so, Biden is acting in violation of the Leahy Law, which forbids sending US military aid to military units that have used US weapons to commit war crimes.  And, finally, our government has protected Israel from criticism at the UN by using its veto.  The views our government as contemptuous of international law and the opinion of the great majority of the world's people.

A ceasefire is needed to free the hostages.

In Israel, the families of those held hostage are demanding a ceasefire and negotiations to free their loved ones.  They believe the hostages will be killed unless there is a ceasefire.  The tragic killing by Israeli soldiers of three hostages who had escaped their confinement and were trying to "surrender" has renewed calls by thousands of Israelis for a ceasefire and a renewal of negotiations for an exchange of hostages for Palestinians prisoners.

Some Featured Essays on the War on Gaza

We Are No Strangers to Human Suffering, but We've Seen Nothing Like the Siege of Gaza [From international relief organizations]

By Michelle Nunn, et al., New York Times [December 2023]

---- The atrocities committed by Hamas on Oct. 7 were unconscionable and depraved, and the taking and holding of hostages is abhorrent. The calls for their release are urgent and justified. But the right to self-defense does not and cannot require unleashing this humanitarian nightmare on millions of civilians. … Most of our organizations have been operating in Gaza for decades. But we can do nothing remotely adequate to address the level of suffering there without an immediate and complete cease-fire and an end to the siege. The aerial bombardments have rendered our jobs impossible. The withholding of water, fuel, food and other basic goods has created an enormous scale of need that aid alone cannot offset. [Read More]

Also of interest on Gaza's genocide – "The Plague as Life: 327,000 Stricken with Infectious Diseases in Gaza," by Juan Cole, Informed Comment [December 15, 2023] [Link]; and (Video) "Please Stop This War Against Us": Gaza Doctor Begs for World's Help as Hunger & Disease Spread," from Democacy Now! [December 11, 2023] [Link].

(Video) Chris Hedges "The Genocide in Gaza"

[FB – This is a powerful, in-depth statement by veteran journalist Chris Hedges, in which he characterizes what is happening now in Gaza as "genocide."] [December 2023] [Link].

Israel's First Unanimous War

By Gideon Levy, Haaretz [Israel] [December 13, 2023]

---- We've never before had a war like this, a war of complete consensus, a war of total silence, a war of blind support; a war without objection, without protest, without refusal to serve, without opposition, neither in the beginning or in the middle. A unanimous war, with wall-to-wall approval – excluding the Arab citizens of the state, who have been prohibited from objecting – and without question marks or even any doubts. Is a war that has already killed nearly 20,000 people, the vast majority of them innocent civilians, and destroyed nearly all the homes and the lives of the residents of the Gaza Strip, the most just war in the history of Israel? … As far as Israelis are concerned, it's possible to keep this war going forever, to kill all the inhabitants of the Gaza Strip and destroy it entirely, for good. The most moral, the most just. ]Read More]  In Haaretz today, Levy writes: "In Israel, 20,000 Gazans Are Responsible for Their Own Deaths. I've Never Been So Ashamed," [Link].

(Video) Israel is choosing 'apartheid' or 'ethnic cleansing'

From Aljazeera ("The Bottom Line") [December 16, 2023]

---- US political scientist John Mearsheimer on Israel's 'punishment campaign' against the civilian population in Palestine. … Israel has gone far beyond "going after Hamas" in the first 10 weeks of its war on Gaza, according to one of the United States' leading political scientists, John Mearsheimer. He tells host Steve Clemons that murdering hundreds of civilians daily and starving the rest is a "punishment campaign" and "should be unacceptable to decent people all over the world." [See the Program].

A Gazan Dilemma: When Saving Your Life Is Expulsion by Israel

By Amira Hass, Haaretz [Israel] [December 11, 2023]

---- In Ramallah, public figures have been expressing their admiration for Gazans' steadfastness in the face of semiofficially declared Israeli plans to expel them from the enclave and resettle them in Egypt. But the praise is belied by the Gazans themselves, who talk about how badly they would like to leave and escape death, injury, hunger, thirst and humiliation.  "We remain steadfast in spite of ourselves," they say. [Read More]  For ethnic cleansing elsewhere in Israel, watch (Video) "How Israeli Settler Violence Forces Palestinians To Flee Their Homes," from Aljazeera [December 15, 2023] [Link].

