History 101: Black Panthers, Palestinians & The Fight to End Racist Zionism

Former Political prisoner Dhoruba Bin Wahad

Former Political prisoner Dhoruba Bin Wahad

We sat down and spoke w/ former political prisoner, Black Panther (Panther 21) and BLA member Dhoruba Bin Wahad who gave us an incredible in-depth history about the relationship between the Black Panther Party and the Palestinian Liberation Movement.. It’s important history that has been erased in the current conversation as there is a concerted effort by organizations like AIPAC to rewrite history and downplay the militant aspects of the Black Freedom struggles. For example many do not know that there were Palestinian Black Panthers in Palestine. Dhoruba explained that they formed because they felt organizations like the PLO were not militant enough. The breakdown on this is serious history.

Our conversation started off with Dhoruba laying down the history of how Israel formed in the first place and the mass displacement of Palestinian people. He clears up the common misperception of Palestine and Israel being in armed conflict for centuries. Its an excuse given so that people avoid looking at Israel’s human rights violations. It obscures the racist and imperialistic aspects of Zionism which is driving the current conflict. More importantly as Dhoruba points out it takes away from the reality of Israel being a ‘settler state’.

Dhoruba talks about the role colonial powers, in particular Britain and France played in issuing mandates and how they fostered a climate that eventually resulted in the current conflict we see going on now in the Middle East..

Palestinian Black PantherDhoruba detailed how and why the Black Panthers linked up with the Palestinians and the important role that the struggles in Algiers played in bringing folks together. Dhoruba explained his role as one of the liaisons between the Panthers and Palestine’s UN delegation..he also details how J Edgar Hoover and his infamous Cointel-Pro program launched a campaign with a racist name called Operation Hymie where they sent off letters to Jewish organizations asserting the Black Panthers were Nazis and Anti-Semitic. It was an attempt to demonize the Panthers and dampen the relationship and support they had from Jewish folks who did support the Panthers.

We were joined in our conversation by local activist and scholar Danea Martinez who detailed the relationship between Palestine and the Black freedom struggle in South Africa. She gave us an accurate perspective on Nelson Mandela, the ANC (African National Congress) and where and how they intersected with the Palestine struggle. She also gave us perspective on Israel displacing Palestinians in 1948 from their homeland and the formation of Apartheid in South Africa that same year.. Its remarkable and sobering history as she details Zionist Israeli’s long sordid relationship with Apartheid South Africa. Its history that many in power are trying to erase.

Both Danea and Dhoruba talked at length about Arab racism and slavery on the African continent. Dhoruba who lived in Africa for a number of years detailed the racial politics and how they play out both here in the US and abroad. He reminded folks that many of the Arabs we’re  talking about involved in slavery in places like Mali and the Sudan are actually Black. he noted they are ‘Blacker than you and me’ but in appearance but they identify as Arab. He walks us through some of the complexities around this and talks about where and how Anti-Black sentiment emerges within the Arab world. The information he breaks down in this segment is extremely insightful and gives important context to this discussion on Arab racism.

We also talk at length about the impact the cold war had on the liberation struggles in both America amongst Black people and in Palestine. We talk about the role it played in heightening racist Zionism..

We conclude the conversation with a discussion of how Israel’s policies and practices are being exported to US police departments and SWAT teams here in the US.. There is an NYPD office in Tel A Viv and many officers have taken leaves of absence to go fight for Israel’s IDF to hunt down Palestinians. This slaughter has got to stop.

Check out the full Hard Knock Radio Interview below

https://soundcloud.com/mrdaveyd/hkr-08-01-14-fight-the-power-black-liberation-palestine-zionism

Update: As we are finishing up this interview we got word that Palestinian futball (soceer) legend Ahed Zaqout  was killed as a result of Israel’s relentless bombings of Gaza. We also got word that 9 members of Dr. Mona El-Farra, of the Middle East Children’s Alliance and the director of Gaza Projects Lost 9 members of her family yesterday.  You can hear her first hand accounts HERE

 

Some thoughts on Black Liberation, Palestine & the Angry Black Woman Open Letter

BLACK LEADERS AND PALESTINEFor the past couple of days an article written by ‘An Angry Black Woman‘ has been making he rounds.. It’s an open letter to Palestinians telling them to stop referencing  Black ‘Freedom struggle‘ when speaking about their own struggle. It goes on to make the claim about how Martin Luther King , Coretta Scott King and others were all Zionists…That article can be found here–> http://bit.ly/1mYL90V

A few things to keep in mind.. First understand the article/letter which is being championed by Zionist backed publications and outlets and the Israeli Lobby is designed to do a couple of things. First and foremost it gets people debating the author who up to now has been relatively unknown and her particular merits or lack thereof.. It centers her as a Black woman in this debate and cleverly obscures the long-standing human rights abuses of Israel.

Thank God Gandhi, the Mau Mau and other liberation movements around the world that inspired and informed us didn’t get upset and write editorials telling Black folks fighting for freedom to stop referencing their movements but lets not digress. The issue here is distraction and articles like these are take the focus off of Israel..

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dq6Y6LSjulU

Such articles leave have us no longer talking about innocent civilians and children that have been ruthlessly massacred in the past couple of weeks. We are no longer talking about Gaza being an open air prison where its residents are blockaded by Israels army via land, sea and water and have been for decades..

We are no longer talking about Apartheid style check points or the Jewish only roads that lead to Israeli settlements that have been set up in Gaza in the most hostile and aggressive fashion.

We are no longer talking about how an estimated 60-70% of Gaza citizens are youth..The median age in Gaza is 18..

We are not talking about the history and legacy of Afro-Palestinians..

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aIDXv0vI_PM

We are not talking about the tactical suppression training US police are receiving from Israel and how the increased militarization, domestic spying, secrecy and brutality of US police are playing out everyday in our communities.In particular Black and Brown communities..There is a lot of talk about the rise of the warrior cop.. Well the model and training is Israel.. Lets talk about that..read about it here–> http://bit.ly/1zqqFXp

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mp33RPksz_g

The article is designed to get us focusing on ‘An Angry Black Lady’ who dislikes Palestinians and not on Israel’s very public and widespread hostile mistreatment of Blacks as a matter of policy.. We are suddenly overlooking Israel’s racial school segregation policy as outlined here–> http://thebea.st/1mYgAbE

We are no longer talking about Ethiopian immigrants in Israel being coerced and forced to take sterilization/ birth control shots as outlined here–> http://onforb.es/1tW0dC1

We are no longer talking about her harsh mistreatment of Israel’s 60 thousand African refugees who are being forced to flee Israel after seeking asylum and being denied. Long time Israeli journalist David Sheen has a ton of documentaries and videos that show the widespread anti-Black  hatred up close and personal.. You can see that here–> http://bit.ly/1tVYs7S

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dPxv4Aff3IA

The article also serves another purpose which in recent years has been part of a larger trend which is to narrowly define and rewrite the Civil Rights/ Black Liberation movement. One gets the impression that the mass struggle around Black liberation was only Martin Luther King, when in fact you had everyone from Malcolm X, to the Black Panthers to SNCC, to the Nation of Islam to the Black Arts Movement etc..

