Action List: GAZA, end genocide and apartheid
Contents
US Voters—Contact Elected Leaders
Explore & Share Reliable Information
Inspire Others
Action Organizations & Protest Safety
Donate to Humanitarian Organizations
Tips to Sustain through Palestinian Freedom
I am in the process of transferring this action list over to the action hub page. The last update to this page—November 7, 2023. Please submit any suggested changes, additions, or questions through the form below.
1. US Voters— Keep calling Congress!
Daily calls are completely appropriate during a crisis of this degree. Leave a message anytime; an aide goes through them and notes how many are on the same issue. If the D.C. office mailbox is full try calling a local office.
Representatives Lookup and Contact Info
Senator Lookup and Contact Info
Here’s a script you can use and personalize. State your name, zip code and phone number, so they can verify you’re a voter and potentially call you back. Please note— THIS IS A NUMBERS GAME. You do not need to use the full script, you can literally call and just say your name etc. and “please demand a ceasefire in Gaza.”
Please call for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, and immediate restoration of essential services to civilians— water, food, energy, and communication.
Israel is settler colonial state and apartheid regime. This is not war, this is the massacre of people who were already brutally oppressed for 75 years. 2.3 million Palestinian civilians are trapped with no food, water, gas, electricity or medicine, while being hit with over 6000 bombs– this is genocide with U.S. political and financial backing.
End US funding of apartheid! End apartheid now, free all Palestinians!
Other ways to Contact Elected Officials
Sign petition for ceasefire includes over 500 orgs as signatories, Ceasefire Now
Sign this petition by Jewish Voice for Peace: President Biden, call a ceasefire now
Write a letter to congress, use this template from Jewish Voice for Peace
Call your governor— If your governor has a national profile, call them; though they do not have the power to make foreign policy, they do have political capital— for example, Kathy Hochul—NY, Gavin Newsom—CA
2. Explore & Share Reliable Information
Be thoughtful about what you share:
Center Palestinian Voices— Those of us who are not Palestinian must always follow Palestinian leadership and center the voices and experiences of Palestinian people. While we see how the work for Palestinian freedom connects to all liberation work, for many Palestinian people this fight is deeply personal and intergenerational. Respect and amplify Palestinian activists, journalists, analysts and scholars.
Watch out for misinformation, check your sources
Never rely on the number of likes to convince you that a piece of content is valid! Lies travel fast.
Before re-posting news, make sure it is from a direct source (e.g. a reporter on the ground, listed below), and/or that it is confirmed by other direct sources. For example, when I saw the first post about the communication blackout I didn’t repost— I checked a few other accounts on the ground and confirmed, then shared.
Reliable Sources of Information
Keep thinking critically about the source of your information, and any financial interests or other power dynamics at play.
Human rights organizations such as Amenesty International , Human Rights Watch
Al Jazeera— over the years I have found the reporting to be balanced and human rights focused, one of the few networks with reporters on the ground
Reporters on the ground in Gaza, Instagram handles: Motaz Azaiza @motaz_azaiza, Bisan @wizard_bisan1, Plestia Alaqad @byplestia, Mohammed Zaanoun @m.z.gaza, Hind Khoudary @hindkhoudary, Wael Al Dahdouh @wael_eldahdouh, Doaa albaz @_doaa_mohammad
Analysis & Education, Instagram handles:
Diana Buttu, linktree, @dianabuttu, Palestinian lawyer, writer and activist
Noura Erakat, website, @nouraerakat, legal scholar & human rights attorney
Jenan Matari @jenanmatari, writer
Ahmed Eldin @ahmedeldin, journalist
Salma Shawa @anat.international
Subhi @sbeih.jpg & Palestine Academy
Naley @naleybynature
3. Inspire Others
Send a group email—Gather an email list, and use this template to do your research (check out the links) and write something personal. Put everyone in the “bcc” box so addresses stay private.
I hope you are all well. I am reaching out to you to share my serious concern and grief over what is happening in Gaza, and to ask you to get involved, even by just signing a petition. Thousands of innocent people have been murdered in the last two weeks.
Many human rights organizations are saying that the Israeli state’s actions are war-crimes— violations of International Law. And it’s all funded by us, U.S. taxpayers. The historical context is really important, so I wanted to share some information with you.
Israel has been an apartheid state for 75 years, meaning the government has employed a cruel and brutal system of domination over Palestinian people. Gaza has often been called “the world’s largest open-air prison,” holding over 2.3 million civilians captive— literally unable to leave for 16 years. Israel controls all of Gaza’s essential supplies, and cut them off on October 11th: water, food, electricity, gas, and medical supplies. Now we are at the point where in addition to serious dehydration concerns, the next concern is cholera.
Since cutting off essential supplies, the Israeli state continued to drop over 6000 bombs on a city the size of Detroit, and then issues an evacuation order for North Gaza— displacing 1 million civilians and increasing panic and danger. Evacuees are currently unable to leave Gaza, and in South Gaza are continuing to face the same deprivation and airstrikes.