News Notes

Growing support in Congress for ceasefire, negotiations - The number of congressional supporters for a ceasefire in Gaza has grown from 14 (including Rep. Jamaal Bowman) to 62, including 4 Senators, according to the Working Families Ceasefire-Tracker. Peace Action of New York State (PANYS – CFOW is an affiliate) is targeting Senator Kirsten Gillibrand, who is opposed to a ceasefire. If you support a ceasefire and more humanitarian aid for Gaza, please call Sen. Gillibrand at 202) 224-4451. Tell her (or the phone answerer or the machine) your name, where you live, and what you want.  Thanks!

Boycotts and protests – how are people around the world defying Israel?

From Aljazeera [December 15, 2023]

---- From Jakarta to San Francisco, hundreds of thousands of people have taken to the streets over the past two months to protest Israel's ongoing assault on Gaza. According to the Armed Conflict Location & Events Data Project, a nongovernmental organisation specialising in conflict data collection, from October 7 to November 24, there were at least 7,283 pro-Palestine protests that took place in more than 118 countries and territories. Many more have chosen to express their condemnation using their purchasing power, opting to boycott products and services that support Israel, in turn fueling the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement that was set up in 2005 by a coalition of Palestinian civil society groups. [Read More]

CFOW Nuts & Bolts

Please consider getting involved with Concerned Families of Westchester.  Weather permitting we meet for a protest/rally each Saturday in Hastings, at 12 noon at the VFW Plaza (Warburton and Spring St.)  A "Black Lives Matter/Say Their Names" vigil is held in Yonkers on Monday from 5:30 to 6:00 pm at the intersection of Warburton Ave. and Odell. Our newsletter is archived at https://cfow.blogspot.com/; and news of interest and coming events is posted on our CFOW Facebook page.  Another Facebook page focuses on the climate crisis. If you would like to join one of our Zoom meetings, each Tuesday and Thursday at noon, please send a return email for the link. If you would like to support our work by making a contribution, please send your check to CFOW, PO Box 364, Hastings-on-Hudson, NY 10706. Thanks!

Rewards!

Given the state of the news/world, this week's Rewards for stalwart newsletter readers are a small attempt to lift spirits.  I hope you will enjoy the John and Yoko holiday classic, "Happy Xmas (War is Over."  Today's newsletter was written with assistance from the music of New Orleans ensemble Tuba Skinny.  Here is one I like: "Over in the Gloryland."  Tuba Skinny has many more songs on-line.  Enjoy!

Best wishes,

Frank Brodhead

For CFOW

The CFOW Weekly Reader

The War on Gaza

(Video) "Politics of Memory": Masha Gessen's Hannah Arendt Prize Postponed for Comparing Gaza to Warsaw Ghetto

From Democracy Now! [December 15, 2023]

---- We speak with the acclaimed Russian American writer Masha Gessen, whose latest article for The New Yorker looks at the politics of Holocaust commemoration in Europe. Gessen was scheduled to receive the prestigious Hannah Arendt Prize in Germany on December 15, but the ceremony was postponed after some award sponsors withdrew support over Gessen's comparison in the article of Gaza to the Warsaw Ghetto. A smaller award ceremony is set for Saturday. Gessen says Germany's culture of learning about and atoning for the sins of the Nazi regime has morphed into steadfast support for the state of Israel despite its actions, while banning most forms of pro-Palestinian solidarity as part of a flawed effort to fight antisemitism. The cornerstone of this form of "memory politics" is that "you can't compare the Holocaust to anything," says Gessen. "My argument is that in order to learn from history, we have to compare." [See the Program].  Of interest is the extraordinary essay by Gessen in the New Yorker, "In The Shadow of the Holocaust," [December 9, 2023] [Link]. Also of interest is this short documentary video, "Palestine: Banned in Berlin," Aljazeera [Link].