Martin Luther King

Martin Luther King

The list is long and so if one wants to claim that MLK was a Zionist which he wasn’t as outlined here–> http://bit.ly/1tW55Hi and decry folks from connecting their struggle to the Black Liberation struggle you can’t make that claim if you include the words of Malcolm X who eloquently spoke out against Zionism.. You can read that here–> http://bit.ly/1l9xWCO

Also on a side note, in the article the author cleverly claims MLK Sr vs his more famous son MLK Jr was a Zionist..  In anycase many have made the false claim about MLK Jr so its good to clear up the misinformation once and for all.

Moving along, we should not forget about Black Panther co-founder Huey Newton‘s position on Palestine when he said ‘We support them 100%” .. Read that here–> http://bit.ly/1oFyqW6

We also have Stokely Carmichael aka Kwame Toure speaking out against Zionism in 1970 .. Read that here–> http://bit.ly/1xtUsvB

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3gvbw9DF7Go

There is also an ad that ran in the NY Times and other papers around the country in 1969 by Black leaders condemning Zionism.. A picture of that headline to this ad is shown above..you can see a full copy of that ad here–> http://bit.ly/1AtDYIf

There are lots more to list, but the overall point is that speaking out against Zionism and supporting the Palestinian cause was not unusual or unheard of during the Civil Rights struggle.

Ronald Reagan Opposed Nelson Mandela. He saw him and the Adfrican national Congress as Terrorists

Nelson Mandela

The other thing not to be overlooked is Israel’s alliance with South Africa’s brutal Apartheid government and their long time arms trade.. What’s overlooked is they opposed UN backed sanctions against South Africa’s Apartheid Regime up to 1986… What’s also overlooked is what Nelson Mandela had to say about his support of Palestinians as shown here in this townhall–> http://bit.ly/1tWgrv4

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i5TiUhhm7cQ

What we’re dealing with here is a well placed and well-financed distraction with a Black face being used as validation.. As a friend of mine recently pointed out.. These are desperate times and many out here are thirsty.. Thirsty people do thirsty things.. This article is a manifestation of that thirst..Folks should be wary.

Lastly, we should not dismiss and deny that there is Anti-Black sentiments found throughout the Arab world. And while anti-Black sentiment can be found all over to the degree there is a long history of Black-Palestinian support, it’s important that alliance not be tainted by racial ignorance. It would be nice if we saw and heard strong Arab voices loudly and publicly condemning racism left and right and planting seeds for much larger and longer conversations that should be had moving forward.

If I was Israel running this propaganda campaign.. The next steps I would be taking on top of boosting up articles like this would be to find some crazy prominent Arab who hates Blacks and give him/her a platform to spew hateful things and leave folks angry and confused.. That I feel is coming down the pipe and folks best be prepared..

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7LcLqP-GOj0

 

Malcolm X Gives a Great History Lesson & Breakdown on Zionism

During these troubled times where all eyes are focused on the ongoing assaults and massacres in Gaza via Israel,  there are some that like to run around and pull up an erroneous quote from Dr Martin Luther King that says critique of Zionism is anti-Semitic. We all know that was wrong-headed, just like King should not and is not considered anti-American for criticizing this country for her war policies in Vietnam, even though some called him a traitor the time he spoke out. One can speak on the very public, impactful far-reaching policies of a nation especially one supported by our tax dollars and not be a hateful bigot

Next time someone quotes King you can always direct them to Malcolm X who gives a stellar break down and great history lesson on Zionism. It explains why so many want to seemingly erase or distort his history and his words.

Here’s what Malcolm X said in the Egyptian Gazette September 1964.

Malcolm X right<< The Zionist armies that now occupy Palestine claim their ancient Jewish prophets predicted that in the “last days of this world” their own God would raise them up a “messiah” who would lead them to their promised land, and they would set up their own “divine” government in this newly-gained land, this “divine” government would enable them to “rule all other nations with a rod of iron.”

If the Israeli Zionists believe their present occupation of Arab Palestine is the fulfillment of predictions made by their Jewish prophets, then they also religiously believe that Israel must fulfill its “divine” mission to rule all other nations with a rod of irons, which only means a different form of iron-like rule, more firmly entrenched even, than that of the former European Colonial Powers.

These Israeli Zionists religiously believe their Jewish God has chosen them to replace the outdated European colonialism with a new form of colonialism, so well disguised that it will enable them to deceive the African masses into submitting willingly to their “divine” authority and guidance, without the African masses being aware that they are still colonized.

CAMOUFLAGE

The Israeli Zionists are convinced they have successfully camouflaged their new kind of colonialism. Their colonialism appears to be more “benevolent,” more “philanthropic,” a system with which they rule simply by getting their potential victims to accept their friendly offers of economic “aid,” and other tempting gifts, that they dangle in front of the newly-independent African nations, whose economies are experiencing great difficulties. During the 19th century, when the masses here in Africa were largely illiterate it was easy for European imperialists to rule them with “force and fear,” but in this present era of enlightenment the African masses are awakening, and it is impossible to hold them in check now with the antiquated methods of the 19th century.

The imperialists, therefore, have been compelled to devise new methods. Since they can no longer force or frighten the masses into submission, they must devise modern methods that will enable them to manouevre the African masses into willing submission.

The modern 20th century weapon of neo-imperialism is “dollarism.” The Zionists have mastered the science of dollarism: the ability to come posing as a friend and benefactor, bearing gifts and all other forms of economic aid and offers of technical assistance. Thus, the power and influence of Zionist Israel in many of the newly “independent” African nations has fast-become even more unshakeable than that of the 18th century European colonialists… and this new kind of Zionist colonialism differs only in form and method, but never in motive or objective.

At the close of the 19th century when European imperialists wisely foresaw that the awakening masses of Africa would not submit to their old method of ruling through force and fears, these ever-scheming imperialists had to create a “new weapon,” and to find a “new base” for that weapon.

DOLLARISM

The number one weapon of 20th century imperialism is zionist dollarism, and one of the main bases for this weapon is Zionist Israel. The ever-scheming European imperialists wisely placed Israel where she could geographically divide the Arab world, infiltrate and sow the seed of dissension among African leaders and also divide the Africans against the Asians.

