Nanjeanne
Nanjeanne's JournalHappening now in Texas - UT Austin - I'm now getting Kent State flashbacks.
[link:https://twitter.com/RepCasar/status/1783209290473570800|]
[link:https://twitter.com/RyanChandlerTV/status/1783197539824468403|]
[link:https://twitter.com/RyanChandlerTV/status/1783214460280172691|]
Now this I find frightening.
Robert Reich on Columbia U
The most important thing I teach my students
And why Columbias faculty should issue a vote of no confidence in its president, Nemat Shafik
The following day she summoned the New York City Police Department to arrest more than 100 students who were engaging in a peaceful protest against it.
Can we be clear about a few things? Protesting this slaughter is not expressing antisemitism. It is not engaging in hate speech. It is not endangering Jewish students. It is doing what should be done on a college campus taking a stand against a perceived wrong, at least provoking discussion and debate.
Read whole article here: [link:https://robertreich.substack.com/p/the-most-important-thing-i-teach|]
Dr. Yusef Salaam, Exonerated Five & Now NYC Councilman Statement on Columbia Demonstrations
[link:https://twitter.com/dr_yusefsalaam/status/1782843925671055427|]
Dr. Salaam certainly knows first-hand what impact mass media has on narrative - and how easily it can be misdirected.
Columbia University Dept of Sociology Faculty Statement
[link:https://twitter.com/dr_tey/status/1782775866881155303?s=61&t=_R0eaN5XDTx3hnl2jyXBTA|]
For ease you can view the u rolled thread starting here [link:https://twitter.com/dr_tey/status/1782774937389875512?s=61&t=_R0eaN5XDTx3hnl2jyXBTA|]
Israeli Strikes On Rafah Kill 22, Mostly Children, As U.S. Advances Aid Package
Israel has carried out near-daily air raids on Rafah, where more than half of Gazas population of 2.3 million has sought refuge from fighting elsewhere. It has also vowed to expand its ground offensive against the Hamas militant group to the city on the border with Egypt despite international calls for restraint, including from the U.S.
SNIP
The first Israeli strike in Rafah killed a man, his wife and their 3-year-old child, according to the nearby Kuwaiti Hospital, which received the bodies. The woman was pregnant and the doctors saved the baby, the hospital said. The second strike killed 17 children and two women from an extended family.
These children were sleeping. What did they do? What was their fault? asked one relative, Umm Kareem. Another relative, Umm Mohammad, said the oldest killed, an 80-year-old aunt, was taken out in pieces. Small children were zipped into body bags.
Mohammed al-Beheiri said his daughter, Rasha, and her six children, the youngest 18 months old, were among those killed. A woman and three children were still under the rubble.
Read whole article: [link:https://www.huffpost.com/entry/israel-rafah-strikes-children-us-aid-package_n_6624c60ee4b0167f7bf53d1d|]
And thank you to the brave 37 Democrats who tried to end this slaughter by voting NO on the Israel aid bill:
Becca Balint of Vermont
Don Beyer of Virginia
Earl Blumenauer of Oregon
Jamaal Bowman of New York
Cori Bush of Missouri
Andre Carson of Indiana
Greg Casar of Texas
Joaquin Castro of Texas
Judy Chu of California
Mark DeSaulnier of California
Lloyd Doggett of Texas
Maxwell Frost of Florida
John Garamendi of California
Chuy García of Illinois
Al Green of Texas
Jonathan Jackson of Illinois
Pramila Jayapal of Washington
Hank Johnson of Georgia
Ro Khanna of California
Dan Kildee of Michigan
Barbara Lee of California
Summer Lee of Pennsylvania
Jim McGovern of Massachusetts
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York
Ilhan Omar of Minnesota
Chellie Pingree of Maine
Mark Pocan of Wisconsin
Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts
Delia Ramirez of Illinois
Jamie Raskin of Maryland
Mark Takano of California
Bennie Thompson of Mississippi
Rashida Tlaib of Michigan
Jill Tokuda of Hawaii
Nydia Velázquez of New York
Maxine Waters of California
Bonnie Watson Coleman of New Jersey
Press Release: Joint Letter to White House on Attack on Humanitarian Workers in Gaza
WASHINGTON (April 4, 2024) In response to the tragic killing of seven World Central Kitchen team members, six non-governmental organizations operating in Gaza--Anera, CARE USA, Humanity & Inclusion, MedGlobal, Project HOPE, and Save the Children UShave issued the following open letter to President Biden and the National Security Council:
President Joe Biden, United States of America
April 4, 2024
Mr. President:
We write to you as the leaders of US-based NGOs with staff operating on the frontlines of critical humanitarian efforts in Gaza. The majority of us have seen members of our staff killed or injured, and we fear deeply for the safety of our teams on the ground. This week, seven humanitarian aid workers from World Central Kitchen (WCK), including a US-Canadian dual citizen, were inexplicably killed in an Israeli strike after delivering lifesaving food aid to communities on the brink of famine in central Gaza. All seven of the aid workers killed in the strike were traveling in marked vehicles with WCK logos and their coordinates had been proactively shared in coordination with the Israeli government.
