I am a public school science teacher, registered Democrat, and proud American descendant of Jews fleeing Nazi Germany. I am writing to you on the day of the global strike for Palestine to implore you as my elected representative of my chosen political party: stop the unconditional funding of the Israeli military and end the genocide that is well underway in Gaza. The US has a long-standing relationship with Israel that has resulted in an ongoing apartheid and instability of the entire region. It is time to try something new and something that values civil rights and international law. The callousness with which Palestinian rights have been ignored by the international community, led by the US, ashames me as a Jew and as a human being. I and other progressive millennials have lost faith in the Democratic party’s moral leadership as a result of this issue. I find it hard to advocate for, donate to, or even vote for Democrats when it makes me complicit in the ongoing war crimes committed by the IDF with our money and support. Please, if only for the electoral future of the Democratic Party, consider a humane and lawful approach to Middle East policy that prioritizes lives over political gain. The genocide stops if the funding stops.