Zionist Israel’s occupation of Arab Palestine has forced the Arab world to waste billions of precious dollars on armaments, making it impossible for these newly independent Arab nations to concentrate on strengthening the economies of their countries and elevate the living standard of their people.

And the continued low standard of living in the Arab world has been skillfully used by the Zionist propagandists to make it appear to the Africans that the Arab leaders are not intellectually or technically qualified to lift the living standard of their people … thus, indirectly “enducing” Africans to turn away from the Arabs and towards the Israelis for teachers and technical assistance.

“They cripple the bird’s wing, and then condemn it for not flying as fast as they.”

The imperialists always make themselves look good, but it is only because they are competing against economically crippled newly independent countries whose economies are actually crippled by the Zionist-capitalist conspiracy. They can’t stand against fair competition, thus they dread Gamal Abdul Nasser’s call for African-Arab Unity under Socialism.

MESSIAH?

If the “religious” claim of the Zionists is true that they were to be led to the promised land by their messiah, and Israel’s present occupation of Arab Palestine is the fulfillment of that prophesy: where is their messiah whom their prophets said would get the credit for leading them there? It was Ralph Bunche who “negotiated” the Zionists into possession of Occupied Palestine! Is Ralph Bunche the messiah of Zionism? If Ralph Bunche is not their messiah, and their messsiah has not yet come, then what are they doing in Palestine ahead of their messiah?

Did the Zionists have the legal or moral right to invade Arab Palestine, uproot its Arab citizens from their homes and seize all Arab property for themselves just based on the “religious” claim that their forefathers lived there thousands of years ago? Only a thousand years ago the Moors lived in Spain. Would this give the Moors of today the legal and moral right to invade the Iberian Peninsula, drive out its Spanish citizens, and then set up a new Moroccan nation … where Spain used to be, as the European zionists have done to our Arab brothers and sisters in Palestine?…

In short the Zionist argument to justify Israel’s present occupation of Arab Palestine has no intelligent or legal basis in history … not even in their own religion. Where is their Messiah? >>

500 Female Emcees: Meet Shadia Mansour-First Lady of Arabic Hip Hop

Shadia MonsourKnown as the First Lady of Arabic Hip Hop, British born, Palestinian, Shadia Monsour has been kicking up dust and making moves for a minute. Her politically charged songs in which she both sings and raps have been a source of pride for many who are in the liberation struggle for Palestine…

Shadia began rapping in 2003 and has gained recognition in the Middle East, Europe and the United States for her own songs and collaborations with other artists. She performs wearing a traditional Palestinian thawb and has said that she considers herself to be part of a “musical intifada” against the occupation of Palestine, conservatism and oppression of women.

Mansour’s first single, “Al Kufiya Arabiya” (The Kufiya is Arab), featured rapper M-1 of dead prez and lyrics emphasizing the kufiya’s role as a symbol of Arab nationalism. The song was written when Mansour discovered an American made blue-and-white colored Arab scarf with Stars of David on it. Mansour introduced her song on stage in New York: “You can take my falafel and hummus, but don’t fucking touch my keffiyeh”.

Mansour has recorded music with producer Johnny “Juice” Rosado of Public Enemy and was featured on Chuck D‘s website shemovement.com.She has also collaborated with artists like Iraqi rappers Lowkey and The Narcicyst, and Palestinian hip-hop group DAM. Mansour has toured with Existence is Resistance, an organization supporting hip-hop shows in Palestine, and is part of the “Arab League” of Hip Hop, a collection of performers who share views on the Middle East.

source: wikipedia

Shadia Mansour w/ M1 of dead prez Al Kufiya Arabiya

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=21OXQ4m1-Bo

Shadia Mansour w/ Omar Offendum We Have to Change

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7LcLqP-GOj0

Shadia Mansour Sho Eli Saar

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nA6weVw5c3A

Ana Tijoux w/ Shadia Mansour Live Performance in Chile

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z8hXbCP1vBs

 

3 Dope Songs from UK Artist Lowkey-Taking on the Obama Nation

Lowkey redOver the past few years Lowkey who hails from the UK and is of Iraqi and English descent has been making a lot of noise both with his lyrical prowess and his hard hittin’, social and political content..He had been putting out mixtapes since 2003 and caught a lot of attention with the release of his 2008 project called ‘Dear Listener‘..Songs like Alphabet Assassin and Revolution were the standout cuts there..

In 2011 he released the critically acclaimed ‘Soundtrack to the Struggle‘. It was preceded by several popular singles including “Voices of the Voiceless” featuring  Immortal Technique, ‘Long Live Palestine’, ‘Something Wonderful’ and ‘Obama Nation‘ which was arguably the song that put Lowkey on everybody’s radar especially after the song was banned on TV in the UK…

Lowkey has been outspoken both in songs and in real life about the plight of Palestinians and the oppressive nature of Zionism. In fact he is said to have coined the phrase..’Nothing is more anti-semitic than Zionism’ . This was in  reference not only to the seldom acknowledged fact that Arabs are themselves Semites but also to what he called the “identical points of view” within Zionism and anti-semitism; he argued both believe that Jewish people cannot co-exist among other people and grow into a single community.

He has also called into question US and UK foreign policy arguing who is the real terrorist as was the case in his popular song Terrorist which spawned a number of remixes. You can check for that cut HERE

Long Live Palestine has also spawned off a number of remixes which led to the inclusion of vocals from popular Palestinian artists Dam and Shadia Mansour as well as fellow Iraqi artist The Narcicyst and Iranian artists Hich Kas and Reveal.. Check for that song HERE

Needless to say Lowkey’s  political positions this has resulted in this gifted emcee  being shunned by mainstream outlets. Hence we are proud to highlight him in 3 Dope Songs

In recent days Lowkey announced that he was taking a hiatus from music so he could concentrate on other things including his studies and political activism

Below are 3 Dope Songs from  Lowkey

Lowkey Obama Nation pt1

This track was one that caught everyone’s attention primarily because he was one of the first to publicly call out Obama over his policies while noting that the president probably had little choice since he was heading what many have called an Empire…

This cut led to several remixes which featured vocals from M1 of dead prez, Lupe Fiasco, Malcolm X and 2Pac.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z4OI0GUCI_A

Folks who enjoyed this song may wanna see Obama Nation pt 2 featuring M1, Lupe Fiasco, Black the Ripper

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bB-vYuYhdSE

The remix track featuring Malcolm X and 2Pac called Obama Nation 3 can be found HERE

Lowkey Hands on Your Gun

This is an incredible song that questions the weaponry used by armed forces, in particular drones. Its featured on the album ‘Soundtrack to the struggle‘.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nBNeD57-RVg

Lowkey w/ Faith SFX  ‘Alphabet Assassin’

This was a jam that came out early in Lowkey’s career and helped establish him as a formidable emcee whose lyrical skillz are unmatched.. Faith SFX is beat boxing the entire time

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ToZUIdbgqjE

 

UN Investigator for Human Rights Breaks Down this Horrific Israel Attack-Says They Violated International Law

Our good friends and station mates at Flashpoints are seriously on the case with the coverage of this horrific attack by Israel.. We will have more material including the interviews we did with Invincible and spoke word artist Remy in the meantime spread the word and watch the creative spins corporate backed media puts on this whole thing…

Leading UN Investigator for Human Rights in Occupied Palestine Says Israeli Commando Raid was “as clear a violation of international humanitarian law… as we are likely to see in the early part of the 21st Century.”

