The road to liberation is paved with organizing

Palestinians are facing a moment of great uncertainty.

The Israeli regime is openly calling for the annihilation of the Palestinian people, and it’s clear the U.S. government will place no limits on Israel’s ambitions to carry this through.

We are inspired by the activism against Cop City and by the recent campaign victory to pressure Barcelona to end sister ties with Tel Aviv. 

Right now, it is essential that we remember our power, so we do not get stuck in hopelessness.

We are taking some time to strategize potential interventions.  As we do this, I want to share some key reflections with you on how far we’ve come as a movement and how we can continue to build pressure to end Israel’s oppression of the Palestinian people. 

Zionism is losing the new generation.

We are now in a moment where Palestine is integral to the social justice package. Efforts to exclude Palestinians from the circle of solidarity are failing. 

This is especially true among young people. Israel’s apartheid advocates don’t even try to contest the narrative anymore: they know they’ve lost public opinion. 

Instead, we’re seeing more efforts by them to lean on institutional power, with new campaigns to suppress pro-Palestine activism on campus and conflate anti-semitism with criticism of the Israeli state.

There are several reasons for this: 
 ★Firstly, for more than a decade, students have been stirring up campus politics and energizing young Palestinian, Arab, Muslim, and anti-Zionist Jews to take up the Palestinian cause and organize alongside a broad multi-racial coalition of students invested in anti-racist, indigenous, and decolonial struggles.

★Secondly, Palestinians living under occupation are using social media to expose the reality of life under a settler colonial regime, bringing Palestine to the consciousness of millions of young people in the West.

★Thirdly, boycott and divestment campaigns have played a massive role in growing the tide against apartheid. From over 80 successful campus divestment votes to ending police exchanges between the US and Israel, our movement has secured 250+ BDS victories.  These campaigns are what propel droves of people to see Israel for what it is: an expanding settler-colonial project.

The Israeli state and its allies spend hundreds of millions of dollars to suppress BDS activism through laws that criminalize, financially punish, or exclude BDS supporters both in Palestine and the U.S.

Those who support apartheid understand the power of a broad movement for boycott, divestment, and sanctions— BDS holds a storied social justice legacy and numerous opportunities for each and every one of us to get involved and engage our own communities. 

That’s precisely why we’re seeing other movements, from climate justice to gun control advocates, adopt boycott and divestment as a strategy. 

We have the strategies we need to build our movement, and we must use them.

With the new extreme and openly genocidal Israeli government (and a Biden administration clear in its refusal to hold Israel accountable), now is the time to reclaim our organizing power. 

While the work to organize, pressure and support members of Congress is important, it’s time to turn back to local campaigns supported by a broad and powerful national infrastructure. 

We need to make sure people committed to changing the hearts and minds of their local communities are as supported as those working in D.C. We need both to advance our struggle.

The power is in each and every one of us, and we know you have been looking for guidance on where to direct your commitment and energy for Palestinian freedom. It’s time to take back our power and use the tools that we know work. 

For these reasons, Adalah Justice Project is launching a new BDS campaign this spring. Our campaign will build on our analysis that Palestine is not an isolated issue but rather one connected to freedom struggles the world over. Stay tuned!

We are excited to build power with you this year.

Much love and solidarity,
Izzy from Adalah Justice Project