Freedom Forward Analyst Patrick J. Finn, PhD, has written an insightful review of Shapiro’s speech — as well as what Shapiro failed to mention.  While Shapiro spent an awful lot of time talking about the “unwavering commitment to Israel’s security,” he didn’t once mention the word occupation.

In his speech, Shapiro also didn’t mention that the gift of US weapons is what helps Israel maintain that brutal occupation of Palestinian communities.

Shapiro is the Assistant Secretary of State for Political-Military Affairs — the man whose team is the US State Department’s “principal link to the Department of Defense.”

Click here to read Patrick Finn’s insightful analysis.

Mr. Kristof has written a moving piece showing the deadly costs of US tear gas sales to Bahrain’s Khalifa dictatorship:

People here admire much about America and welcomed me into their homes, but there is also anger that the tear gas shells that they sweep off the streets each morning are made by a Pennsylvania company, NonLethal Technologies. It is a private company that declined to comment, but the American government grants it a license for these exports — and every shell fired undermines our image.

Kristof goes on to write:

The repression is ubiquitous. Consider Zainab al-Khawaja, 28, whose husband and father are both in prison and have been tortured for pro-democracy activities, according to human rights reports. Police officers have threatened to cut off Khawaja’s tongue, she told me, and they broke her father’s heart by falsely telling him that she had been shipped to Saudi Arabia to be raped and tortured.

She braved the risks by talking to me about this last week — before she was arrested too.

Reporting like this is what forces US officials to back away from policies that stand in the way of democracy.

Please join us in thanking Mr. Kristof for this important piece.

The YouTube speech was published online the day before International Human Rights Day — Saturday, December 10th.

In that speech, Netanyahu made no mention that the Israeli military uses US taxdollars to force millions of Palestinians to live under a brutal occupation.

Don’t let this blatant misrepresentation of Palestinian suffering go unchallenged.

1.  Click “thumbs down” on YouTube.

2.  Tell Congress that you reject Netanyahu’s latest falsehoods. US taxdollars should not fund Israeli occupation.

If elected US officials or their staff watch this speech, they need to know that voting constituents find it reprehensible.

The Palestinian people deserve freedom.  So long as US tax dollars bankroll the Israeli military, their cause is our moral responsibility.

Your action is especially important because opponents of Palestinian freedom in the US are emailing UNESCO with messages of opposition.

One month back, Palestine was accepted as a full member to the United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) in a landslide vote. Out of 173 total votes, 107 votes supported the move, 52 abstained, and only 14 voted no.

In response, laws written by Congress were immediately triggered that cut off US funding to the UN organization.  US law currently requires a cutoff in aid to any UN organization that recognizes a Palestinian state.  Until the aid cut, US funding for UNESCO accounted for 22% of the agency’s total annual budget — $80 million a year.

Why is UNESCO being punished for recognizing the right to freedom for the Palestinian people?

Please thank UNESCO for its vote.   Palestinians deserve freedom and international recognition.  Congress should stop standing in the way.

Over the past six decades, successive US presidents have repeatedly blocked UN resolutions  that aim to advance Palestinian freedom and justice.  The US is usually one of only a handful of objectors to such resolutions.

To justify its vetoes, the Obama Administration continues to argue that peace for Palestinians can only be achieved through direct negotiations with Israeli leaders.  But such negotiations have failed to deliver a viable solution, and the Israeli government has continued to build settlements on what is left of Palestinian land.

Now, in response to UNESCO’s democratic process, both the United States and Israel have responded with intentions to punish both UNESCO and Palestinians.

In concert with the US’s punitive response, Israeli leaders announced that they will accelerate settlement expansion in the West Bank.

Please email UNESCO today.  UNESCO needs to hear that people in the US support their decision.

Sincerely,

Dalia Marina

Freedom Forward Campaigner

Unfortunately, the US is providing over $1 billion a year in military assistance to an Egyptian military that continues to violate its people’s rights.

As the US Congress debates budget cuts at home, the US Senate has considered new language that would restrict $1.3 billion in aid to Egypt until the Egyptian government completes democratic elections and ensures its citizens’ rights.

Please urge Congress to end US taxpayer support for Egypt’s military regime. The Egyptian people deserve democracy, not another unelected government.

Egypt has consistently received over $1 billion in annual U.S. aid since 1979. Most of the funds have gone towards the Egyptian military – what is referred to today as the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF). Under the leadership of Field Marshall Mohamed Hussein Tantawi, the SCAF has run Egypt’s transitional government.

Egyptians are striving to end the legacy of the Mubarak dictatorship, but the SCAF military government has continued many of the past dictator’s policies. Torture, military trials, and censorship are all still very real in Egypt today – even though the Mubarak years are over.