By Dennis Bernstein and Jesse Strauss

original source: http://www.flashpoints.net/?p=969#more-969

Here’s the link to this important radio interview..

http://kpfa.org/archive/id/61469

Professor Richard Falk

In a pre-dawn raid on Monday, in international waters, off the coast of the Occupied Gaza Strip, Israeli commandos seized the six boat fleet of the Free Gaza Movement, which was carrying 10,000 tons of humanitarian aid in another attempt to break the punishing Israeli embargo against Gaza. According to the Israeli military, ten people were killed in the assault and several dozen wounded. There is as of yet no independent confirmation of these numbers nor of the identities of those killed or injured, because Israel has seized the six ships and detained all of their 700 passengers who come from 30 different countries, and has kept the detainees from any contact with the outside world.

In an interview with Pacifica Radio’s Flashpoints show, late Monday, Professor Richard Falk, UN Special Rapporteur for the Occupied Palestinian Territories stated that the Israeli commando raid against the humanitarian fleet of unarmed ships was “as clear a violation of international humanitarian law, international law of the seas, and international criminal law, as we’re likely to see in the early part of the twenty-first century”.

What follows is the complete interview with Professor Richard Falk, United Nations Special Rapporteur on the Palestinian territories,

——————————————————————-

Dennis Bernstein: We are now joined by Professor Richard Falk. Richard  Falk is a distinguished attorney and Special Rapporteur on Occuppied Palestinian Territories for the United Nations Human Rights Council. He is the highest UN official dealing with human rights violations in the occupied territories, that is, occupied Palestine. Professor Falk, we appreciate you coming back and being with us on Flashpoints.

Richard Falk: I’m glad to be back here again.

DB: I wish it was under more pleasant circumstances. We don’t have a lot of detail, but Israel itself is clearly admitting they carried out this raid. We’ve seen pictures. They are saying that there are at least ten people dead. We don’t have any information because Israel is controlling the entire flow of information. Based on what you know and what you’ve seen, what can we say about what happened here in terms of human rights violations and international law?

RF: I think the fundamental reality is fairly clear at this point, namely that these were ships that were carrying humanitarian supplies for blockaded Gaza, that the passengers were unarmed and were situated at the time of the Israeli attacks on the high seas, that these attacks, therefore, were unlawful and by most interpretations would be regarded as criminal. The statement of the Turkish Prime Minister, that the attacks constituted state terrorism, seem to me at least to correspond with the tragic reality that we’ve been witnessing over the past twenty-four hours.

DB: The Israelis say that these commandos who they say were armed with hand guns and paint guns were only defending themselves from armed and dangerous attacks by people on the boat. Your response to that?

RF: There are two lines of response, and this is an area where the facts are contested and difficult to disentangle at this stage. The witnesses on the boats themselves, particularly the Turkish boats where most of the violence took place, claim that the commandos landed shooting, and that it was only after the initiation of that violence that there was some attempt at defense on the basis of very contrived and primitive weapons, as opposed to the kind of weaponry that the Israeli commandos were carrying. Beyond that, it’s fairly clear if unlawful attack of a vessel on the high seas isoccurring, the passengers on that ship have some sort of right to self defense. So that’s one aspect of it. The second aspect is that even if there was some kind of defensive violence on the ship, that’s no excuse for an unprovoked attack carried out in this manner. If Israel didn’t want the ships to go to Gaza, they could have diverted them, and if they did what the other boats did in the Freedom Flotilla, except for the larger Turkish one, it seems pretty clear that this was a deliberate attack designed, I suppose, to punish the effort to carry out this humanitarian mission, which would obviously have disclosed the brutality of the blockade of the Gaza Strip, which has gone on now for almost three years. The Israeli arguments are not really seriously plausible. Given the overall circumstances it’s very difficult to give them any kind of serious credibility, and this seems to me to be as clear a violation of international humanitarian law, international law of the seas, and international criminal law, as we’re likely to see in the early part of the twenty-first century.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HtYnZBKSFgM

DB: Because there are many people from many countries represented on these boats, there are many diplomats from these countries trying to find out what happened. They are not being told anything by the Israelis, they are not being allowed access to their citizens. Is this also some kind of violation of international law? Do these countries have the right, at least, to ascertain the condition of their citizens?

RF: It certainly is a practice that under normal conditions such access would be granted, and here one is dealing with individuals who were part of an international humanitarian mission; the countries involved were at peace with Israel; Israel was maintaining a criminal blockade of the Gaza Strip; and so the political and moral equity strongly would support access. There’s no reasonable basis, however one understands Israel’s motives or situation, for denying access or generating more anxiety than is necessary on the part of the families of these people by shutting them off from any kind of communication. I suspect that Israel’s tactics are designed to prevent testimony by those that experience these attacks, which would presumably deepen the awareness of the world’s public as well as the governments of what in fact did happen.

DB: In terms of the responsibility, you are the UN Special Rapporteur  for the Palestinian territories. What is your responsibility now? What is the United Nations responsibility? What should happen in terms of an investigation?

RF: My responsibility is to report to the Human Rights Council and the UN General Assembly on the Israeli violations of the human rights of the occupied Palestinian people. This incident is sort of at the edge of my responsibility because it didn’t occur within the occupied territories, but it so directly affects the people within that I treat it as part of my responsibilities. In my judgment, the Security Council, if one takes the UN Charter seriously and avoids double standards, should really do three things: One, it should condemn the attack as a violation of international law; secondly, it should demand a listing immediately of the blockade, of the people of the Gaza Strip, allowing food, medicine, reconstruction materials and fuel to enter freely; and thirdly it should refer the allegations of criminality associated with the attack to the International Criminal Court for investigation and action. Given the geopolitics that exist within the Security Council, it is highly unlikely that this appropriate course of action will actually be followed. Technically the General Assembly could try and do these kinds of things if the Security Council fails to act, and it remains to be seen whether there’s the political will in the General Assembly to do this. If the UN is stymied in this way, it does shift the responsibility and, in a way, the opportunity to civil society to augment the ongoing Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions campaign, that in any event has been gaining momentum, and presumably this latest incident will create a great deal more strength for that campaign, which has been so effective in opposing the Apartheid regime in South Africa in the early 1990s and late 1980s.

