All eyes on Rafah! Hands Off Rafah!

As Netanyahu and the Israeli state furthers their campaign of ethnic cleansing in Palestine by bombing the city of Rafah, we demand that President Biden call for an immediate and enduring ceasefire and to stop funding the war against Palestine. 

1.3 million Palestinians, many who have been displaced multiple times are trapped in what was once a safe zone. Since Sunday, occupation forces have been bombing the city leaving Palestinians with nowhere else to go.

In the U.S. South, it was Black and brown people, working people, queer and trans people who organized and mobilized to put Biden in office in 2020. This was a calculated decision made in order to shift material conditions towards our peoples’ best interests, not out of trust that he shared our justice agenda. Biden owes us — all of us, all oppressed and marginalized people who united in coalition to elect him — to immediately muster the spiritual and political courage to stop this ethnic cleansing.

From the US South to the Global South, we stand united against policing, incarceration, and militarization. Israel and the US facilities trade militaristic policing tactics and contract the same private prison companies, who profit off of Palestinian and US prisoners. The “terrorist” label has been used to promote Islamophobia and to justify the creation of criminalized categories like “Black Identity Extremists” and “Eco-Terrorists.” We know that if it were to be built, Cop City would facilitate the exchange of methodologies of domination used against Black and brown communities. 

We stand against authoritarianism. With the full support of Western powers, an extremist hard-right Israeli coalition is propelling Israel’s current escalation of genocidal rhetoric and deeds. In the actions of Israel and the repression of Palestinian Solidarity Movements, we see a window into possible authoritarian futures here at home. Authoritarianism is a slow creep. We cannot allow rampant media disinformation, aggressive censorship, the dehumanization of Palestinians, and the suppression of US-based groups like the US Campaign for Palestinian Rights, Jewish Voice for Peace, and Students for Justice in Palestine to be normalized. 

Anti-Zionism is not antisemitism. Anti-Zionism is opposition to the colonial political project to create a state with special rights and privileges for Jews. There have been anti-Zionist Jews organizing in resistance to Zionism for as long as Zionism has existed. Anti-Zionism is not antisemitism (discrimination and bigotry towards Jewish people). Our vision of safety for ourselves and our kin, who are Jews, Muslims, people of faith, and secular, is found in solidarity and resistance to all forms of oppression. 

All systems of oppression reinforce one another, and Israel’s origin has always been intertwined with both the imperial and antisemitic aspirations of Western powers. Today, we know that we cannot fight antisemitism, Islamophobia, homophobia, transphobia, or any number of other oppressions here at home without combating the unholy and mutually supportive alliance between US Christian Nationalists, themselves violently antisemitic, and the Israeli state. 

We stand in solidarity with the Palestinian people in resistance to Israeli colonial aggression and with all oppressed people struggling for self-determination. Since October 7, millions have taken to the streets across the globe to stop the genocide in Gaza. We must strengthen our strategies for resistance by learning from each other and building connections between our movements against authoritarianism and state violence. 

As a community of queer and trans people in the US South, we demand:

  • An immediate and permanent ceasefire 
  • An end to the $3.8 billion/year in U.S. military funding given to Israel
  • Delivery of humanitarian aid to Gaza and an end to the siege
  • Guarantee of the right of return for all Palestinians who are fleeing Gaza
  • An end to genocide in Palestine, Sudan, Congo, and Haiti 
  • An end to the occupation and the liberation of all oppressed people in and beyond the Global South

Our righteous indignation and our grief are sacred. We honor it by catalyzing our emotions into courage as we lean into connection with others in our community who are willing to resist injustice at home and everywhere. Organizing with loyalty to what it takes to win means experiencing discomfort, humility, and endurance. We know that the work is not only to rally those who agree with us but to find, connect, push, and move increasingly more people to work with us. By joining or organizing local solidarity actions, divesting from systems and companies that further imperialism, and raising our voices against oppression, we can realize our vision of liberation in our lifetime.

Further resources to take action today!