Please get informed and take action! It is up to us to end this atrocity.
template in progress
2. Share on social media— whatever the size of your platform, use it! We need to cut through this massive propaganda machine. Safety tips:
Do not post personal information that can be used to figure out your home address. Be cautious about posting in the moment pictures about where you are.
If your account is public, keep an eye out for trolls and report accusations of anti-semitism for speaking out against the Israeli state. If anyone is harassing you, report them and block them immediately, do not engage with trolls.
DeleteMe- guide to protect personal data; Online Harrasment Resources
3. Call people close to you and explain your concern, and ask them to call their senators and representatives (even better, follow up by texting or emailing the link to this action list)
4. Action Organizations & Protest Safety
Within Our Lifetime—Palestinian-led community organization, ”Within Our Lifetime is not only a name, but a promise, a motivational cry, a rally, and a call to action. It is the steadfast belief that no matter what obstacles we will face, victory of the oppressed is inevitable.”
Palestinian Youth Movement— “transnational, independent, grassroots movement of Palestinian and Arab youth”
US Campaign for Palestinian Rights— “As part of a global movement for collective liberation, we work to end U.S. complicity in Israel's massive violence against the Palestinian people.”
Jewish Voice for Peace, “the largest progressive Jewish anti-Zionist organization in the world. We’re organizing a grassroots, multiracial, cross-class, intergenerational movement of U.S. Jews into solidarity with the Palestinian freedom struggle, guided by a vision of justice, equality, and dignity for all people”
Daily Power Hour, daily 3pm EST, technically half an hour :-) “Come to channel grief and fear into action to stop the bloodshed. All are welcome. All are needed.”
Until Freedom, “an intersectional social justice organization rooted in the leadership of diverse people of color to address systemic and racial injustice
Protest Safety
Know your Legal rights & Be Safe— detailed guide from NYU School of Law, Center on Race Inequality and the Law. Know your rights to protest, while being realistic about safety especially if you are a person of color. Take reasonable precautions, such as protecting your cell phone privacy.
Guide from Amnesty International: “Know your rights – You have a right to peacefully assemble, a right to privacy and a right to protest. If you get injured, you have the right to receive medical care. Police must avoid the use of force.
Plan ahead – Find out where the protest is taking place and look for information about what to expect. Make a plan with your friends in case your group gets separated.
Wear protective clothing – You may need clothing that covers all your skin to protect you from exposure to sun and pepper spray. Bring shatter-resistant eye protection like sunglasses or swim goggles and a bandana soaked in water, lemon juice or vinegar that you can wear over your nose and mouth.
Pack emergency supplies – Bring a basic first-aid kit, water that you can use to clean your eyes and face, identification, enough cash for a pay-phone call and transport and a fresh set of clothes.
Come prepared to document human rights abuses – If possible, bring equipment that can help you document police actions, misuse of force, and injuries. This could include a camera, a watch and pen and paper.”
5. Donate to Humanitarian Organizations
Note: Organizations have gathered significant aid funding, however currently very limited aid is being allowed into Gaza & without a ceasefire, its impact will be reduced. While aid donations are still important, please focus current efforts and gifts on action organizations, a ceasefire is the priority.
Baitumaal usa—”Baitulmaal provides life-saving, life-sustaining and life-enriching humanitarian aid to under-served populations around the world regardless of faith or nationality.”
MAP— Medical Aid for Palestinians
UNRWA— United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East
6.Tips to Sustain Through Palestinian Freedom
Colonialism is deeply entrenched in our world, for true freedom we must sustain. The Instagram account @palmhmwellness is gathering mental health & wellness resources for the movement.
Check in with your sense of safety. Watching genocide unfold before our eyes is grief and shock beyond anything I could have imagined, and I cannot begin to understand the pain and trauma that Palestinian people are experiencing. And, watching the U.S. government and so many global leaders cheer on genocide is terrifying.
Loving action can help you pull out of avoidance/ a frozen place. Taking action reminds your system that you are not powerless, and reinforces your self-trust— that you will find the strength and courage to act with your values. Start simple and small, and perhaps recruit loved ones to take the steps with you.
Please do not sideline your basic needs. Check in with your body frequently. Drink water, take a minute to think through your meals, and check in with your breathing. Know your sleep needs; some people can sustain with less, for others sleep deprivation can seriously impact existing physical and mental health concerns.
Root in ancestry & the guidance of our wise leaders. Turn to art, spiritual practice, nature, whatever it is that helps you feel connected to something bigger. Building a free world is intergenerational work. We must hold both the urgency of the moment, and this greater collective journey.
Follow the path of least resistance. Resistance is part of a protection response, and deserves to be seen with curiosity and compassion—not ignored. There is no shame in starting wherever you need to start. Scroll down for lots of ways to take action, and keep feeling what’s happening in your body as YOUR POWER EXPANDS!