DB: Is there any kind of special protection for the people who risked their lives—and now we see that they really did risk their lives—going into a situation where the world knows that there are terrible things happening, that people are being treated in terrible ways, that they are dying because of that treatment, and because they are being warred against and having bombs dropped on them where they cannot even flee. Is there some sort of role for legal action within the constraints of international law?

Professor Richard Falk

RF: Yes, there is, as you very well expressed. There is a great opportunity to provide protection to people who are courageous and morally motivated, and at the same time are vulnerable to this kind of violence and brutal treatment, but the political will is lacking at the governmental level and at the international institutional level to provide that kind of protection. One has the norms, has the responsibility to protect concept which has been endorsed by the Security Council and has the support of international lawyers, but it can’t be implemented without the requisite political will, and that’s what’s missing. Of course our government is the lynch-pin of what makes effective or futile international initiatives of this sort. If we had indicated a firm desire to establish some kind of protective capability for missions of this sort, individuals like this would be protected. I thought that however little Israel respects international law, they wouldn’t do something as crudely violent and alienating as what they did do with these commando attacks on the freedom flotilla. It was not in my political imagination that they would seek by such means to prevent the delivery of these humanitarian necessities that pose no security threat whatsoever to Israel—it only posed a public relations threat in the sense that it would have revealed the inability of governments to break the blockade and place pressure on them to do something in the future, and at the same time would have added to the willingness of activists around the world to push harder against the Israeli occupation policy so that what was at stake from Israel’s point of view was the delegitimation of their policies, and they apparently, and I think wrongly, calculated that they would lose less from this kind of violent disruption of this humanitarian mission that it would have by allowing it to quietly deliver the humanitarian materials that the ships were carrying.

DB: They certainly could have surprised a lot of people and gained a lot of supporters if they had shifted their policy and let the aid arrive. A final question, as I know you need to leave us: Just before you got on the air we spoke with Shakeed Saed, he’s the Executive Director of the Islamic Shura Council in Southern California, there’s a thousand people gathering in front of the Israeli consulate in LA and there are protests around the world; but he was saying that it’s not only a spiritual thing, but a legal matter because the United States is supplying a good deal of the equipment that Israel uses and that these commandos may have been using. Does that make the US responsible?

RF: We are certainly morally and politically implicit and responsible in these kinds of Israeli tactics and undertakings. Whether we are legally responsible is a trickier question. There are American laws that forbid the equipment that we do provide from being used except in defensive roles. We’ve never taken that legislative restriction seriously in the context of Israel, but it is a definite legal concern, and it could be pursued by those that were eager to test the degree of legal responsibility that the United States government possesses. I personally believe such a test would be beneficial for the American people because it would allow the public to express more of its changing view of the conflict, and send a message to Washington that it has yet to hear that the American people would rather see our government pursue a genuinely balanced law-oriented approach to the conflict than this unconditional partisanship with the kind of criminal tactics that Israel has just employed against the Freedom Flotilla.

DB: Professor Richard Falk, I want to thank you very much for joining us. You are the Special Rapporteur  on the Palestinian territories for the United Nations Human Rights Council, and we thank you for taking the time out of your schedule to speak with us.

RF: It’s been very good to speak with you.

DB: Thank you.

Dennis Bernstein and Jesse Strauss produced this interview for Flashpoints on the Pacifica network, which was broadcast across the US on Monday, May 31st from the KPFA studio in Berkeley, California. You can access the audio archive of that entire show on their website, www.flashpoints.net. From our website you can sign up to the Flashpoints mailing list, and also follow Flashpoints on twitter at twitter.com/FlashpointsNews.

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M-1 of Dead Prez launches from the Ghetto to Gaza Speaking Tour

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P.O.C.C ,Block Report Radio &Hip Hop Congress Present: Ghetto to Gaza in Northern California (Oakland, S.F, San Jose, Santa Cruz, Sacramento, Sonoma Ct)

M1 of dead prez speaking about his Travels to Gaza in support of those at War and in an intense struggle for basic human needs. Also J.R Minister of Information w members of P.O.C.C , Richard Brown of the SF 8, Nadra Foster from KPFA, DLabrie, and more!!

Please Come Out and Repost This!!!

Support S.F BayView

M1, of the prolific rap group dead prez, will be on a speaking tour called “From the Ghetto to Gaza” through northern Cali from September 23-29.

Sacramento, Wednesday, Sept. 23, 9 p.m., Capitol Garage, 1500 K St.

East Oakland, Thursday, Sept. 24, 7:30 p.m., Wose Community Center, 8924 Holly St. – Minister of Information JR will interview M1

San Francisco, Friday, Sept. 26, 7 p.m., POOR Magazine, Redstone Building, 2940 16th St. at Mission, Second Floor Theater – Richard Brown of the San Francisco 8 will interview M1
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West Oakland, Saturday, Sept. 26, 6 p.m., Black Dot Cafe, 1195 Pine St. – Nadra Foster, the 12-year volunteer KPFA broadcaster who was beaten by police inside the station, will interview M1

San Jose, Sunday, Sept. 27, 6 p.m., DeBug Magazine, 701 Lenzen Ave. – Bay View Arts Editor Wanda Sabir will interview M1

Santa Cruz, Monday, Sept. 28, 7 p.m., Barrios Unidos, 1817 Soquel Ave.

Sonoma, Tuesday, Sept. 29, 7:30 p.m., Multi-Purpose Room, Student Union Building, Sonoma State University

The Minister of Information JR
POCC Block Report Radio
www.blockreportradio.com

M1-Gaza-0909-webWelcome M-1 of dead prez to the Bay Area – East and West Oakland, San Francisco, Sonoma, San Jose, Santa Cruz – for six days of sharing his recent experiences in Gaza, Cairo and Europe and comparing them with ghetto life in the U.S. – six events Sept. 24-29 benefiting the SF Bay View and Block Report Radio. Get ready for some explosive revelations! Get a foretaste with 24 hours in Gazaby M-1. And listen to Khalil Bendib’s interview with M-1 this evening,  on KPFA 94.1FM – hear it in the archives at http://www.kpfa.org/archive/show/47 .

