Protesters occupy Klobuchar's office
A group of about 40 protesters on Tuesday afternoon took over Senator Amy Klobuchar’s Minneapolis office, demanding that the Senator take a stand against the recent Israeli attacks on Gaza. After two hours, they got a meeting with Senator Klobuchar.
“We are not terrorists! And we are not extremists!” Randy Hammad, a Palestinian American said in a telephone interview with the Daily Planet. Hammad, a resident of Minnesota, was one of the protesters who waited for two hours in the office.
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In their meeting, the protesters demanded that Senator Klobuchar and others “condemn Israel’s actions, support immediate ceasefire, stop U.S. financial/military support to Israel, end the blockade and allow humanitarian aid.”
Jordan Kushner, a criminal defense and civil rights lawyer and a longtime political activist was critical of the actions of the Israeli government and the complacency of American legislators, saying, “I don’t think people expected anything from Klobuchar. She is as much in the Israel lobby’s pocket as anyone.”
However, Kushner expressed confidence that their protest “successfully demanded an appearance by an elected official who had insisted she had not time, was able to work together to agree on demands and to delegate people to make presentations.”
Meredith Aby, a spokesperson for the Anti-War Committee, like the other protesters, was critical of Klobuchar, “She needs to take a stand for human rights, and not be quiet… her current stance has been to be silent… she has refused to speak out against Israel.”
In a statement to the Daily Planet, Klobuchar said, “I believe that, like the U.S., Israel has a right to defend itself from terrorist attacks. As the situation continues to unfold, I believe the U.S. must work with all parties to reestablish a ceasefire agreement as soon as possible and to provide humanitarian assistance to all civilians caught in the conflict.”
“What good does humanitarian aid do if we support Israeli military action?” asked Aby.
Hammad argued that Hamas is a democratically elected government in Northern Palestine, and has the same rights to defend and protect its families and children. He added, “as a human rights activist, I am against the killing of civilians on both sides.” He expressed concern that Palestinians in Gaza do not have food, electricity and very limited access to relief organizations.
Because people like him will be sending money to Gaza, Hammad said that he is confident that the FBI will be harassing him and others for “sending money to terrorists.” He asserted, “we are not terrorists nor are we extremists….we just want to protect our defenseless people.”
Nekessa Opoti is the publisher of kenyaimagine.com, a Kenyan online magazine and newspaper and also writes for Mshale, a Minnesota-based African community newspaper.
workaround
Comments
Gaza
Where were the protests against the 6,500 rockets launched against civilian targets in Israel by terrorists in Gaza? The “human rights” advocates in Senator Klobuchar’s office apparently don’t view indiscriminate rocket attacks as a moral problem. So much for their moral position.
Good for Senator Klobuchar for not buckling under to these people.
Support to the Palestinians of Gaza and the Middle East
The protesters against Israel’s aggression are to be congratulated for their courage. It is the cowards who would idly stand by and allow a rogue nation like Israel pretend itself to be democratic when its very existence is an affront to democracy. Its only reason for existence outside of the blind factional religious fanaticism of Zionism is to maintain a “Western” fortress of military intimidation against the Arab people. There can be no peace in the Middle East as long as the Arab peoples, Jewish majority within Israel, and others of various religious and secular backgrounds remain separated. What is needed is a democractic and secular Palestine where all peoples have a voice and work together to build a more tolerant society. One cannot have peace in the Middle East without this unity and this unity cannot be achieved until the crime of malappropriated Palistinian territory has been resolved and the perpetrators of Zionism (not Judahism) are brought to justice for their racist treatment of their victims; the Palestinian people.
U.S. out of Iraq, Afghanistan, and Somalia.
Stop U.S. funding of Israel and its military.
Somos Uno Porque America es Una
Israel/Gaza
Israel’s recent attacks on Gaza are justified. There is no reason to expect Israel to suffer repeated missile attacks by Hamas on its citizens without retaliating. I think Klobucher did well in her answers to the protesters, but I question the arguments they give for their demands and for their view of the situation. They must realize that there are few who are in sympathy with them. Why don’t more Palestinians protest to Hamas leaders about unprovoked attacks on Israel?
Why? Let Me Count the Ways
Israel has provoked every single incident of violence. First, because it came into existence with American and European help, and ever since that day. The Palestinian people have every right to demand and obtain the land taken from them by European and American aid to Zionists who, because they suffered an unpardonable holocaust at the hands of Nazi Germany and their allies in WWII, now believe they have the right to visit a similar fate upon the Palestinian people. They have no such right. The Palestinian people, through the voices of their organizations have always asserted a call for a democratic and secular Palestine in which all religions and non-religious groups can live together. That this Palestinian struggle for self-determination has taken such drastic and violent proportions is a direct result of this infamy of the Zionist state of Israel. A true call for peace can only begin to occur when the nations of the world bring pressure to bear on the United States and its military ally, the state of Israel, to assert the right of the Palestinians to a return of their homeland.
Asserting such a call is not an assertion of support for violence or for terrorism. It is simply the observation of a pregnant truth overlate in its birth. It is the observation that a people long oppressed will fight to the death for the justice they deserve. This point should not be lost on rational European Jews within and without Israel. The Zionist state of Israel is a contradiction to the struggle for democracy within and without the Middle East.
Thank you for your comment Mtomas3
I really like your intelligent response. I also praise those who protested at Klobuchar’s office. I have very disappointed in her lack of humanitarian response. This is military might vs civilians. One can not ignore the death of the all those children.. and the death that is coming in the aftermath.. whenever that might be. And if you look at news from Israel there are Israelis who are very much against the bombing and invasion.. they show 46% against it in poll taken in Israel.
thank you
Thank you for all your work in encouraging Senator Klobuchar to take a position in what can only be described as a massacre.
Hmm.
—-““We are not terrorists! And we are not extremists!” Randy Hammad, a Palestinian American said in a telephone interview with the Daily Planet.”—-
On an almost unrelated note, is it considered accurate/ethical journalism to put exclamation points after a person’s quotation?
Exclamation Points
Yes, if that accurately conveys the tenor of the source’s remarks.
Drid Williams comment: +1
I know that Hamas was democratically elected on a platform of non-corruption, but unfortunately for the Palestinians, those who voted for Hamas and those who did not, Hamas is doing the Palestinian people no favors.
I am a liberal, but I do not quite think all the cries against the state of Israel are justified. I would ask those who protest against Israel to also protest against Hamas. I am not comparing them as moral equivalents, but I am not crying alligator tears when Israel defends herself in this particular situation. I believe that Mr. Williams is correct, despite the fact that civilians in both Israel and Palestine are suffering.
It is a horrible situation that will not be ultimately be solved with violence. I hope the Palestinians vote against Hamas the next chance they have!
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