Their deaths were entirely preventable, but they are just the latest example of disturbing aid worker casualties in Gaza at the hands of Israeli forces. In the past six months, 203 aid workers have been killed in Gaza more than in any recorded year to date. These include aid workers from US-based humanitarian organizations such as Project HOPE, World Central Kitchen, Anera, and Save the Children. NGO offices and other humanitarian facilities in Gaza have also been destroyed, even when deconflicted.
To support international humanitarian law (IHL), the United States has a responsibility to condemn these deplorable actions and hold the Israeli government accountable for failing to protect humanitarians who are delivering lifesaving aid to civilians. These individuals are protected under IHL, and the attacks undermine principles of IHL that have been in place for 160 years. They must stop. Every aid worker who died dedicated their life to helping others in need, and their senseless deaths are a devastating blow to their families, communities, and colleagues. The hazardous conditions facing aid workers exacerbate the already deeply dangerous and precarious conditions were facing in delivering humanitarian assistance to Gazans.
People in Gaza have lived in an ongoing nightmare for the last six months. Over 33,000 people have been killed, the majority of whom are women and children. If people are not dying just from violence, they are dying from malnutrition, dehydration, or disease.
Hundreds of thousands of displaced people are living in overcrowded camps with no access to adequate food, clean water, hygiene, and medical care. Among them are humanitarian aid workers and volunteers helping their neighbors and supporting their own families. The Integrated Food Security Phase Classification asserts that famine is imminent, if not already present, and many are already suffering from malnutrition and starvation. People in Gaza need the support of humanitarian organizations now more than ever before.
As a result of recent attacks on humanitarian workers by the IDF, and to reevaluate the threats posed to our humanitarian operations, some humanitarian organizations operating in Gaza have temporarily paused programs. To safely operate and continue providing lifesaving care, we demand assurances that aid workers, including health workers, will be protected and that those responsible for these senseless killings will be held accountable.
We propose that the United States of America demand an independent investigation into these deadly attacks, withhold offensive arms transfers to the Israeli government, establish and maintain unhindered access and operations for humanitarian organizations, and call for an immediate and permanent ceasefire in the region. With so many lives at stake, there can be no excuse for inaction, or for allowing this disastrous status quo to continue.
Respectfully,
Sean C. Carroll, President & CEO, Anera
Michelle Nunn, President & CEO, CARE USA
Jeff Meer, U.S. Executive Director, Humanity & Inclusion
Zaher Sahloul, President and co-founder, MedGlobal
Rabih Torbay, President & CEO, Project HOPE
Janti Soeripto, President & CEO, Save the Children US
Daniel Day Lewis, the actor, writing in 2005 after visiting Gaza for the first time: Inside Scarred Minds
[link:http://www.miftah.org/display.cfm?DocId=6978&CategoryId=20|]
Brilliant actor - brilliant writer. I found this article from 2005 that he wrote absolutely fascinating. And considering it was almost 20 years ago it brings a perspective to what has happened and is happening to Gazans. There are many stories in this piece but I cant post them all due to DU restrictions. But I really encourage people to read the whole article and reflect on what was happening 20 years ago and is going on now.