(Video) Jeremy Scahill: Gaza "Scorched-Earth Campaign" Is a "Joint U.S.-Israeli Operation"

From Democracy Now! [December 14, 2023]

---- We discuss President Joe Biden's "full support for a scorched-earth campaign" in Gaza with The Intercept's Jeremy Scahill, who says the U.S. is providing "political cover and rushing weapons there and giving support to the most pernicious lies that Israel [is] telling." Despite the Biden administration's recent assertions that it is helping to restrain Israel, Israel's military and intelligence operation is significantly propped up by resources from the United States State and Defense departments, explains Scahill. "This is a joint U.S. operation militarily and politically." Meanwhile, he says, Biden continues to repeat debunked falsehoods about pictures of beheaded babies from the October 7 Hamas attack. [See the Program].  Also of interest by Jeremy Scahill, "This Is Not a War Against Hamas," The Intercept [December 11, 2023] [Link].

From Gaza to Jenin, we must resist Israel's cultural genocide

By Zoe Lafferty, New Arab [December 14, 2023]

---- The Israeli occupation forces (IOF) invasion in Jenin Refugee Camp had been ongoing for 30hrs when they entered The Freedom Theatre just past 9am. Ransacking the offices and knocking down a wall, they then shot from inside the building. Next, the IOF went to the homes of artistic director Ahmed Tobasi and producer Mustafa Sheta, blindfolding, handcuffing and taking them away. Hours later they severely beat recently graduated acting student Jamal Abu Joas and kidnapped him as well. … As the genocide continues in Gaza and invasions in Jenin Camp happen daily, it is hard to find the line between devastation and hope, loss and defiance, reality and optimism. What is clear is that Palestinians have managed to unite those around the world of different ages, backgrounds, cultures and religions, to not only stand up for Palestinian rights and voices, but also our own. [Read More] Also of interest is this interview with the director of the Freedom Theater, "Israel Raids Freedom Theatre in Jenin Refugee Camp; Director Speaks Out After Being Jailed & Beaten," from Democracy Now! [December 15, 2023] [Link].  Creative people are pushing back everywhere.  Read "More Than 2,000 Poets Boycott The Poetry Foundation for Censoring Pro-Palestine Voices," by Summer Farah, Palestine Studies [[December 13, 2023] [Link].

Some additional articles re: the War on Gaza – "'The hostages weren't our top priority': How Israel's bombing frenzy endangered captives in Gaza," by Yuval Abraham, +972 Magazine [December 17, 2023] [Link]; "Fact or fiction: Is Israel really rounding up 'Hamas fighters'?: by Marc Owen Jones, Aljazeera [December 10, 2023] [Link]; and "'Tell me how this ends' – Gaza Edition," by Juan Cole, Informed Comment [December 16, 2023] [Link].

The Climate Crisis

What No One at COP28 Wanted to Say Out Loud: Prepare for 1.5 Degrees

By David Wallace-Wells, New York Times [December 16, 2023]

---- It only took 28 years. When Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber banged his gavel on the resolution text of COP28 in Dubai on Wednesday, it marked what has been widely called a historic achievement: the first time nearly every country on Earth agreed that oil and gas play a role in driving global warming, and the first time they nodded toward the need for a fossil fuel drawdown. … The question isn't about whether there will be a transition, but how fast, global and thorough it will be. The answer is: not fast or global or thorough enough yet, at least on the current trajectories, which COP28 effectively affirmed. [Read More]

For additional views on COP28 – "Top Ten Reasons to Dismiss the Conference of Polluters 28," by Patrick Bond and Desmond D'Sa, ZNet [December 15, 2023] [Link]; and (Video) "Phase Down, Not Phase Out: COP28 Deal on Fossil Fuels Disappoints Activists & Vulnerable States," from Democracy Now! [December 13, 2023] [Link].

Civil Liberties/"The War on Terror"

Terrorism Investigations on Campus and the New McCarthyism

By Anthony O'Rourke and Wadie E. Said, Dissent Magazine [December 8, 2023]

---- In the 1960s, the FBI's counterintelligence program (COINTELPRO) routinely infiltrated campus antiwar and civil rights groups, investigating thousands of students with the aim of discrediting their activism and destroying their career prospects. After a Senate committee led by Frank Church exposed this practice, the FBI disavowed it and applied a heightened standard for initiating investigations at universities. There is reason to believe, however, that federal law enforcement is facing pressure to relax its self-restraint and investigate pro-Palestinian student activists.[Read More] Also of interest – "The bipartisan attack on Palestine solidarity is higher than ever," from Mondoweiss [Link].

