US BDS action: Why we are blocking the boat

Why we are blocking the boat.

Because it’s time to disrupt Israeli business as usual. It has been time since 1948. And the summer of 2014 only served us a reminder to the world that the Palestinian struggle for liberation is calling on us to join them in their fight to end colonialism.

During the summer of 2014 thousands of Palestinians lost their lives, hundreds of thousands were displaced, and entire neighborhoods flattened to rubble. The physical destruction compounded with the environmental and psychological impact of the Israeli assault on Palestine is now etched in the story of the Palestinian struggle for liberation. People all over the world flooded the streets in protest, demanding an end to the siege on Gaza, an end to the colonial occupation of Palestine, and the freedom of all our political prisoners and the right of return of all of us Palestinians refugees. People in Palestine heard our chants, they felt the rumble of our marches. But Israel continued its assault. What forced Israel to stop their bombings was indeed the resilience and resistance of Palestinians. So this leaves us to wonder what exactly is our role as activists, allies and Palestinians in diaspora? Beyond massive demonstrations, many of us know that we must economically, politically and culturally weaken the state of Israel. And we see Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) as the way to do just that—de-normalize Zionism and end apartheid once and for all.

In July and August 2014, the San Francisco Bay Area saw some of the largest local demonstrations for Palestine. We raised our anti-Zionist and anti-colonial slogans and together and raised the bar on Bay Area solidarity with Palestine. And with Block the Boat, we raised the bar on BDS.

more

Comments

'Coronavirus-free' Gaza prepares for the worst

Until now, the besieged Gaza Strip has stayed free of the novel coronavirus spreading across the world. As the Gaza Strip has been under a stringent Israeli-led blockade for nearly 13 years, the spread of the coronavirus - officially known as COVID-19 - has become the topic of discussion for many Palestinians, with some joking that the blockade was preventing them from being exposed.But as authorities in the coastal Palestinian enclave gear up to contain any potential outbreak, serious questions have arisen about the risks and implications of such a scenario. But given its already difficult humanitarian situation and high population density, an outbreak in the Gaza Strip could prove to be catastrophic, health officials have warned. "If the virus enters Gaza and spreads, it will get out of hand," Gaza Ministry of Health spokesperson Majdi Thuhair told Middle East Eye, as he explained that a severe shortage of resources and personnel would make it near impossible

Boycott of New York diamond dealer launched to protest settlement construction

Members of Adalah NY call for boycott of Leviev for its crimes against Palestinians and South Africans New York, NY, May 9 – On the day before Mother’s Day, 40 New York human rights advocates gathered at the Leviev jewelry store on Madison Avenue and called on throngs of weekend Madison Avenue shoppers to boycott Israeli diamond mogul Lev Leviev over his companies’ construction of Israeli settlements on Palestinian land in West Bank villages including Bil’in and Jayyous. Mother’s Day is one of the biggest jewelry shopping periods in the US annually. The New York protest came as controversy is growing in Norway over Norwegian government investments in Leviev’s company Africa-Israel . The New York protesters also commemorated Bassem Abu Rahma from Bil’in who was shot to death by Israeli soldiers last month during a peaceful protest against the construction on Bil’in’s land of Israel’s wall and of the Mattityahu East settlement by a Leviev company. Thanks to vivapalestina.us (not co

Support striking Palestinian quarry workers demanding their rights from Israeli employer

On 16 June, 35 Palestinian workers at Salit Quarries in Mishor Adumim (in area C, east of Jerusalem, in the Occupied West Bank) began a strike. The workers, organized with the independent union WAC-Ma'an, are demanding an end to exploitation and humiliation, and insist on signing a first collective agreement. Salit Quarries’ main customer is Readymix Industries (Israel). The total reliance of Salit Quarry on Readymix as their biggest and by far the most important customer puts responsibility on Readymix to make sure that their clients abides by labour laws and safeguards elementary rights for the workers of Salit. We call upon Readymix to urge the Salit management to terminate this unnecessary strike by signing the collective agreement with the workers and WAC-Ma’an. Click this protest link to send your message. The text of the message is as follows: I write to you to express my grave concern about the failure of Salit management to sign a collective agreement with the workers of

Search iGaza