That’s why US taxpayers should not be forced to subsidize the Egyptian military regime. Please click here to tell Congress that the US government should not be providing military aid to a nondemocratic government in Egypt.

When the Egyptian Revolution began in January 2011, the Obama Administration was hesitant to voice support for the protestors condemning Mubarak. However, the Administration has since rhetorically supported the democratic movement in Egypt and has provided some resources to educate potential political actors about democracy and democratic mechanisms.

However, continuing to provide unconditional aid to Egypt’s military junta could reinforce the same anti-democratic practices that deprived Egypt’s people of their political and civil liberties in previous decades. Please urge Congress to end US tax dollar support for Egypt’s military regime.

Egyptians deserve a full transition to democracy, not another unelected government.

Click here to take action:

http://org2.democracyinaction.org/o/6756/p/dia/action/public/?action_KEY=8881

Sincerely,

Alexandra Robinson

Freedom Forward Campaigner

The authors urge Secretary Clinton to secure the freedom of Bahraini poet Ayat al-Qarmezi and other peaceful Bahraini reform activists.

The authors state, “We are concerned that the US military relationship with Bahrain’s unelected government may be coming at the expense of our support for democracy activists in the country.  The sentencing of Ayat al-Qarmezi and countless others requires us to take a stand for their freedom.

The letter is signed by:

• Khaled Hosseini, Author of The Kite Runner and A Thousand Splendid Suns.
• Nafisa Haji, Author of The Writing on My Forehead and The Sweetness of Tears; Freedom Forward Boardmember.
• Aisha Sultan, Journalist.
• Susanne Pari, Author of The Fortune Catcher).

Full text of letter below:

(PDF version here)

November 18, 2011

Hillary Rodham Clinton
Secretary of State
US Department of State
Harry S. Truman Building
2201 C Street, NW
Washington, DC  20520

Dear Secretary Clinton:

The world has watched with excitement and exhilaration as young people across the Middle East have stood bravely for the ideals of freedom and liberty that are also expressed in the American Constitution and in our Declaration of Independence.  Hope for the future remains high, along with trepidation at the challenges and obstacles to freedom that remain ahead.

As American writers, we are deeply mindful of the importance of freedom of expression that is the American ideal.  In that spirit, we wish to draw your attention to the case of Ayat al-Qarmezi, a twenty-year-old poet who has been sentenced to one year in prison in Bahrain for the recitation of a poem calling for freedom at a pro-reform rally in Manama’s Pearl Roundabout in February, 2011.  She has since been released from prison, though she must still “appeal” her pending prison sentence on November 21st.

Ayat was forced to turn herself in after authorities harassed her family repeatedly and reportedly threatened to kill her brothers.  She alleges that she has been beaten and tortured with electric shocks, all for the crime of crying out, in words, an affirmation for freedom which is the universal right and aspiration of all human beings.  The words of her poem require an answer:  “We are the people who will kill humiliation and assassinate misery. Don’t you hear their cries, don’t you hear their screams?”

We hear Ayat’s screams and urge you to hear them too, and to direct the powers of your office for her release.  We are concerned that the US military relationship with Bahrain’s unelected government may be coming at the expense of our support for democracy activists in the country.  The sentencing of Ayat al-Qarmezi and countless others requires us to take a stand for their freedom.  They were sentenced for political “crimes” – actions which are not crimes at all by the standard that America, at its best, represents. This is a standard that that you have eloquently supported on many occasions.

We urge you to use the power of your office to secure Ayat’s freedom and the freedom of so many other peaceful reform activists.  US foreign policy should be aligned with the Bahraini people who are seeking political reform and freedom.

Sincerely,

Khaled Hosseini
Author of The Kite Runner and A Thousand Splendid Suns

Nafisa Haji
Author of The Writing on My Forehead and The Sweetness of Tears

Aisha Sultan
Journalist

Susanne Pari
Author of The Fortune Catcher

The 12-minute video is worth watching:

Not only does the video talk about the crackdown on protestors, but it also reports on the US military alliance with Bahrain’s dictatorship. ESPN even covers the pending $53 million US arms sale to the Bahraini government — as well as Congressional efforts to stop that sale.

Please take a moment to thank ESPN for this important piece.

We will send a formal thank-you letter to ESPN that includes your name.

So why is our own government proposing the sale of even more weapons to their dictator?

Please click here to tell your elected Members of Congress to oppose the sale.

In recent months, Bahrain’s al-Khalifa regime has cracked downs on numerous Bahraini protestors.  Human rights advocates, teachers, and doctors have been arrested on suspicion of anti-regime sentiments.

So far 40 protesters have been killed and over 1600 have been arrested, some of whom were sentenced to prison in military courts.  Some 2500 Bahrainis lost their jobs as well.

