Democracy for Palestinians

It's almost half a year of Israel’s war on Gaza. The time to put an end to the United States’ double standards for Israel and Palestine is grossly past due. Congress is quick to believe findings of rape and sexual violence against Israeli women by Hamas, yet it remains silent, denies, and make excuses when the UN presents documented cases of Israeli soldiers committing these same war crimes against Palestinian women. A UN report dated, February 19, states in part, “We are particularly distressed by reports that Palestinian women and girls in detention have also been subjected to multiple forms of sexual assault, such as being stripped naked and searched by male Israeli army officers. At least two female Palestinian detainees were reportedly raped while others were reportedly threatened with rape and sexual violence,” the experts said. They also noted that photos of female detainees in degrading circumstances were also reportedly taken by the Israeli army and uploaded online. History has taught us that when one group of people applies supremacist language, practices, and policies towards themselves and dehumanizing language, practices, and policies towards another group, the conditions for atrocities are set—including rape as a weapon of war. Cases are well documented, including; The Age of Discovery, Chattle Slavery in the US and Caribbean, The Holocaust, The Nanjing Massacre, The Bangladesh Genocide, The Arminian Genocide, The Rwanda Genocide, and the list goes on. You are in a position of political power; you can change the trajectory of this war and save thousands of lives. If we could protect, feed, and heal the people of Gaza without you, believe me, we would. But we cannot. Politicians hold the symbolic and material votes. You have the power to call for a ceasefire, to reinstate funding to UNRWA, and to vote against aid packages to Israel. Israel’s mass killing of Palestinians, which has gone on for nearly a century from Gaza to Jenin to Jerusalem, must be stopped. And yet, the Biden administration has fanned the flames of genocide, promising to send Israel more weapons and military funding. I will not accept politics-as-usual of words of concern without U.S. policy change. That approach gives Israel a free pass to keep massacring the Palestinian people. Peace is not possible without justice, which begins with an end to Israel’s military occupation, theft of native Palestinian land, and attacks on Palestinian lives. Take action to deescalate today. Call for an immediate, permanent ceasefire and an end to all U.S. complicity in Israel's violence, including ending U.S. military funding to Israel. Stop arming, Israel! These massacres are funded into existence by our U.S. tax dollars, and not a single penny more should be sent. AIPAC donations must be rejected to ensure the credibility of our Democracy.