According to the Washington Report on Middle East Affairs: “In addition to nearly $3 billion in direct aid, Israel usually gets another $3 billion or so in indirect aid: military support from the defense budget, forgiven loans, and special grants. While some of the indirect aid is difficult to measure precisely, it is safe to say that Israel’s total aid (direct and indirect) amounts to at least five billion dollars annually.” (http://www.wrmea.com/html/usaidtoisrael0001.htm.)
Tax Day Flyer (743KB)
Protest against the continuing supply of U.S. arms used by Israel to destroy Palestinian civil society and kill Palestinian civilians whether directly by U.S.-supplied arms, or indirectly by starvation, disease, and denial of medical care through a military siege.
Spread the Word!!
The World Social Forum and Palestinian civil society groups have issued a call for March 30 (Land Day) to be observed as Global BDS Action Day.
To answer this call, the Boston Coalition for Palestinian Rights and other groups will be outside several stores that sell Motorola cell phones. We will ask customers to "Hang Up on Motorola" for its sales of communication devices and fuses to the Israeli military and products that support the Apartheid Wall and Israeli settlements.
Date: Monday March 30
Time: 12:30 PM to 1:30 PM
Place: Downtown Crossing, Boston
Meet on Washington Street outside Macy’s Department Store.
Please join us with signs saying:
Hang Up on Motorola
Motorola supports Israel’s war crimes
Motorola supports Israel’s land grab
And spread the word!
Resources:
More information:
On Thursday, January 8, the same day that protestors committed civil disobedience at the building housing the Israeli Consulate, Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick spoke at a ‘We Stand with Israel’ event at a Chestnut Hill synagogue. On the following Monday, this letter bearing hundreds of signatures was delivered to Governor Deval Patrick’s office, along with documents giving information about Israel’s long record of human rights abuses in the Gaza Strip.
An Open Letter to Governor Deval Patrick
January 12, 2009
We, the undersigned, deplore your participation in a “stand with Israel” rally at Chestnut Hill on January 8, 2009.
Are you not aware that the world’s fourth largest army and some of the United States’ most potent weapons have been unleashed on one of the most densely populated areas on earth, which is not much bigger than Boston?
Are you not aware that Israel’s attacks have killed hundreds of children, caused thousands of casualties, targeted emergency aid convoys and destroyed at least 16 schools (including the American school), clinics, ambulances, a university, all the major municipal buildings and thousands of homes?
Are you not aware that for 18 months before these attacks, Israel had turned the Gaza Strip into a closed prison, and deprived its residents of basic necessities including sufficient food, water, fuel, medicine and medical supplies?
Are you not aware that the United Nations, the Red Cross and a range of human rights groups have denounced Israel’s collective punishment of the Gaza Strip and its massive military assaults as “war crimes”?
We would like to think that you stood with Israel at such a time not out of mere political expediency, but because of a lack of exposure to both sides of the story. We are therefore presenting you with reports compiled by human rights and other agencies so you can broaden your understanding of the issue.
In your inauguration speech you told us, “Change is not always comfortable or convenient or welcome. But it is what we hoped for, what we have worked for, what you voted for, and what you shall have.”
The change that we, and the world, hope for is an end to the wholly uncritical support of Israel on the part of our elected officials. Holding Israel above the law as it terrorizes the region is not just bad for Palestinians – it is bad for the US and Israel too.
We urge you to demonstrate your commitment to change by showing – in word and deed – that you recognize that Palestinians are human beings too.
Dear Friends,
While we wish we didn’t have to start the New Year with the crisis in Gaza, your participation in supporting Gaza is urgent. An ad hoc group of individuals and organizations, including The Boston Coalition of Palestinian Rights (BCPR) and the collective of Gaza On My Mind, have organized a march and rally. Please join us, bring as many of your friends and family as you can, and announce the details widely.