The News Media

It's Time for Gaza's Journalists to Be Treated Like the Heroes They Are

By Nadia Taha, The Nation [December 12, 2023]

---- The fact that the international journalists who briefly enter the Gaza Strip to report must assent to Israeli government censorship makes the work of Palestinian journalists especially valuable as stringers and freelancers for international news outlets. Working through a humanitarian crisis, these journalists demonstrate the remarkable tenacity and adaptability required of any war reporter, but with the added complication that they live, along with their families, in the war zone. The death toll among journalists shows the risks to Palestinians in particular. Of the 63 journalists [now 92] killed since October 7, all but seven are Palestinians. [Read More]

Also of interest – Two articles from FAIR (Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting) – "NYT Misrepresents Zionism's Opponents as Anti-Jewish Bigots," by Jim Naureckas, FAIR [Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting] [December 15, 2023] [Link]; and "NYT Amplifies Outrage Over Imaginary Calls for Genocide," by Ari Paul, FAIR [Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting] [December 12, 2023] [Link].

Our History

The Rise and Rollout of AOC's Green New Deal

By Ryan Grim, The Intercept [December 8 2023]

---- The "green dream" had started as a Google Doc put out by Sunrise, AOC, and the other groups behind the march on Pelosi's office, and while the idea of a Green New Deal took off, the document itself came in for immediate criticism, both from the AFL-CIO, which warned that it would cost union jobs in the fossil fuel and pipeline industries, and from climate justice activists, who thought it didn't go far enough in redressing the systemically racist impacts of climate change and pollution. Moving from dreamland to Google Doc to a congressional resolution (which is significantly short of legislation) required much more compromise than might be expected in an aspirational document. [Read More] For more from Ryan Grim's new book on "The Squad," here is (Podcast) "The Squad," Part 3: The Last Gaza War, from The Intercept [December 15 2023] [Link].

Prequel: An American Fight Against Fascism

By Joan M. Burda, NY Journal of Books

[FB – This is a review of Rachel Maddow's new book, Prequel.]

---- It isn't often that a nonfiction book comes along that is by turns gripping, frightening, and enlightening. Prequel, however, is one of those books. In Prequel Rachel Maddow presents a thoroughly researched historical perspective of the rise of U.S. based fascism. What is particularly disconcerting is how the language used by the apologists for Naziism and fascism in the 1930s is again being heard in the country in 2023. [Read More] Also of interest re: the US "dark ages": "Blacklisted Communist Writer Albert Maltz's Last Novel Will Finally Be Published in the US," by Taylor Dorrell, Jacobin [November 2023] [Link[.

 

 

 

CFOW Newsletter - Focus on US Support for Israel's War on Palestinians

Concerned Families of Westchester Newsletter

December 10, 2023

Hello All – Why not a ceasefire? On Friday, at an emergency meeting of the United Nations Security Council, the United States vetoed a simple Resolution calling for a ceasefire in Gaza. The Resolution was co-sponsored by 97 countries, and was initiated by the Secretary-General of the UN, Antonio Guterres. Condemnation of the US veto thundered from national capitals and people in the street.  It has been many years since the United States so disgraced itself, refusing even to vote for a halt to war crimes and the slaughter of civilians.

Why did the Biden people veto the Resolution?  Was it because he thought this would help him win in 2024?  Wrong – his "approval rating" is tanking.  Was it because he believes that continuing the slaughter in Gaza would be good for Israel and increase US power in the Middle East? So far the results of US support for Israel are increasing insecurity in the Middle East and the decline of US influence there.  And at home, Biden's blank-check support for Israel's war against the people of Gaza is disrupting and dividing the country as only Trump could do.  Does Biden really think that "supporting" Israel, while whimpering cautionary pleas about not hurting too many civilians, is really having any effect on Israel's war plans in Gaza?  What is he thinking?

