Nancy Braus, until recently an independent bookseller, is a longtime activist who contributes often to these pages.
GUILFORD-Since the past half year of atrocities against the people of Gaza, the United States has behaved shamefully. The massacre of citizens of Gaza, the continued destruction of any remaining infrastructure there, and the unending and unpunished brutality of the far right settlers in the West Bank are all making the caring people of the United States rise up in rage and horror. The diplomatic missions of Antony Blinken and others, asking the Israeli military politely to murder less women and children, or at least be a bit less gleeful about it, have appeared as a bad joke. The fact that our tax dollars are providing the bulk of the weapons for this monstrous behavior should be enough to provide some leverage in the conflict, but the Biden administration refuses to claim their own power here. It is likely that some of the more neo-con oriented Biden administration flacks agree with the Israeli policy of mass murder, but some have spoken out, while others have quit.
I attended a protest at Dartmouth College last night. The students were serious, respectful, unarmed and nonviolent. Yet, 90 students were arrested for the crime of setting up FIVE tents on the Green and surrounding those in the tents with a circle of support. There was not an arrestable offense. These campus crack downs are appeasing the far right, appeasing the Israeli military and settlers, but why it is suddenly illegal to support Palestinians in any way? And how come the Democrats seem to have forgotten every lesson we learned from the immoral and disastrous war in Southeast Asia- the war that radicalized millions of young people and some not so young.
Imperialist wars, such as the current bombardment of Gaza, are always immoral- look at the millions of people who support Ukraine's efforts to fight Putin's attempt to take over a sovereign country. The Palestinians have been stateless for almost a century now, and we now have a potential for a worse genocide, should Donald Trump regain the presidency. On March 5, Trump said Netanyahu should "finish the problem." of the Palestinians. Should Trump get back into office, likely the crack down on protests will be more violent and more serious in terms of prosecution. The fascists who he will employ will not speak weak words about human rights and restraint, like Blinken. They will encourage the far, far right in Israel, who are amazingly open about enjoying the murder of women and children in Gaza and the West Bank. They will essentially push for a total genocide. Trump's son-in-law, and a real estate criminal, Jared Kushner, has complained more than once that the beaches of Gaza are a future development opportunity, potentially lost.
Where will the remaining Palestinians go? On January 9, the all but useless Blinken stated the the Israeli government must let Palestinians return to their homes in Gaza. Well, 4 months later, the Israelis continue to laugh at Blinken and Biden. They are getting all the sophisticated weapons they desire- billions and billions of our tax dollars going to murder innocents in Gaza. On May 1, Antony Blinken, in another show of weakness stated "We cannot, will not, support a major military operation in Rafah absent an effective plan to make sure that civilians are not harmed - and no, we've not seen such a plan." Well, when you are the power providing the weapons, making useless threats and refusing to back them up is called intentional powerlessness.
While the summer break may interrupt some of the student protest momentum, these breaks never seemed to stop the anti-Vietnam war protests. I doubt that we will see a stop in the movement in the United States to end these war crimes and a demand that the Palestinians can live with dignity in peace. Israel has managed to alienate the majority of countries in the world at this time, and yet Joe Biden cannot see what is in front of his face, being blinded by the cash from AIPAC, and the other pro-Israel billionaires. It is likely that ideologically, Biden still supports the Trump-supporting Netanyahu. Watching the Democrats toss the youth vote under the bus is painful- it will likely lead to a victory for Trump and his merry band of fascists.
This is a unique moment for the youth of America: the climate is in a terrifying catastrophe, young women are being threatened with a loss of all reproductive choices, the remnants of a democracy are under serious threat, the governing bodies are not even trying to keep young people safe from gun violence, and few people who have not previously owned a home will be able to purchase more than a tiny home. I am 70- Joe Biden seems like the older generation to me. I can't imagine how ancient he seems to those under 30. Millions of young people have very little to lose at this time, and are actually naming capitalism as the root cause of the dysfunction. It is fair to say that nobody can predict where this movement is going, but the Democratic Convention is in August. In Chicago.
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