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World Central Kitchen's Response to IDF Preliminary Investigation
[link:https://wck.org/news/preliminary-investigation|]
However it is also clear from their preliminary investigation that the IDF has deployed deadly force without regard to its own protocols, chain of command and rules of engagement. The IDF has acknowledged that our teams followed all proper communications procedures. The IDFs own video fails to show any cause to fire on our personnel convoy, which carried no weapons and posed no threat.
Without systemic change, there will be more military failures, more apologies and more grieving families.
The root cause of the unjustified rocket fire on our convoy is the severe lack of food in Gaza. Israel needs to dramatically increase the volume of food and medicine traveling by land if it is serious about supporting humanitarian aid.
Food is a universal human right. WCK is proud to have fed families across Israel after October 7, and we continue to demand the release of all hostages. At the same time, we believe Palestinian families have the same universal right to food, water and medicine. We know Israelis, deep down, share the same values.
We demand the creation of an independent commission to investigate the killings of our WCK colleagues. The IDF cannot credibly investigate its own failure in Gaza.
Its not enough to simply try to avoid further humanitarian deaths, which have now approached close to 200, said WCK founder José Andrés. All civilians need to be protected, and all innocent people in Gaza need to be fed and safe. And all hostages must be released.
Their apologies for the outrageous killing of our colleagues represent cold comfort, said WCK CEO Erin Gore. Its cold comfort for the victims families and WCKs global family.Israel needs to take concrete steps to assure the safety of humanitarian aid workers. Our operations remain suspended.
We demand the creation of an independent commission to investigate the killings of our WCK colleagues. The IDF cannot credibly investigate its own failure in Gaza. Yes Chef!
IDF Drone Bombed World Central Kitchen Aid Convoy Three Times, Targeting Armed Hamas Member Who
Wasnt There
The strike on the aid convoy was travelled along a route preapproved and coordinated with the Israeli army killed seven workers of the World Central Kitchen but the target, an armed man thought to be a terrorist, never left the warehouse with the cars
According to the defense sources, the cars were clearly marked on the roof and sides as belonging to the organization, but the war room of the unit responsible for security of the route that the convoy travelled identified an armed man on the truck and suspected that he was a terrorist.
SNIP
According to Deir al-Balah residents, who were in the area when the convoy was hit, the attack happened near the temporary pier set up to unload goods that reach Gaza by sea, like the shipments organized by WCK from Cyprus.
Some of the residents were skeptical about the army's stance that the event was a mistake and would be investigated, as the cars in the convoy were clearly identified as belonging to the humanitarian organization.
READ DETAILS HERE
Free link [link:https://archive.is/z3RU6|]
Haaretz link [link:https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/2024-04-02/ty-article/.premium/idf-bombed-wck-aid-convoy-3-times-targeting-armed-hamas-member-who-wasnt-there/0000018e-9e75-d764-adff-9eff29360000|]
World Central Kitchen Pausing Operations Immediately in the Region.
Statement:
The WCK team was traveling in a deconflicted zone in two armored cars branded with the WCK logo and a soft skin vehicle.
Despite coordinating movements with the IDF, the convoy was hit as it was leaving the Deir al-Balah warehouse, where the team had unloaded more than 100 tons of humanitarian food aid brought to Gaza on the maritime route.
This is not only an attack against WCK, this is an attack on humanitarian organizations showing up in the most dire of situations where food is being used as a weapon of war. This is unforgivable, said World Central Kitchen CEO Erin Gore.
The seven killed are from Australia, Poland, United Kingdom, a dual citizen of the U.S. and Canada, and Palestine.
I am heartbroken and appalled that weWorld Central Kitchen and the worldlost beautiful lives today because of a targeted attack by the IDF. The love they had for feeding people, the determination they embodied to show that humanity rises above all, and the impact they made in countless lives will forever be remembered and cherished, said Erin.
The IDF says it is carrying out an in-depth examination at the highest levels to understand the circumstances of this tragic incident.
World Central Kitchen is pausing our operations immediately in the region. We will be making decisions about the future of our work soon.
Ive tried to keep away from posting for my own sanity and belief in humanitys goodness - but this news has broken my heart once again.
[link:https://wck.org/news/gaza-team-update|]
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Member since: Wed Oct 28, 2015, 02:02 PMNumber of posts: 4,950