24 hours in Gaza

by Mutulu Olugbala, aka M-1 of dead prez

http://www.sfbayview.com/2009/24-hours-in-gaza/

M-1 of dead prez reports back from his trip to Gaza

M-1 of dead prez reports back from his trip to Gaza

You may have heard me say, “I work for the people; the streets are my office.” Well, my recent mission to Palestine was a testament to that statement. Through the Existence is Resistance organization, I bore witness to a very moving and eye-opening experience. As a man-at-arms in an African Liberation Movement in the U.S. which is currently in the process of re-organizing and re-inventing itself in these times, I see the role of international solidarity critically important to our future world view. So when asked, “Why are you all the way over there when there is a war going on in your own community?” I proudly quote dead prez’ “Psychology” (“Let’s Get Free,” 2000): “My enemy’s enemy is my man!”

With respect to all the progressive organizations and cultural workers who have been putting work in to stop the siege on Palestine and amass resources and resistance to the same imperialism which is plaguing my community, I say, “Asante sana!” (“Thank you very much!”) You have provided critical political education at a time when the hip-hop community in particular has been devoid of analysis of the world around us. In places like Chicago and New York, I would continually bump into artists like Rebel Diaz, Shadia, Mansour, DAM (Palestine) and Immortal Technique, who I’d like to report as courageous fighters!

Now that we have kicked the preliminaries (as the old Flavor Flav would say), let’s get to the details … Moments after we rocked a solar-powered event on 23rd and the FDR in Manhattan promoting our recent release, “Pulse of the People,” I jumped on a plane to Cairo, Egypt. The plan was to join a caravan that would originate there and move north to the border of Gaza with loads of resources which had been donated for the people there who had been under an Israeli imposed, U.S. backed embargo for months.

From my trips to Cuba in the past years, I was aware that an embargo is only a nice way to say war, so I knew what to expect. Upon arrival in Egypt – which is northern Africa, in case you forgot – I could feel the intense military repression in the air. Nonetheless I was awed by finally touching and seeing a place that held such importance in the history of civilization. Fuck colonized Egypt; to me this was Kimet!

As I was toured through the recent developments and structural work like the Anwar Sadat Memorial and felt the pulse of the cluttered city streets, I was awed by the backdrop of the Nile River, which had been dirtied by the recent Arab neglect. Unfortunately, it was like a “toy” tag on a “burner,” for all my graf writers out there. Nonetheless, it was a moment I will never forget.

As my new-found comrades Ayman, Mazzi and I toured through Egypt just an hour off the plane, we could not help but to be drawn to the pyramids in the near distance as the sun began to set on this powerful land. In a moment of spontaneity, we urged our guide to take us closer to get a better look at these incredible wonders of the world.

As the sun continued to set, I found myself on the back of a camel, trodding through what seemed like the Kasbah on our way to the sands of the desert in which these six pyramids were implanted. Unfortunately, night fell upon us as we were on the way and we had to turn back, but our efforts produced a great memory and a backdrop which was indescribable.

Later we arrived at the hotel, which would serve as the headquarters for the caravan, war-room for the organizers and hostage zone for the Egyptian government who had assigned agents to follow and document every word and action taken by the Viva Palestina group, whose numbers would reach around 200 people. As we settled in, there was an update meeting called for the people who had just arrived.

It was at that meeting that we learned that the preliminary caravan, which had been sent forward to prepare for our entry into Palestine, had been turned back by armed soldiers at the Suez Canal! It was at that moment that we realized there would be serious worldwide opposition to this support which we planned to bring there.

At the center of the meeting was British Parliamentarian George Galloway, who was the chief planner and organizer of this mission. Seated to his left were two very familiar faces to me, New York City Councilman Charles Barron and Green Party presidential nominee Cynthia McKinney. I was elated to see these two, who I had worked with before on many occasions.

“The revolution is like the back of the camel, to be ridden by the masses ...” – M-1
“The revolution is like the back of the camel, to be ridden by the masses …” – M-1

And I was especially anxious to speak with Cynthia McKinney, who had, just days before, been freed from an Israeli jail for attempting to get into Gaza to investigate the crimes against the people there. It was good to be amongst comrades in a sea of unfamiliar faces. Later I would retire my room with mc’s S.O.U.L. Purpose (U.S./Iran) and LowKey (Britain), only to break night preparing for the next day.

Little did we know that the Egyptian government had no plans to let this mission succeed. Under the watchful eye of the Israeli government, we endured countless exercises in futility at the U.S. Embassy while being followed by suspicious looking Arab agents carrying sub-machine guns.

The idea was to exhaust our resources by paying for useless, unnecessary documents and dealing with bureaucratic paperwork to delay the mission as much as possible. Plus, while waiting on the Egyptian government to deliberate these matters, which they had been made aware of months prior, we were not allowed to leave the vicinity of the hotel, which we were paying to be held hostage in!!

Was this the same place that U.S. President Barak Obama recently visited in a so-called attempt to ease relations precisely in this region? Is this a glaring example of political lip-service or what? The Viva Palestina group spent the next couple of restless days plotting, planning and strategizing around how we could heighten the pressure to free us from this Egyptian purgatory.

There were international demonstrations called in the U.S. and Britain in which people stampeded the embassies and flooded officials with phone calls. In the final analysis, even with all the efforts, we were still left with undesirable choices to make.

With some forces who had been in Egypt for up to seven days already with no success at breaking the siege on Gaza, we were now faced with the fact that the Egyptian government would not allow the resources we had gathered to bring into Gaza to cross the border. I am talking hundreds of thousands of dollars and pounds literally “jacked” from us!

“The road to Rafah, Viva Palestina ...” – M-1
“The road to Rafah, Viva Palestina …” – M-1

Some of these resources were in the form of two ambulances, many trucks full of food, medicine, wheelchairs and equipment, basic household needs, children’s books and school supplies and the list goes on and on! On top of that, we were now reduced from spending three days in Gaza to now only being given 24 hours to get in and out! It was pretty ridiculous if you can fathom it; however, in war we have to make decisions on our feet and move strategically.

With the leadership shift from Galloway to Charles Barron in the heated hours, and around-the-clock negotiations, it all came down to a final decision-making meeting in which all cards were placed on the table before everyone in the Viva Palestina caravan. In a room full of people from every walk of life: white, Black, Asian, Palestinian, Jew, rich, poor, political, non-political, uninformed, young , old, tired, adventurous and of course police planted agents, we had a discourse of which type I had never been a part of. And I am thankful for the seasoned leadership of Mr. Barron that helped to pull us through. At one point, there was even the “discovery” of an agent in that very meeting, which caused a huge conflagration that almost ended in physical harm to the snitch!

