Growing Opposition in United States to
Zionist War Crimes
Minneapolis City Council
passed ceasefire resolution on February 8, 2024
On February 8, many thousands of high school and college students across the U.S. walked out in support of Palestine, demanding an end to U.S. aid and divestment from monopolies supporting the Israeli genocide. Many students faced lockdowns and a heavy police presence, such William Claude Reavis, Amos Alonzo Stagg and Carl Sandburg high schools in the Chicago area. Students and unions have also played a main role in getting at least 49 cities in the United States to ratify resolutions calling for a ceasefire in Gaza, including Atlanta, Chicago, Detroit, Minneapolis, San Francisco, Long Beach, Seattle and most recently Minneapolis. Many resolutions also demand immediate food, water, medicines and fuel for Gaza, an end to the siege and an end to U.S. aid to Israel.
Minneapolis
City Council passed its resolution on February 8 for a second
time. A
crowd of people
supporting the resolution chanted "From the river to the sea,
Palestine
will be free" after councillors voted to override the mayor's
veto of
their resolution that was initially passed on January 25. It
calls on
Minnesota's state and federal
delegations, as
well as the Biden administration, to "Advance a full, immediate
and
permanent ceasefire" in the Gaza Strip, provide humanitarian aid
and to
"Support an end to U.S. military funding to the State of Israel
and an
end to U.S. tax dollars contributing to humanitarian catastrophe
and
loss of life." It
also calls for the release of all Israeli hostages being held
captive
by Hamas and the release of "thousands of Palestinians held
indefinitely without cause and trial in Israeli military
prisons."
On January 31, Chicago City Council voted 24-23 in favour of a ceasefire resolution with the mayor breaking a tie vote to pass the resolution. This occurred despite efforts to block resistance using postponement of the vote. People and unions city-wide responded with more organizing, persistent demonstrations, packing city hall and lining up to speak in favour of the resolution. The broad demand for a ceasefire was such that the mayor went from opposing the resolution to voting in favour.
The Service Employees International Union (SEIU), one of the largest unions with close to two million members, on January 22, called for an immediate ceasefire and "the delivery of life-saving food, water, medicine and other resources to the people of Gaza." A resolution calling for a ceasefire, restoring rights and providing humanitarian aid and an end to the siege promoted by the United Auto Workers (UAW), the United Electrical, Radio and Machine Workers of America (UE) and the American Postal Workers Union (APWU) now has more than 4,590 local unions supporting it and the numbers are steadily growing.
The organization Feds United for Peace, representing employees from 27 U.S. government agencies and departments, held a hunger strike on February 1 to protest the Biden administration's support for Israel using starvation as a weapon. They called it a "day of fasting for Gaza" to draw attention to the ongoing war.
U.S. anti-war organization Veterans for Peace issued a statement on February 6 rejecting the outright racist and warmongering logic of the Biden administration that the death of three U.S. soldiers at the Al Tanf U.S. military base, in Syria, was a "red line" that had been crossed and legitimized lethal U.S. bombardment on Syria and Iraq. The Al Tanf base is illegally based in Syria, whose government considers its presence an act of aggression and has called for the unconditional withdrawal of foreign forces from its territory.
Veterans for Peace wrote: "Not the 30,000 Palestinians slaughtered in Gaza. That was no red line for the United States, whose wars in Vietnam, Iraq and Afghanistan caused the deaths of millions [...] But killing U.S. soldiers THAT is a red line. So now 'We have no choice now but to drop some bombs on you.'" Veterans for Peace offered its condolences to the families in a statement titled, "Tragic Deaths of U.S. Troops Must NOT Be Exploited as Justification for Striking Iran."
Veterans For Peace rebuked politicians who are pushing for war with Iran: "This would be the worst possible development and could lead to the deaths of millions. If Nikki Haley and Lindsay Graham are hungry for war, they can deploy themselves to U.S. bases in Iraq and Syria, or on-board U.S. Navy ships that are sitting ducks in the Red Sea." Veterans For Peace has over 100 chapters in the U.S., many of which are active in ongoing protests against the continuing slaughter of Palestinian men, women and children in Gaza. The 39-year-old organization includes veterans from World War II, the Korean War, the Vietnam War and more recent U.S. wars in Iraq, Afghanistan and elsewhere.
This article was published in
Volume 54
Number 10 - February 13, 2024
Article Link:
https://cpcml.ca/Tmlm2024/Articles/MS54107.HTM
Website: www.cpcml.ca Email: editor@cpcml.ca