The support of the United States for Israel's war is critical. Palestinians are killed by US-made planes and tanks, and by US-made artillery shells.  Our government sends $10 million each day in military assistance to Israel; and President Biden is now asking Congress for an additional $14 billion. If Israel is guilty of genocide, the US is complicit in this crime.  If Israel is only guilty of war crimes and ethnic cleansing, the US is similarly complicit.  There is near-universal agreement that an order from the US to Israel to stop the bombing of Gaza and resume negotiations for the release of hostages would be successful.  We don't know if this is true, but it is certainly preferable to continued funding, and continued support at the UN, for Israel's horrible war against the Palestinian people.

Featured Essays on the War on Gaza

Israel Is Losing this War

By Tony Karon and Daniel Levy, The Nation [December 8, 2023]

---- It may sound daft to suggest that a group of armed irregulars, numbering in the low tens of thousands, besieged and with little access to advanced weaponry, is a match for one of the world's most powerful militaries, backed and armed by the United States. And yet, an increasing number of establishment strategic analysts warn that Israel could lose this war on Palestinians despite the cataclysmic violence it unleashed since the Hamas-led attack on Israel on October 7. And in provoking the Israeli assault, Hamas may be realizing many of its own political objectives. [Read More]

(Video) "We Want Freedom": Refaat Alareer, Gaza Scholar & Activist Killed by Israeli Strike, in His Own Words

From Democracy Now! [December 8, 2023]

---- An Israeli airstrike in Gaza has killed the acclaimed Palestinian academic and activist Refaat Alareer, along with his brother, his sister and her four children. Alareer was just 44 years old. For more than 16 years, he worked as a professor of English literature at the Islamic University of Gaza and authored dozens of stories and poems about life under Israeli occupation in Gaza. "Whether it is my kids or any Palestinian kid or any Palestinian, no one is safe. No place is safe. Israel is bombing everywhere," Alareer told Democracy Now! on October 10. [See the Program]

(Video) Rashid Khalidi on the Israel-Hamas War

From Foreign Policy [December 1, 2023] – 47 minutes

---- After a brief pause, Israel is now looking to expand ground operations across the Gaza Strip. U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris said in a statement that "under no circumstances will the United States permit the forced relocation of Palestinians from Gaza or the West Bank." Palestinian civilians are stuck in a dire situation. And already, global media and public attention on the Middle East seems to be declining. [See the Program]  Also of interest by Rashid Khalidi, "How the U.S. has fueled Israel's decades-long war on Palestinians," Los Angeles Times [December 2, 2023] [Link].

Israel Is Fostering the Next Generation of Hatred Against Itself

By Gideon Levy, Haaretz [Israel] [December 7, 2023]

---- Children are now being killed by the thousands. The recent pictures from Jabalya showed that neither God nor the IDF has mercy on the little children. Every 15 minutes, a child is killed in Gaza. Every few minutes, a child is rushed to what remains of a hospital, tossed onto the filthy floor, sometimes without anyone accompanying him. Sometimes nobody knows if anyone is left from his family, and the child casts an uncomprehending, glassy-eyed glance at what's happening around him. His body and face are covered with dust; he was pulled out of the ruins. These sights are broadcast continuously on all the television channels that know the meaning of journalism, with the exception of Israeli television, which shows nothing of that, after becoming fully mobilized in the service of the war. … An unbridled and terribly cruel attack against Gaza creates hatred of Israel at levels we've never seen before, in Gaza, in the West Bank, in the Palestinian diaspora, in the Arab world and everywhere in the world where people are seeing what the Israelis don't see and don't want to see. And what's even more terrible is this hatred will be justified. Nothing will be more justified. … And in a few months from now, good Israelis will once again travel to Paris and London, Dubai and New York, and will be shocked by how they hate us. Why? What did we do wrong? [Read More]

Predicting Pestilence

By Kathy Kelly, The Progressive [December 4, 2023]