Our decision was to accept the offer made to us by the Egyptian government and bring some sense of hope to the Palestinian people who would be waiting on the other side of the Rafah border. And in the wee hours of the morning, we loaded up the vans and trucks with our people and our belongings and left the hostage hotel to embark on a six- to eight-hour caravan to the Gaza Strip.

The journey through the sand was remarkable. Only the pictures can describe these moments. On a comfortable chartered bus I daydreamed and listened to one the head organizers, Nancy, deejay to our anxiety and excitement. One of my favorite songs is the one that demanded us to “wave our kufiyas in the air!” which many of us wore. Even though they have become a passing fashion statement, we wore the red and white ones, and I felt extremely proud when the brothers got together to wave our Red, Black and Green Liberation flag in the immigration office as they chanted loud enough for the people to hear us on the other side in Gaza.

One thing I will never forget is the Palestinian people on the Egyptian side of the border who were not allowed to get back into their country since the embargo began. I felt unworthy of passing through the checkpoint as tears rolled down their faces and their children pleaded to be on the bus with us. I would have given up my seat in one second if it would not have compromised the mission.

As we endured a couple more hours of bureaucracy and finally made it to Palestinian land, many of us could not believe we were actually in the Gaza Strip. There was the warmest welcome planned even though they had prepared for this moment over a week ago. Who knows when their Israeli captors will allow the border to open again?

For all intents and purposes, we were visiting an open-air prison that is intended to never be given its human rights ever again! During the press conference and the hubbub, I saw many reactions to our arrival. There were families reunited and political opportunism ran amuck. Many of us were exhausted but elated to inhale the experience to the fullest. The next 24 hours would change my life …

Stay tuned for the finale …. Power to the People!

[Author’s note: The views I am expressing here are mine alone, and subject to input from all certain people who shared this experience. Please excuse any error in my recollection; it wasn’t done intentionally. Thank you.]

Learn more about M-1 and dead prez and their latest album, “Pulse of the People,” at www.deadprez.com and www.myspace.com/m1rbg. Join M-1 on his historic speaking tour Sept. 24-29, “From the Ghetto to Gaza” – six events in six days in East and West Oakland, San Francisco, Sonoma, San Jose and Santa Cruz to benefit BlockReportRadio.com and SFBayView.com. Contact Minister of Information JR at blockreportradio@gmail.com or the SF Bay View at (415) 671-0789 for more information

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M-1 of dead prez-Report Back from Gaza -Why we should be concerned w/Palestine and International Struggles …

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M-1 of dead prez reports back from his trip to Gaza

M-1 of dead prez reports back from his trip to Gaza

We caught up with M-1 of the group dead prez to find about his recent trip to Gaza. For folks who don’t recall, last week M-1 made headlines along with former Green Party Presidential candidate and Cynthia McKinney, New York City Councilman Charles Barron and UK Parliament member George Galloway.. They along with over 200 people defied a blockade and warnings from the Israeli government and went to Gaza to bring humanitarian aid.

We spoke with M-1 about how he hooked up with Viva Palestina which was the organization that made the trip. M-1 explained that he has been involved with Palestinian causes for a number of years. He broke down the history of his involvement  and spoke about how the organizations and people he has rolled with have been equally involved in struggles African Americans are dealing with here. We will be posting that up later this afternoon

In the meantime we are posting up two portions of our long interview. The first is M-1 addressing a nagging question that frequently pops up:

Why should Black people in America be concerned about political happenings in far off places like Iran or Palestine when we have problems here at home? M-1 gave us a history lesson and reminded us that the Black struggle has always been international from the days of Paul Robeson to Malcolm X wanting to take our case before the United Nations to Martin Luther King dealing with Vietnam on up to the foreign aid that came to help us when we went through Katrina. M-1 goes into detail about why Black folks had better be concerned about international struggles. He lets us know that our struggle at home would’ve been seriously hindered if we weren’t internationally connected. He also encouraged us to see our selves as part of a larger movement without borders.

In this next video clip we speak to M-1 about what he experienced while visiting Gaza. He talks about the conditions there and how the people are and the role his fellow rappers in Palestine are fairing … We also spoke to M-1 about why he felt he was a hostage in Egypt. The government kept people in the country from 5-10 days and then made them jump through all types of hoops to get out of the country.  He also talked about the totalitarian state of Egypt and how it was ironic that Obama spoke at a country that does not allow free speech.  If dead prez was living in Egypt espousing the political views that they do here they would be in jail.. below is the interview segment from that..

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Barack Obama or Cynthia McKinney Who Reps Us Best in the Middle East?

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Former congresswoman Cynthia McKinney has just returned from an Israeli jail where she was briefly imprisoned, along with human rights activists from several nations, for her second attempt at publicly running the brutal US-Israeli blockade trying to bring coloring books, food and medical supplies.  Why are the US and Israel imposing this collective punishment upon 1.5 million civilians.  How does McKinney’s stand match up against that of our first black president, the most powerful man in the world who calls it a “humantarian crisis” but will do nothing about it?  And how do they both stack up against the legacy of Dr. King?

Barack Obama or Cynthia McKinney – Who Represents Black America Toward Palestine and Israel?

By BAR Managing Editor Bruce A. Dixon

http://www.blackagendareport.com/?q=content/barack-obama-or-cynthia-mckinney-who-represents-black-america-toward-palestine-israel-and-mi

Both Obama and McKinney have traveled to the region more than once in the last several months.”

It’s almost an unfair question.  Barack Obama’s many apologists have explained their lips off telling us how he could not run and cannot govern as president of Black Americans, or the president of Americans neck-deep in consumer debt, or the president of Americans who want an everybody in-nobody out health care system.  To get elected and to govern, they wisely assure us, Barack Obama has chosen to be and must be the “president of everybody,” if by everybody you mean private health insurers, Wall Street banksters, Pentagon contractors and greedy chambers of commerce everywhere.  The president is a grown man, and he gets to make those choices.

So do the rest of us, and on questions pertaining to the Middle East, a Euro-centric place name if ever there was one, every public opinion survey that bothers to differentiate white from black US opinion indicates that African Americans are, in the main, far more sympathetic to the cause of Palestinians than either their white neighbors or their first black president. Barack Obama then, is operating well outside the black consensus on Palestine and Israel, while former Georgia congresswoman Cynthia McKinney swims confidently in the mainstream of black opinion and the prophetic tradition of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

Both Obama and McKinney have traveled to the region more than once in the last several months. The president gave a speech in Cairo sternly advising Palestinians to give up violence in pursuit of justice, while seeming to ignore the grossly disproportionate violence, official and unofficial, of the Israeli settler state against them. Obama acknowledged what he called a humanitarian crisis in Gaza without facing his own and the American role in creating that crisis, let alone advancing any measures that would ameliorate it.

