On Monday, Israeli soldiers and border police, 100 strong, launched a militarized demolition of homes in Sur Baher. They claimed the homes were too close to Israel’s Apartheid Wall – even though Israel had built the Apartheid Wall through the middle of that village.

Meanwhile, instead of condemning this huge violation of international law, 398 Members of Congress put all their energy into condemning people like you and me who use our right to boycott to bring pressure for justice in Israel/Palestine.

Boycotting is one of the most effective, time-honored tools of protest. It worked in South Africa, and it will work to end Israeli war crimes like this week’s heartbreaking destruction of Palestinian homes.

It’s unacceptable that Congress is trying to silence our protests – even when its attempt is purely symbolic. It is singling out the BDS Movement and demonizing all of us.

Our representatives need to hear from you today. If they voted to attack our right to boycott, tell them how disappointed you are, and demand to know why they voted that way.

If they voted against the resolution, as a handful of heroes did, thank them for standing with us. Representatives Rashida Tlaib, Ilhan Omar, Betty McCollum, Barbara Lee, Pramila Jayapal, Mark Pocan, and others showed that, now more than ever, progressive politics includes standing up for Palestinian justice.

H.Res 246 is written in bad faith with one goal: to undermine the movement for Palestinian rights by making Israel an exception when it comes to using boycotts to protest injustice.

It was specifically changed from a bill to a non-binding resolution because its proponents know that boycotting is a constitutionally protected form of free speech used by protesters throughout history, from the farmworker-led grape boycott to the Montgomery bus boycott.

But the strategy behind the resolution is the same: to use the weight of Congress to ostracize and intimidate supporters of Palestine and the non-violent boycott movement.

That is NOT Congress’s role. Our representatives need to hear we are extremely disappointed with the results of this vote – and we need to know why Congress opposes our constitutional right to protest.

Thanks for all you do,

Stefanie Fox
Deputy Director