---- Speaking from a hospital ward about 50 meters from where a bomb had just exploded, UNICEF spokesperson James Elder raised his voice over sounds of children screaming. In a video posted on Twitter/X he emphasized that Gaza's health care system is overwhelmed. Pointing at children packed into the ward of a hospital he said was operating at 200 per cent capacity, Elder insisted the hospital "cannot take more children with the wounds of war…with the burns, with the shrapnel littering their bodies, with the broken bones." Calling it a war on children, Elder warned that "inaction by those with influence is allowing the killing." We, the citizens of the world, are those with influence as well as our elected officials. It is the citizens of the world who came out by the hundreds of thousands in recent weeks that caused the woefully inadequate gesture of a seven day truce. Now we must urgently pay heed to another persecution of Gaza's children and families, waged by one of war's more silent partners, disease. [Read More]

News Notes – The Bowman Campaign

Jamaal Bowman, George Latimer, and the Existential Threat to Progressive Political Power

By Michael Lange Dec 7, 2023

---- Yesterday, George Latimer put an end to months of speculation and officially announced his primary challenge to incumbent Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D–Bronx, Westchester), a rising star of the progressive left and key ally of Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. Latimer, Westchester's County Executive, had been courted by AIPAC (The American Israeli Political Action Committee) for months, as part of the lobby's ongoing effort to unseat members of "The Squad", a cohort of progressive lawmakers who have distinguished themselves on Capitol Hill, in part, for their willingness to publicly criticize the Israeli government's ill-treatment of Palestinian civilians in both the West Bank and Gaza Strip. … By advocating for the conditioning of aid to Israel, while calling for a ceasefire following the onset of the Israel-Hamas war — "The Squad" is firmly in the crosshairs of the Pro-Israel lobby, who recently pledged one-hundred million dollars in a collective effort to unseat the leftist bloc. [Read More]

Also of interest – "13 Dems Oppose Resolution Conflating Anti-Zionism and Antisemitism," by Jessica Corbett, Common Dreams [December 5, 2023] [Link]; "Progressive legislators join protest in front of US Capitol," from Aljazeera [December 7, 2023] [Link]; and (Video) "AIPAC was among the top 20 spenders in the 2022 elections. Here's how it breaks down," from MSNBC [December 3, 2023] [Link].

CFOW Nuts & Bolts

Please consider getting involved with Concerned Families of Westchester.  Weather permitting we meet for a protest/rally each Saturday in Hastings, at 12 noon at the VFW Plaza (Warburton and Spring St.)  A "Black Lives Matter/Say Their Names" vigil is held in Yonkers on Monday from 5:30 to 6:00 pm at the intersection of Warburton Ave. and Odell. Our newsletter is archived at https://cfow.blogspot.com/; and news of interest and coming events is posted on our CFOW Facebook page.  Another Facebook page focuses on the climate crisis. If you would like to join one of our Zoom meetings, each Tuesday and Thursday at noon, please send a return email for the link. If you would like to support our work by making a contribution, please send your check to CFOW, PO Box 364, Hastings-on-Hudson, NY 10706. Thanks!

Best wishes,

Frank Brodhead

For CFOW

CFOW Weekly Reader

The War on Gaza

How international law is used to cover up Israeli settler-colonialism

By Shahd Hammouri, Ajazeera [December 10, 2023]

---- The dominant narrative in Western media and political circles has been that this is "a war", Israel has the "right to defend itself "against "terrorism", and the Palestinian plight is a "humanitarian" issue. This framing of what is going on – backed with language borrowed from international law – completely distorts the reality on the ground. Everything that is happening now in Israel-Palestine is taking place within the context of colonisation, occupation and apartheid, which according to international law, are illegal. Israel is a colonising power and the Palestinians are the colonised indigenous population. Any reference to international law that does not recall these circumstances is a distortion of the story. [Read More]

On How Israeli/US War Crimes in Gaza are orders of Magnitude Worse than those of Russia in Ukraine

By Juan Cole, Informed Comment [December 9, 2023]

---- Blinken has repeatedly charged Putin with war crimes. And yet on December 8, 2023, the deputy US representative to the UN, Robert Wood, vetoed a UN Security Council resolution, introduced by the United Arab Emirates, demanding an immediate ceasefire in Gaza. None of the other members of the 15-nation council voted against the resolution, but one, Britain, abstained. Even the odious Rishi Sunak couldn't bring himself to vote "no." Thirteen members voted for the resolution, including France, China, and Russia among the permanent members. Wood's vote implicated the Biden administration further in Israeli war crimes in Gaza, which are worse by an order of magnitude than Russia's in Ukraine. [Read More].  Also of interest – "Does the West Have a Double Standard for Ukraine and Gaza?" by Yaroslav Trofimov, Wall St. Journal [December 2, 2023] [Link]