““My suitcase,” McKinney told BAR, “was full of crayons. Somebody in authority should explain why crayons and coloring books for Palestinian children are a threat…”

What President Obama calls Gaza’s humanitarian crisis is actually a medieval siege, in which Israel, with the full diplomatic and military backing of the US, its principal armorer and banker, has sealed 1.5 million people off from the outside world. For more than two years practically no Palestinians have been permitted to enter Gaza, either from the Israeli-occupied West Bank or elsewhere. Electricity has been cut to a few hours per day and water to a fraction of needed quantities while the Israeli armed forces prohibit Palestinians from purchasing or receiving parts to build, repair or expand capacity. Hundreds of ordinary items needed to carry on civilized life are also banned, including cement, soap, toothpaste, foodstuffs, medical supplies, books, paper clothing and crayons.

In December 2008, and June 2009 Cynthia McKinney, traveled to Cyprus and in the company of human rights activists from many countries attempted to sail to Gaza with a cargo of cement, coloring books, building, medical and humanitarian supplies in order to illustrate the inhumanity and absurdity of the blockade. Both times, the boats were intercepted by the Israeli navy, their GPS units destroyed, and the craft boarded. This time, twenty-one persons including the Irish Nobel Laureate Mairead Maguire were arrested and imprisoned for several days before being deported.

My suitcase,” McKinney told BAR, “was full of crayons. Somebody in authority should explain why crayons and coloring books for Palestinian children are a threat. Somebody should tear down this wall.” McKinney took pains to point out that the blockade, as well as the murderous assault that occurred in December, were carried on with arms and fuel supplied by the US, and with its full diplomatic backing. The blockade of Gaza is causing widespread malnutrition among Palestinians, including children, and is doubtless costing lives daily. “All of us need to ask,” McKinney said, “why our government, through the Israelis, is pursuing this barbaric policy toward the Palestinians, and we must demand that it end right now.”

Why are Israel and the US, with the help of Egypt, imposing this brutal siege upon Gaza?

McKinney also brought with her insights on the racial composition of Israeli prisons. She said she met women in the Israeli prison from Ethiopia, Eritrea, Coite D’Ivoire and other African countries. She observed that a huge number of prisoners, aside from Palestinians, were black Africans and Asians. Where Israel formerly depended upon Arab labor to do many of its everyday tasks, since the beginning of its policy of siege it has recruited large amounts of foreigh labor from non-Muslim parts of Africa and Asia to do all the jobs on the low end of the pay and social status scales. Foreigners, of course, have few if any rights in Israel, and can find themselves locked up for extended periods for the most minor of status offenses.

Why are Israel and the US, with the help of Egypt, imposing this brutal siege upon Gaza? After the death of Yasir Arafat in 2006, Palestinians held elections, closely supervised by observers from many nations, and certified by them to be free and fair. But the Palestinians had the poor judgment to elect a political party — Hamas — not favored by Israel and the US. Cutting off their trade and travel, what remained of their opportunity to seek work in Israel or visit their Palestinian relatives in the West Bank, only a few miles distant, curtailing their electricity, water, building, medical and other supplies was, according to US and Israeli policymakers, supposed to make them come to their senses. It hasn’t worked. Outside pressure has, if anything, made the Palestinians of Gaza stick tighter together, and rally round the government that the US and Israel so disapprove of. It was the Bush policy for nearly two years, and now it has been the Obama policy for all of six months.

While Obama was the president-in-waiting, conducting daily news conferences on his plan for the economy, denouncing the terrorist attacks in Mumbai, India, and browbeating members of his own party in congress into voting trillions of public dollars for Wall Street, Israel launched a full-scale military attack against Gaza, throwing hundreds of thousands of rounds of artillery, including cluster munitions and white phosphorus along with strikes from helicopters and jet aircraft, killing more than a thousand civilians. Barack Obama declined to comment publicly, noting that his inauguration was still a few days distant, and that the US had “only one president at a time.” In a similar legalistic vein, during Obama’s Cairo speech he pointedly said that the US did not recognize the legitimacy of “continuing Israeli settlements.” But the Israeli government has, with US government funding been planting armed colonies of Israelis on strategic hilltops and ridges throughout the Palestinian West Bank for more than twenty years now, connecting them with a network of roads which Palestinians are forbidden to travel upon or even to cross under pain of arrest. Obama said nothing about these and other longstanding outrages.

Next to Arab Americans, blacks are probably the nation’s most skeptical group about the fundamental justice of an Israeli settler state”

Almost a year ago, when Barack Obama received the Democratic nomination, the air was thick with

comparisons and connections between his career and that of Dr. Martin Luther King a generation earlier. In the heady moments of Obama’s historic nomination and inauguration it was easy for many to confuse and conflate one with the other. But the air is clearer now. The president’s selective moralizing on violence and nonviolence, his legalistic evasions of responsibility, his lawyerly distancing from the consequences of his own actions and inactions are more the stuff of Boss Daley than they are the prophetic witness to injustice of Dr. King. Six months into the Obama presidency, the man whose career many saw as the culmination of the work of the apostle of nonviolence has killed more than 700 Afghans, many of them civilians, with airborne robot drones.

Next to Arab Americans, blacks are probably the nation’s most skeptical group about the fundamental justice of an Israeli settler state which imparts rights of residence, citizenship, and more on the basis of Jewish identity, while denying these rights to people whose ancestors have lived there for thousands of years. To African Americans who bother to educate themselves at all on the matter, Israel’s identity-pass system, its Jewish-only roads, its separate license plates that allow Israeli Arabs and other non-jews to be profiled at a distance, the ongoing settlement policy cited by President Obama, and the raw, unpunished racist violence of Israeli settlers toward Palestinians have all the hallmarks of a modern, twenty-first century apartheid state. Thanks to Cynthia McKinney and others, more of us are becoming educated on the real nature of the Israeli state, and the consequences of American support of it. We expect to see that work continue, and be taken up by an ever wider section of African American churches, student and civic organizations who believe, as did Dr. King that a threat to justice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.

We said at the beginning that the comparison was almost unfair. Almost. It’s really not unfair at all. Neither Barack Obama nor Cynthia McKinney are being forced or compelled to make the choices they do. They are both grown, well educated, sober, sensible parents and US citizens. But between President Obama and former congresswoman Cynthia McKinney, it’s easy to see who is following in the prophetic footsteps of Dr. King, and increasingly, who is Black America’s real representative to Palestinians, Israelis, and the Middle East.

Bruce A. Dixon is managing editor at BAR and based in Atlanta GA. He can be reached at bruce.dixon(at)blackagendareport.com

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