By Addey Lilley, Sam Levine, and Owen Madaus
On Tuesday June 3rd, the Arise and Resist coalition, including MAPA in collaboration with Jewish Voice for Peace, Alliance for Water Justice in Palestine, CD8 for Palestine, Northshore for Palestine, Green-Rainbow Party, and a number of other local peace and justice organizations held a procession to protest Israel’s starvation of Gaza. Activists wore black and carried empty pots and pans to symbolize hungry Gazans who are currently starving due to Israel’s blockade of all aid including food, water, fuel, and medicines.
Speakers included Omama Marzuq, Gheed Itani, Julie Jolin, Laila Shadid, Jill El-Ashkar, Eleanor Roffman, and Fawaz Abusharkh, all of whom gave powerful testimony of the conditions imposed on Gaza as a result of Israel’s US-backed blockade of humanitarian aid.
As the procession traveled through Newbury Street, the banging of empty pots and pans contrasted the lights and well dressed guests dining in luxury restaurants. While most of us are able to recount our last meal, the UN has described Gaza as the “hungriest place on earth”. World leaders have done little to pressure Israel to end the blockade on aid that has gone on for months now. The World Health Organization reports that 57 children have died from the effects of malnutrition since the aid blockade began, with all of the population suffering from lack of food, medicine, and safe drinking water.
The US-Israeli backed ‘Gaza Humanitarian Foundation’ (GHF) proved ineffective at stopping the famine, as was predicted by the UN and other reputable humanitarian organizations. The GHF only operates 4 distribution points, all in the South of Gaza, while the UN previously operated hundreds throughout the enclave. Because of this, human rights groups see the GHF as an Israeli mechanism of displacement forcing Palestinian to relocate again to survive. Fawaz Abusharkh spoke about the recent massacre on June 1st at a GHF aid site. The Red Cross reports 179 casualties and 21 dead from Israeli forces opening fire on people waiting to receive aid.
With recent UN reports stating there are 130,000 tons of food at border crossings blocked by Israel forces, International Law demands that humanitarian aid be allowed into Gaza. We must demand that Congress act to break the blockade and stop starving Gaza.
Fortunately, some congress members have begun to take action in line with the concerns of their constituents. Today, June 4th, U.S. Representatives Pramila Jayapal (WA-07), Jamie Raskin (MD-08), Bill Keating (MA-09), Valerie Foushee (NC-04), and Becca Balint (VT-AL) introduced a House resolution that calls for the urgent delivery and disbursement of humanitarian aid to the civilians of Gaza. Massachuetts Reps. Pressley, McGovern, Trahan, and Lynch cosponsored the resolution, but Massachusetts Reps. Katherine Clark, Richard Neal, Jake Auchincloss, and Seth Moulton have not yet done so.
The bill calls on the White House and all relevant government agencies to utilize all available diplomatic tools to seek the release of all hostages, the secure disbursement of food and humanitarian aid, and an end to the conflict. The rally on June 3rd and others nationwide indicate the growing concern and mobilization for the Palestinian civilians facing starvation, disease, and rising death tolls.
Urge your congress member to sign onto this bill. Use this tool to send them a letter expressing your support for allowing humanitarian aid into Gaza.
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Addey Lilley is a MAPA intern and a student at Wellesley College
Sam Levine is a MAPA intern and a student at Emerson College
Owen Madaus is a MAPA intern and a graduate student at the Heller School for Social Policy and Management at Brandeis University