'Buying Quiet': Inside the Israeli Plan That Propped Up Hamas

By Mark Mazzetti and Ronen Bergman, New York Times [December 10, 2023]

---- For years, the Qatari government had been sending millions of dollars a month into the Gaza Strip — money that helped prop up the Hamas government there. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel not only tolerated those payments, he had encouraged them. … As far back as December 2012, Mr. Netanyahu told the prominent Israeli journalist Dan Margalit that it was important to keep Hamas strong, as a counterweight to the Palestinian Authority in the West Bank. Mr. Margalit, in an interview, said that Mr. Netanyahu told him that having two strong rivals, including Hamas, would lessen pressure on him to negotiate toward a Palestinian state. [Read More].  Also of interest are "What Was Hamas Thinking?" by Tareq Baconi, Foreign Policy [November 22, 2023] [Link]; and "Classic Intelligence Failure: The Impact Of Arrogance and Hubris," by Melvin Goodman, Counterpunch [December 8, 2023] [Link].

The Other Israel-Gaza Conflict: On Campus

By Juan Cole, DAWN [December 2023]

---- Israel's total war on Gaza, following Hamas's horrific terrorist attack on Oct. 7, has roiled higher education in the United States. The atrocities committed by Hamas in southern Israel two months ago have reverberated on many U.S. campuses, deeply traumatizing many Jewish students. But so too has Israel's massive military response in Gaza, which has been equally shocking to Palestinian-American, Arab American and Muslim American students, among many others. In the heated atmosphere prevailing since then, questions have arisen about the limits to free speech in the classroom, among student and faculty organizations, and on the social media accounts of university members, from professors to administrators. Often, these charged debates reflect the advent of significant numbers of minority students on university campuses, some from the post-1965 immigration wave, who view the Israel-Palestine conflict very differently than the white majority on many campuses. [Read More]

Additional articles of interest – "Killing Children, the Burdens of Conscience, and the Israel-Hamas War," by Henry Giroux, Counterpunch [December 8, 2023] [Link]; (Video) "Who pays for the war damage in Gaza?" from Aljazeera [December 2, 2023] – 25 minutes [Link]; "The West's Love for Israel Erases the Middle East's Real History," by Ussama Makdisi, Jacobin Magazine [November 2023] [Link]; and "Israel deserves every bit of the global public criticism it is receiving," by Rami G Khouri, Aljazeera [December 2, 2023] [Link],

The Mainstream Media

"Let's Wait Till Israel Says Something": Why the Media Has Failed the Test of the War in Gaza

By Razia Iqbal, The Nation [December 5, 2023]

---- Who controls the narrative, and how, really matters. There is the actual war—and then there is the information war. The BBC and other so-called legacy media operate in similar ways, and though they may deny it, in accepting the notion that a nation-state carries more weight, whether consciously or unconsciously, they aid and abet Israel in that information war. By that I mean the emphasis, angles. and focus it gives to the nation-state appear obvious if you make the effort to see them. [Read More]

'Israel-Hamas War' Label Obscures Israel's War on Palestinians

By Gregory Shupak, FAIR [Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting] [December 8, 2023]

---- Since October 7, the day the escalation in Israel/Palestine began American media outlets have persistently described the fighting as an "Israel-Hamas war." From October 7 through midday on December 1, the New York Times, Wall Street Journal and Washington Post have combined to run 565 pieces that use the phrase "Israel-Hamas war." … Characterizing what has happened since October 7 as an "Israel-Hamas war" fails to adequately capture the scope and the character of Israel's violence. Describing the bloodbath in Palestine this way obscures that grave violence is being visited upon virtually all Palestinians, whatever their political allegiances and whatever their relation to the fighting. [Read More]

The Climate Crisis

(Video) "Cabal of Oil Producers": Climate Scientist Kevin Anderson Slams Corporate Capture of COP28

