We cannot feast while there is famine.
The People’s State of the Union.
Over five months into its genocidal onslaught, more Palestinian children have been killed by the Israeli military than in the last four years of armed conflict around the world. As Ramadan begins, Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu is pressing forward with plans for a ground invasion of Rafah, threatening to permanently displace 1.5 million Palestinians forced to take shelter there.
That’s why we haven’t slowed down for even a minute. Across the country, from Chicago to Brattleboro, Los Angeles to NYC, we’re on the streets demanding a permanent ceasefire in Gaza and an end to all U.S. military funding for the Israeli government.
That has meant never letting up the pressure on President Biden, from blocking his motorcade en route to the State of the Union to protesting at NBC headquarters while he taped an interview for The Late Show. It has meant orchestrating high-profile actions that force the conversation about U.S. complicity in this genocide into the mainstream, from preventing the Oscars from starting on time to taking over iconic landmarks like the Statue of Liberty. And it has meant exposing AIPAC as the toxic, right-wing lobby group they are: one that has bullied our elected officials into opposing a ceasefire and run cover for the Israeli military as it slaughtered over 30,000 Palestinians in a matter of months.
The fight for an immediate and permanent ceasefire feels more urgent than ever before. But we know that the day after a ceasefire is reached, our work will be far from over. And we’re ready to keep fighting for the long haul.
Gaza Protesters Block Roads in Washington as Biden Delivers State of the Union, Rolling Stone, March 7, 2024
“We are outraged, we are heartbroken, and we are demanding that President Biden stop funding and arming Israel’s genocide of Palestinians.”
– Elena Stein, Director of Organizing, JVP
Jewish Voice for Peace leads 24-hour vigil for Gaza in Loop during U.S. State of the Union, ABC 7, March 7, 2024
“The bare minimum is a ceasefire but we need so much more than a ceasefire. We need to end U.S. military aid to Israel so this can’t continue“
– Deborah Adelman, JVP-Chicago
Jewish and Voting ‘Uncommitted’ in Michigan, The New York Times, February 27, 2024
“If you [President Biden] are not committed to a cease-fire, we’re not committed to you.”
– Barbara Weinberg Barefield, JVP Action local leader
24-hour vigil held for Palestinians killed in Gaza coincides with State of the Union address, NBC Chicago, March 7, 2024
“We are here today trying to give a meaning to each life to show that life represents a future that has been lost“
– Marty Levine, JVP-Chicago
Protesters Blocked Traffic Outside White House Before Biden’s State of the Union, Truthout, March 8, 2024
“[Biden] has ignored the demands of the countless Americans who have filled the streets every day for five months demanding that he call for an immediate and permanent ceasefire in Gaza”
– Beth Miller, Political Director, JVP Action
Protesters Interrupt Adam Schiff’s Victory Speech, Chanting ‘Cease-Fire Now’, The New York Times, March 6, 2024
IfNotNow, a Jewish organization that opposes Israel’s actions in its war against Hamas, said on social media that its Los Angeles chapter was behind the protest at Mr. Schiff’s event, along with the local chapter of a like-minded group, Jewish Voice for Peace.
30+ Arrested in Chicago Protest Demanding Gaza Cease-Fire, Common Dreams, March 8, 2024
“We’ve been out on the streets for five months and we’re not going anywhere.”
– Deborah Adelman JVP-Chicago
Sacramento Jewish Voice for Peace Supports a Cease-Fire, The Davis Vanguard, March 1, 2024
“We are here as Jewish people to say we stand with Palestinians. We must do everything we can to stop the genocide that Israel is committing against the people of Gaza and to uplift the urgent need to end violence, apartheid, and occupation in Palestine.”
– Molly Chlebnikow, JVP-Sacramento
Why Are These U.S. Cities Calling for a Cease-Fire in Gaza?, Katie Couric Media, February 29, 2024
“Cease-fire resolutions at the municipal level are one way to amplify the voices of the majority of American voters who support a permanent cease-fire…These initiatives send a message to our members of Congress and the Biden administration around what their voters want.”
– Beth Miller, Political Director, JVPA
We Are American Jewish Educators, and We Demand a Cease-Fire, Jacobin, February 29, 2024
“Growing numbers of American Jews refuse to allow the mainstream political establishment to support the ethnic cleansing of the Palestinian territories in our name. Fifty percent of American Jews support a cease-fire, while only 34 percent oppose it.”
– Hannah Klein and Jake Roth
When celebrities show up to protest, the media follows — but so does the backlash, NPR, March 1, 2024
Fans of Euphoria actor Hunter Schafer learned that she and dozens of anti-war protestors were arrested earlier this week in the lobby of NBC’s headquarters at 30 Rockefeller Plaza, timed to President Biden’s interview on Late Night with Seth Meyers.
Hunter Schafer of ‘Euphoria’ arrested in cease-fire demonstration at 30 Rock, Los Angeles Times, February 28, 2024
“We commend [Hunter Schafer’s] commitment to Palestinian freedom and to a future of justice for everyone”
– Sonya Meyerson-Knox, Communications Director, JVP
As Outrage Over Gaza Grows, Biden Hides From Protests Amid High-Stakes Election, Common Dreams, March 1, 2024
“Having a foreign policy so unpopular that you must avoid large crowds is definitely totally fine and not a problem for a presidential candidate”
– Beth Miller, political director, JVPA
The ADL Wants to Conflate Critiques of Israel with Antisemitism. That Won’t Make Jews Safer., In These Times, February 26, 2024
Anti-Zionist Jewish Americans arrested during protest against Joe Biden, Middle East Eye, February 26, 2024
“[Biden] is not listening to his constituents, he’s listening to Netanyahu, he’s listening to Aipac”
– Jane Hirschmann, JVP-NYC
Euphoria star Hunter Schafer arrested at pro-Palestine protest during Joe Biden TV appearance, The Guardian, February 289, 2024
“We commend Hunter’s commitment to Palestinian freedom and to a future of justice for everyone“
– Sonya Meyerson-Knox, Communications Director, JVP
Brattleboro march draws 150 in global call for ceasefire, Brattleboro Reformer, March 3, 2024
“Naomi Ulian, a member of the Vermont-New Hampshire chapter of Jewish Voice for Peace, said she attended the rally to honor the memory of her grandparents, who were refugees from the Nazi regime.”
Pro-Palestinian Jewish group wants to see end of US funding for Israel, Al Jazeera, March 4, 2024
“Our democracy won’t be safe until the role of AIPAC in our politics is diminished”
– Tal Frieden, JVP-NYC
Why Does Biden Keep Making the Same Dangerous Comment About Jews? The Nation, March 6, 2024
The group that’s gotten closest to him since his campaign began systematically evading protesters is probably Jewish Voice for Peace. At the end of February, the organization received a tip that Biden would be filming at 30 Rockefeller Center. They made it to within 100 feet of Biden, according to spokesperson Jay Saper.
Indiana lawmakers in standoff on antisemitism bill following changes sought by critics of Israel, The Associated Press, March 6, 2024
Daniel Segal, a retired professor of history and anthropology who lives in Bloomington, is on the coordinating committee for Jewish Voice for Peace Indiana. He called the IHRA’s examples “fundamentally flawed” for conflating antisemitism with criticism of Israel.
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