In May of this year, President Obama publicly stated his support for democracy protestors in the Middle East.  As he put it, “If you take the risks that reform entails, you will have the full support of the United States.”

So why is the US maintaining a military relationship with the very Bahraini government that is engaged in these crackdowns?

Click here to urge your Members of Congress to block the proposed arms sale.

The proposed arms sale was announced last month by the Department of Defense.  In their news release (pdf), they announced the proposed sale of American armored Humvees, bunker-buster missiles, and night-vision technology in an agreement that will total $53 million.  The U.S. already approved $200 million in arms sales from American companies in late 2010.

US Representative Jim McGovern of Massachusetts has just introduced House Joint Resolution 80 (pdf), which would block this arms agreement from going forward (link to resolution).  Senator Ron Wyden of Oregon has brought forth an accompanying resolution in the US Senate, Senate Joint Resolution 28 (pdf).

But Members of Congress need to hear from you if they are going to support the ban.  Urge your Member of Congress to add their support.  And if your Member of Congress IS Rep. McGovern or Senator Wyden, tell them thank you.

Click here:   http://org2.democracyinaction.org/o/6756/p/dia/action/public/?action_KEY=8511

Right now in Bahrain, innocent civilians are calling for basic freedom and political reform.  Our own government should not be selling military equipment to the very government that is repressing them.

Sincerely,

Alexandra Robinson
Freedom Forward Campaigner

The heart-breaking drawings captured the oppression and brutality of life under Israel’s economic blockade and military attacks.  But under pressure from pro-Israel groups in the community, the Museum of Children’s Art (MOCHA) pulled the plug.

Click here to tell the Museum of Children’s Art that Gaza’s children deserve to be heard.

The campaign to censor the exhibit had the support of major pro-Israeli organizations in the California Bay Area.  Key Jewish American organizations in the community even boasted of their success in blocking the Gaza children’s art exhibit.

The Jewish Federation of the East Bay publicly bragged about their success via twitter:

Even worse, the museum’s board of directors released a statement that defended rather than apologized for their censorship.  Board Chair Hilmon Sorey called the drawings “graphically violent and sensitive works,” and he cited the museum’s lack of policy towards such content as the reason for the exhibit’s cancellation.

But these concerns did not stop the museum from displaying the art of Iraqi children a few years earlier.

Click here to tell the Museum of Children’s Art that you disagree with their decision.

Americans need to know about the effects of our foreign policy in the Middle East.  Our tax dollars fund the very Israeli military that forces nearly 4 million Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza Strip to live under military occupation.

If there is any silver lining to the pro-Israel lobby’s campaign, it is the coverage it received on NPR and elsewhere.  The organization that brought us the exhibit — the Middle East Children’s Alliance – deserves our thanks.

Click here to tell the Museum of Children’s Art that Gaza’s victims should not be censored. These children deserve the chance to have their voices heard.

Thank you for taking action.

Sincerely,

Alexandra Robinson
Freedom Forward Campaigner

Why are elected US officials trying to block Palestinian freedom?

Please tell your Member of Congress that you oppose their vote.  And if your Member of Congress was among the brave minority who did not oppose Palestinian efforts, please thank them.

Click here to take action.

The pro-Israel lobby has been pushing the US Congress to oppose Palestinian efforts.   Led by the American Israel Public Affairs Committee — or AIPAC — the pro-Israel lobby is campaigning in Congress against the Palestinian bid for statehood at the UN.

In response, the US House of Representatives and US Senate recently passed official resolutions opposing the Palestinian campaign at the UN.  These resolutions (H. Res. 268 and S. Res. 185) call on the Obama Administration oppose the Palestinian campaign.

In the US House of Representatives, 407 out of 435 elected representatives voted for the anti-Palestinian resolution.  In the US Senate, the resolution was passed by unanimous consent, with 90 out of 100 senators even cosponsoring the resolution.

Please tell Congress to stop blocking Palestinian freedom.  Click here to take action.

Right now, elected officials are used to hearing primarily from the pro-Israel lobby.  We need to turn the tide so that elected officials who stand against freedom feel the heat — and officeholders who do the right thing earn our praise.

Members of Congress are calling on Palestinian leaders to drop their UN efforts and return to direct negotiations with Israel.  But Israel has already stalled peace talks and rejected compromises for a “two-state” solution.  Meanwhile, the Israeli government continues to build Jewish-only settlements in the West Bank that are illegal under international law.  These settlements are making a “two-state solution” less and less possible.

UN recognition of a Palestinian state does not prevent future negotiations.  It just makes the Palestinian call for freedom even louder.  As Palestinians push for their freedom, the United States Congress needs to get on the right side.

Click here to take action:
http://org2.democracyinaction.org/o/6756/p/dia/action/public/?action_KEY=8182

Sincerely,

Alexandra Robinson
Freedom Forward Campaigner