From Democracy Now! [December 7, 2023]

---- As we broadcast from COP28 in Dubai, leading climate scientist Kevin Anderson lays out why he dismisses the annual climate talks as "grand events" that do little to actually curb emissions. "These COPs have become little more than a scam under which the oil companies and the other fossil fuel companies are hiding that nothing is being done," says Anderson. Decades of inaction make solving the climate crisis much harder, and Anderson notes "technology and fairness have to go hand in hand" in order to save the planet. [See the Program] Also of interest are "'COP28 Should Be The Most Important Meeting In The History Of The World,' an interview with Jeremy Brecher, ZNet [December 9, 2023] [Link]; and "Big Oil Stifling Democracy to Keep Burning Fossil Fuels," by Brett Wilkins, Common Dreams [December 5, 2023] [Link].

Civil Liberties/Free Speech

Biden Is Overseeing the Silent Death of the First Amendment [Julian Assange]

By Yanis Varoufakis,et al., The Nation [December 8, 2023]

---- In early 2024, a new, grim chapter may be written in the annals of journalistic history. Julian Assange, the publisher of Wikileaks, could board a plane for extradition to the United States, where he faces up to 175 years in prison on espionage charges for the crime of publishing newsworthy information. The persecution of Assange is clear evidence that the Biden administration is overseeing the silent death of the First Amendment—with global consequences. … At a time when the world grapples with the erosion of press freedom, with journalists imprisoned and killed, Assange's case raises profound questions about the consequences of challenging power and unveiling uncomfortable realities. [Read More]

Two dangerous bills in Congress take aim at Palestine solidarity

By Mitchell Plitnick, Mondoweiss [December 6, 2023]

---- On Tuesday, the House of Representatives passed a controversial bill equating anti-Zionism with antisemitism and effectively laying the groundwork for other laws to be crafted that could classify pro-Palestine protests and demonstrations as crimes. The bill's passage stirred outrage among supporters of Palestine and free speech. Another bill was introduced more quietly and immediately demonstrated the dangers of the first. Both bills bear close scrutiny. Taken together, they promise to make support for Palestinians under siege by Israel much more difficult. [Read More].  Also of interest is "US Scholars of Mideast dispute House Resolution 894's Equation of anti-Zionism with Antisemitism," from the Committee on Academic Freedom, North America, Middle East Studies Association [December 2023] [Link],

More articles of interest - (Podcast) "Sonya Meyerson-Knox on Jewish Voice for Peace," from FAIR [Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting] [December 8, 2023] [Link]; and "Columbia Suspended Pro-Palestine Student Groups. The Faculty Revolted," by Andrew Marantz The New Yorker [December 2, 2023] [Link].

Our History

Noam Chomsky at 95: No Strings on Him

By Michael Albert, Founder, Editor of ZNet [December 7, 2023]

---- Sometimes a voice reverberates across space and time. Sometimes a voice feels missing somewhere, sometime. Sometimes a voice does both, simultaneously, forever. For all the famous people who passed through MIT during my student stay there, or whom I have known in any other capacity since, or even who I have ever read from or read about, for all the great achievers who ever made a difference anywhere anytime, to my life the most important has been Noam Chomsky. His example has illuminated many paths that I and countless others have tried to navigate. Instead of throwing piddling pebbles at a giant, I prefer to just say thank you. And happy birthday, Noam, December 7. 95! Whatever befalls, may you be for us all, forever young. [Read More]

On the 75th Anniversary of the Declaration of Human Rights

By Katrina vanden Heuvel, The Nation [December 8, 2023]

---- This Sunday, December 10, marks the 75th anniversary of the ratification of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights by the United Nations. It comes at a time when disregard and contempt for human rights has resulted in barbarous acts of violence around the world. … It should also lead us to remember the leadership of Eleanor Roosevelt, the woman who brought the document into being. As the longest-serving first lady in American history, Roosevelt left an indelible mark on the country and the world. She transformed the role into what it is today, becoming a public face of her husband's administration. Throughout his presidency, she advocated for the rights of women, African and Asian Americans, and refugees. [Read More]