BRATTLEBORO — We are approaching 70 years of the Israeli occupation of Palestine - an event that was, for Israel, a celebration, and for Palestinians was Nakba, the catastrophe that forcibly uprooted 750,000 Palestinians from their homes and their land.
It continues today.
We are human beings who have the capacity to take care of one another. We have the responsibility like any other human beings to make sure that all people have food, clothing, shelter, and dignity.
Criticism of the state of Israel, a state that violates the rights of Palestinians as dignified human beings, does not amount to anti-Semitism. The state of Israel isn't exempt from criticism simply because “God granted us this land.”
I can't support a state based on Zionist ideology, a state that is just for Jewish people. This was never a “land without people for a people without land.”
I would criticize any place that commits such horrific crimes against humanity, and I will continue to work toward a world where Palestinians can return home.