Dubbs4ClimateLiberation

Instead of calling for the arrest of violent settlers & IDF soldier who detained Americans, former Congresswoman Manning criticizes me for taking a Palestinian led trip to the West Bank. I want to respectfully address this criticism head on because we desperately need more American politicians to take trips like the ones I did. I had been to Israel three times before my trip to Palestine. I had met with PM Bennett and PM Netanyahu. I have met with the families of Oct 7 terrorist attacks, including Jon and Rachel Polin who lost their beloved son Hersh. Can an American politician not take one Palestinian led trip to the occupied territories to learn the facts on the ground? Must every trip be curated through the Israel government or pro Israel advocacy groups? Will any trip that is through the lens of Palestinian eyes be dismissed as a stunt? What is most surprising to me is Congresswoman Manning dismisses my experience of being seen first as Brown and second as an American in the West Bank. I have never felt personally such an acute sting of race in America. When traveling in Palestine with a small group of others who were White, I was singled out and asked my faith. I was subject to longer interrogations at checkpoints. I was laughed at and mocked by violent settlers. And I saw firsthand the IDF taking the side of violent settlers much like the police forces sided with segregationists in the Jim Crow South. I am not nearly as eloquent as Ta-Nehisi Coates. But any person of color will feel how he or I did if they visit the occupied territories for even 24 hours. What is happening in Palestine is a betrayal of Judaism or the ideals of Israel. I wish Congresswoman Manning and others who love Israel would open their eyes and help work to redeem the soul of the nation they love by ending the oppression.