NO WAY TO TREAT A CHILD: Stand Up for Palestinian Children
To Al Johnson
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Dear Al,
Tell Rep. Kennedy and other Massachusetts Congress Members:
Child Abuse is Wrong at the US-Mexico Border – and in Palestine!
 Massachusetts Rep. Joe Kennedy recently joined with other Democratic members of Congress to observe and condemn the deplorable conditions for families and children held in detention near the US-Mexico border. But unlike his truly progressive colleagues -- like Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Rashida Tlaib and Ilhan Omar -- he apparently sees no problem with the US continuing to finance the abuse of Palestinian children. Israel receives more than $3.8billion in US aid every year. Rep. Betty McCollum (D-MN) has reintroduced her Promoting Human Rights for Palestinian Children Living Under Israeli Military Occupation Act, HR 2407. Last year, a similar bill – the first in Congress to explicitly uphold the human rights of Palestinian children – garnered 30 cosponsors (Including McGovern, Clark and Moulton from Massachusetts) but was blocked in the then Republican-controlled House.
Kennedy has refused repeated requests from constituents to cosponsor HR 2407 to protect Palestinian children. Now people are taking direct action that Kennedy should not be able to ignore:
Newly-elected Rep. Ayanna Pressley was the first – and thus far the only -- Massachusetts Congress member to sign on as a sponsor of this year’s HR 2407. Kudos to her! We hope that the other members of our state delegation who cosponsored last year – and others who did not -- will step up soon, BUT THEY NEED TO HEAR FROM YOU.
Kennedy has complained that the McCollum Bill somehow unfairly “singles out” Israel – even though it makes military aid to any country contingent on upholding the rights of children. Moreover, Kennedy has no problem in ”singling out” the US abuse of migrants at our border – nor in cosponsoring a bill to halt military aid to Honduras for its human rights violations. Years ago, every decent supporter of human rights ”singled out” Apartheid South Africa. No Liberals complained then about it then.
At the same time, Kennedy has signed on as a cosponsor to H.Res. 246, which condemns non-violent civic action to pressure Israel. He is joined in this hypocrisy by Reps. Neal, Keating and Trahan and by Sen. Markey. LET THEM KNOW YOU OPPOSE THIS DOUBLE STANDARD!
An estimated 10,000 Palestinian children have been detained by Israeli security forces and prosecuted in the Israeli military court system since 2000. Independent monitors such as Human Rights Watch have documented that these children are subject to abuse and, in some cases, torture — specifically citing the use of chokeholds, beatings, and coercive interrogation on children between the ages of 11 and 15. Palestinian children are typically seized during nighttime raids on their houses, blindfolded, hauled away and held without prompt access to their families or legal representation.
So far, none of the cosponsors of last year’s McCollum Bill have yet joined Ayanna Pressley to uphold their values in cosponsoring HR 2407.
CALL YOUR REP TODAY!
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