Gaza Rally Flyer (1.5MB)
The march will gather at Copley Square (corner of Boylston and Dartmouth streets). It will proceed on Boylston St. to Washington St, turn left onto Washington St to Court St, turn left on Court St. to Tremont St, turn left on Tremont St to Boylston St, turn right on Boylston St to Charles St, turn left on Charles St. to Park Plaza, turn right at Park Plaza, proceed straight on St James St, and end at Copley Square (corner of St. James and Dartmouth). March Route Map
Speakers confirmed:
The US Campaign to End the Israeli Occupation launched an open letter to President-Elect Obama calling for a change in U.S. policy toward Palestine/Israel to support human rights, international law, and equality for all. Nearly one hundred organizations and thousands of individuals have signed this open letter. Add your endorsement by clicking here. (Full text is below.)
Here are some other ways that you can help us influence the incoming Obama Administration:
Dear President-Elect Obama,
Congratulations on your historic election as the next President of the United States.
Last year, you pledged to "take an active role, and make a personal commitment to do all I can to advance the cause of [Israeli-Palestinian] peace from the start of my Administration." We are eager to work with you to fulfill this goal.
To do so, your Administration should break with past policies of unconditional support for Israel's illegal military occupation of the Palestinian West Bank, East Jerusalem, and Gaza Strip, and change U.S. policy toward Israel/Palestine to support human rights, international law, and equality.
We agree with Aaron David Miller, a 25-year State Department Middle East negotiator and adviser on Arab-Israeli affairs, who wrote that "For far too long, many American officials involved in Arab-Israeli peacemaking, myself included, have acted as Israel's attorney, catering and coordinating with the Israelis at the expense of successful peace negotiations."
To become an honest and effective broker, your Administration should:
* Insist that Israel ends its siege of the Gaza Strip. Israel has deliberately impoverished the 1.5 million residents of the Gaza Strip and caused a humanitarian catastrophe of dire proportions by prohibiting the delivery of food, medicine, fuel, and electricity. Your Administration should insist on the illegality of collective punishment and support the human rights of Palestinians such as freedom of movement as a first step towards ending Israel's occupation of the Gaza Strip.
* Demand a freeze in the construction of settlements and Israel's Wall in the West Bank. Israel's West Bank settlements, including those in East Jerusalem, are all illegal under international law,and the International Court of Justice ruled in 2004 that Israel's Wall is illegal and must be torn down. Halting this construction should be a first step toward completely dismantling the infrastructure of Israel's occupation of the West Bank and East Jerusalem, which former President Jimmy Carter, Archbishop Desmond Tutu, and others have labeled "apartheid."
* Hold Israel accountable for its misuse of U.S. weapons. In 2007, the United States and Israel agreed to increase military aid to Israel by 25% over the next decade, totaling $30 billion. During the Bush Administration, Israel killed more than 2,000 innocent Palestinian civilians who took no part in hostilities, oftentimes with U.S. weapons in violation of the Arms Export Control and Foreign Assistance Acts. Your Administration should hold Israel accountable for these violations of U.S. law and cut off military aid as required by law, rather than increase it.
* End the U.S. veto protecting Israel at the United Nations. The United States has used its veto power at the UN more than 40 times since 1972 to shield Israel from the consequences of its violations of human rights, UN resolutions, and international law. Your Administration should work with, not in opposition to, the international community so that human rights, UN resolutions, and international law are applied and enforced uniformly.
* Base a just peace on human rights, international law, and equality. Such a policy is the only way to ensure the legitimate security needs of all peoples and can only be achieved by engaging in dialog with all interested parties. A just and lasting Israeli-Palestinian peace includes the complete end of Israel's military occupation of the West Bank, East Jerusalem, and Gaza Strip; a resolution to the Palestinian refugee issue consistent with international law and UN resolutions, including the right of return and/or compensation; and full equality for Palestinian citizens of Israel. A policy denying Palestinians these internationally-guaranteed rights will only lead to yet another failed "peace process".
Signed by,
see the list of signatories here.