U.S. Aided Genocide of Palestinian People Must End!

Written By brandon hill

SILENCE IS NOT AN OPTION

Fairbanks, Alaska - Native Movement calls for immediate Israeli ceasefire and an end to U.S. aided genocide of Palestinian people. As an Indigenous-led organization, Native Movement is dedicated to justice and liberation of all oppressed people and the protection of all living beings. It is imperative that we speak out against the atrocities being carried out by the nation state of Israel, heavily supported by the United States, against the Palestinian people.

It can feel easy for those of us living far from Palestine and Israel to remain silent on global politics. We are told that the history is “complicated” and most news outlets share one-sided narratives. Yet it is important that we pay attention, that we educate ourselves, and that we lift our voices to demand humanity and to demand the stop of genocide. It is vital that we recognize the right of all beings to exist and live in peace. An immediate ceasefire is essential for a safer tomorrow.

On October 7, 2023 Hamas brutally attacked and took hostage innocent Israeli civilians and Israel responded by declaring war on Hamas. It is important to underscore that Hamas does not represent all Palestinian people or even all the people of Gaza. Yet following Oct. 7th, the Israel government issued orders for 1.1 million Palestinians in northern Gaza to evacuate, while simultaneously cutting off all vital supplies, electricity, and water to the area. Gaza is a narrow strip of land boxed in by stringent borders and the sea, it is also one of the most densely populated places on the planet. In the days that followed, bombing of civilian populations has been continuous and ruthless.

According to the United Nations News (Oct. 23, 2023), the death toll in Gaza has risen beyond 5,000 people: “Women and children have made up more than 62 per cent of the fatalities, while more than 15,273 people have been injured.” The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights in a statement made Oct. 17th said, “It remains unclear how many more bodies may be buried in the rubble – with many families missing loved ones, terrified about their uncertain fate.” The numbers of indiscriminate civilian Palestinian deaths and the amount of destruction in both Gaza and the West Bank has not stopped; it has not even diminished. This is not war, this is beyond revenge, this is genocide and it must not be looked away from, we cannot silently accept it.

It is critical for us as U.S. citizens to take action because our tax dollars are funding the weapons of mass murder and a majority of our governmental leadership continues to give unwavering support to the oppressive state of Israel. According to a Congressional report dated March 1, 2023, to date, the United States has provided Israel: 

  • $158 billion in bilateral assistance and missile defense funding. At present, almost all U.S. bilateral aid to Israel is in the form of military assistance. 

  • In Fiscal Year 2023 [as of March 1, 2023], Congress appropriated $3.8 billion for Israel (Foreign Military Financing and missile defense) and added $98.58 million in funding for other cooperative defense and nondefense programs.

Nearly 100% of the billions in U.S. “assistance” to Israel has been for military and defense purposes. The unrelenting bombing of Palestinian people is being funded by the United States.

The violence being carried out on Palestinian and Israeli people is beyond horrific. We weep with the Israeli and Palestinian families who have lost loved ones. We also weep for these lands loved by both Israelis and Palestinians. The unrelenting violence and destruction being carried out on Palestinian people, half of whom are children, can only be named as war crimes. We pray for the safety of the people of Gaza and the West Bank and for the safe return of the Israeli people taken hostage by Hamas. 

Native Movement stands in solidarity with the many thousands of people globally who are demanding Israel stop their attacks on Palestinian people. We denounce the United States government’s continued support and funding of Israeli military and weapons. We condemn the mass media’s one-sided and Israel-biased coverage of what is happening. We pray for the safety of innocent lives threatened in both Palestine and Israel. 

Our partners at NDN Collective said it best, “As Indigenous peoples who carry hundreds of years of state-sponsored genocide on our backs and who have been dispossessed of our lands, languages, cultures, and identities by nation-states, we know that settlers fight with both weapons and words. They spread insidious narratives to trick people into believing that state violence is both necessary and justified. We must reject these lies at every turn. We must center humanity and harness the moral strength to hold multiple truths at one time. Settler colonialism is at the root of the violence in Gaza. A ceasefire, an end to the U.S. funding Israel’s military, and true Palestinian land rights and liberation are the path to peace.” 

Humanity above all else. We cannot be complicit in the dehumanization and genocide of Palestinian peoples. We ask our fellow Indigenous, Alaska Native, Native American, Black, Asian, Latinx, LGBTQ2S+, and all our relatives and partners who have been impacted by U.S. settler colonialism to raise your voices to decry the genocide of Palestinian peoples. We cannot remain silent in times like these, for our silence serves only the oppressors. 

Native Movement asks all to call your local, tribal, and congressional leadership NOW (script for calling) 

We must demand:

  1. An immediate ceasefire. On Oct. 16, 2023 over a dozen U.S. representatives introduced legislation calling for a ceasefire, it has yet to be passed.

  2. Immediate aid and life-saving supplies, such as fuel, food, water, and medicines into Gaza. On October 18th, the White House announced Humanitarian aid to Palestinian civilians in Gaza and the West Bank; more is needed.

  3. SAFE PASSAGE OF Palestinian & Israeli civilians, refugees, hostages, and those in need of medical treatment. Immediate relief and recovery support.

  4. An immediate end of United States funding to the Israeli government for weapons and military escalation. 

  5. An end to Palestinian - Israeli apartheid; Palestinian people deserve equal rights within their ancestral lands.

brandon hill
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